The perfect Christmas gift?

 

Photo by Kira auf der Heide on Unsplash

       In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1). 

A verse that we will hear again and again over Christmas, and rightly so. It's also a verse that I have a new appreciation for as it's God's word that I've being studying and seeing afresh over the past few months of this year and its reawakened my appreciation of the Bible.

In April 2024, I went back to studying. I started with a chaplaincy course during my sabbatical, and this was part of my graduate diploma in Mission, ministry and Theology. My latest module has been on the Bible in Context, and I've learnt so much, mainly on how to go beyond the surface level of Scripture. 

And the main reason for my blog post - which I'm afraid will be a very short one, as I am spinning a lot of plates right now - is that our core text book for the module was Grasping God's Word by J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays. It will transfer the way that you look at Scripture. 

 I'd love to write more but I'm preaching on Sunday, so I'm writing this shortly before going away as I know I won't have time then. 

 Hope you have a peaceful Christmas and know a deeper sense of God's love for you in the New Year, and that you get at least one book you haven't read yet :)  

 I'd love to hear your favioutire book of the year, and maybe what you are looking forward to reading in 2026! 

 Let me know in the comments or on Facebook 

 

Martin is a writer, baker, photographer and storyteller. He's been published in the ACW Christmas anthology and Lent devotional. He's currently honing his craft at flash fiction and you can find him on Twitter here.