Bible Study? You've got to be kidding!

I'm a bible geek, I admit it. Ever since I found out that it's possible to love God with one's mind (and be loved by God with the experiences of spiritual insight) I love reading the Bible.  And particularly, I love reading it with other people.  On Wednesday mornings a group of pastors in my town meet for mutual encouragement and prayer.  We start out with "a word from the Word" where we take turns sharing what we've been studying from the bible recently.  It's the most amazing thing!  Words from scripture become God's Word to us, as we reflect on what we've read, and how those words from the Word have touched us.  Those words both comfort and challenge us as pastors, and drive us to articulate what it is we've heard, for the building up of each other.
It's probably useless to moan and groan about the level of biblical illiteracy these days.  When too many people use the Bible to do such awful things (shaming, being the most reprehensible on my list) it's easy to let serious Bible study fall away.  Still, somebody has to do serious reading and listening. "But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him?" [Romans 10:14]  It's a good thing I love to do this, since that's what I'm called to do.
Watch this space for upcoming comments about the next study series on the book of Ephesians:  the unity of the church--What's at stake?