Beyond Binding Books

My husband is great at strategically overseeing things and proactively offering help to potential problems that he may see arising. A recent one he’s noticed is that my bible that is well used dating to my teenage years, is about to lose its spine. He’s been asking me for over 6 months if he could take it in to get it rebound for me as a gift… but I’ve resisted just not wanting to be without it even for a day. I know it sounds ridiculous or perhaps, “the right” thing to say, but truth is I have not been without it for a single day for the past 10 years. It is often just a reach away. Even in my car, planes, hotel rooms, foreign countries, etc..etc. My husband and daughter can testify to this. Nonetheless, just recently I had a dream that pages started to come out of the binding and I awoke saddened but knew it was a warning to get it done.

My husband with a joyful patience, took me to the Book Binder Friday. A pleasant lady inspected my bible and instantly saw the value I had with it even before I asked if she could do same day service? She laughed. My husband even offered to pay more… (what a sweetie he is). Creatively, she worked something out for me.

What I found interesting was I could tell she didn’t value the bible the same, she didn’t understand its “ridiculous” worth? But her comment as we left impacted me profoundly. For though she didn’t know our God as her Lord and Savior, there was no denying that out of all the books she’s rebound, the way people cherished the transition of their bibles to her promised care, left her with a conviction whether she wanted it or not, that, “perhaps there was something of greater worth in those pages?”

I am often left in awe how God simply reaches to so many, even those that are far away from Him in ways that you and I have no idea.

Not just that, but how it would be a fraction of the price to simply go and buy another bible, yet so many would pay triple to simply have it rebound. Is there any other book that demands such time, attention, care, devotion and legacy?

Even this morning as I study His word, Peter captures it so beautifully in saying “God has given us EVERYTHING WE NEED for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him.” (2 Peter 1:3) The best way to have knowledge of God is to study His words, that give account of His life and ways, but also help us to understand the way He speaks and who He is. It’s a magnifying glass into a realm that is divine and beyond understanding. He doesn’t even stop there but says in the next verse, “He has given us his VERY GREAT and PRECIOUS promises, so that through them we may participate in the divine nature and ESCAPE the corruption of the world caused by evil desires.” (2 Peter 1:4)

Behold HIS VERY PROMISES which are not just good but VERY GOOD AND PRECIOUS!!!! Hold Him to His promises.. He loves that!! He is faithful. We just don’t have a clue what half of His promises are!!! For if we did we wouldn’t walk around wallowing that’s for sure.

It’s not His promises alone, but also the escape mechanism He offers so freely to us. I have found this and love it… for when I am deep in scripture even just meditating on a verse and need to go to something else, even just a meeting, everything seems a bit more dim… mundane sometimes. There’s times when I’m listening to scripture in my car and have a deep thought arrive at Walmart and as I turn the car off I don’t even want to go into the store. I feel for a moment I have escaped the busyness and distracted society. Strange.. but true.

I’m starting to understand more and more the power of His words in my life and it does something to me. It intoxicates my soul with a heavenly honey that keeps me wanting more. In one verse there are simply so many layers that there is no other hand written work that can do such marvelous things.

I want to immerse His word into my heart that I would utter worthy things all my life. Things that make people say, “She sounds just like her Dad.’ You got it… my Heavenly Dad.

What a compliment. Oh to be His glory, to represent Him in any way possible. That others may know of His goodness. Yes, even the local bookbinder.