I was never a big reader as a kid. You wouldn’t find me stuck in a book or waiting for the next in a series to come out. I liked to play outside, do art projects, or watch cartoons from time to time. I was lazy when it came to reading. It took too long and I would get lost on the pages. However, I’d love when my grandmother would read to us.
She’d read fairytales or poetry where she’d incorporate accents and inflections. She had a way with making it feel like we were there with the characters, in another world, instead of snuggled up in our cozy bed.
Despite my lack of reading as a kid, the characters I’d connected with in the stories and shows I watched had a big impact on me. For as long as time goes, humans have been influenced by the character of others.
Fast forward to my adulthood and I wanted to pursue more writing. It hit me that if I wanted to be a stronger writer, I’d need to read more. Throughout college I’d read my school books more intentionally, and I’d listen to self help books recommended by the podcasts I’d listen to.
I still found myself bored.
It wasn’t until I’d been invited to join a bible study with a group of women at the church I’d recently started attending. The bible study was based on a workbook called Seamless by Angie Smith. The idea of the study was to weave together stories throughout the bible that helped to paint the whole picture. I’d only recently become curious about the bible and it would have been my first time committing to something like that.
As a non religious, non reading person, this was way out of my comfort zone.
I did enjoy the bible study. There were a couple cringy moments where I felt like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The women in the group were all kind, though the topics that would get brought up would often challenge me in ways that I’d later learn was God shaping my own character.
After the study ended, I remember feeling a growing curiosity about what we’d covered in the bible. Prior to the study, I didn’t know how the bible was laid out.
I learned that it was broken into “books”, containing stories within the different chapters. I learned about the “parables” that Jesus shared. I learned about the “letters” that were written. It was much more accessible and relatable than I’d given it credit for in the past.
Thankfully, one of the girls from the bible study must have noticed that I was wanting more. She’d asked me if I’d be interested in going through the book of John verse by verse with her for an hour or so every week.
Despite gaining more confidence with the Seamless study we’d done as a group, this study through the book of John was my first true bible study. I noticed myself invested in every word. I don’t know if it was the fact that I was “studying” or if I wanted to impress my friend. It may very well have been that I was actually interested in what we were reading. Either way, it was transforming me before I could catch on to what was happening.
I’d find myself journaling about the scripture we’d read that week. I took note of how it related to my life in the past, present, and future. I’d think on the areas that I didn’t understand, trying to form my own understanding around what I was reading.
It was truly an amazing turning point in my life and in my faith. I was reading to understand. I was studying the characters I was being introduced to. I felt like the words were seeping in deeper than any media I’d taken in so far.
As with any show or book we get excited about, I started to share with others what I’d been interested in. A mentor and friend of mine took notice, buying me my first bible with my name engraved in the leather cover. The snowball continued.
I was jotting notes in the sidebars, tucking my scribbled on handouts from church in the pages. I became a believer. I was drinking the kool-aid. I found myself completely stoked on Jesus. The people (or characters) in scripture are ones I’ve been able to relate to at all points of my life. I’ve found peace, accepted circumstances, and felt better overall simply from reading scripture.
My journey with reading, writing, and growing as a believer is ever evolving. I’m not perfect, I still struggle with sin, and I keep going back.
You may have gone to church your entire life and never taken the time to really open up a bible on your own. You may have never gone to church and find yourself curious about this Jesus guy. You may read your bible every day. The beautiful thing about scripture is that it is available to all to us. It is a living, breathing, word from God that has the power to change everything.
If you are curious, start small. If you are turned off by the idea, don’t feel pressured to start at all. If you are stagnant in your reading, reach out to me.
My hope for you is that you realize the bible is more than a book for you to read. It is a tool to guide us and shape us throughout our life. It is a book of stories, poems, and letters that relate. It is a gift from God that was designed to help us to live our best life.
Makenna Curtis
Local Pulse Community Writer
Holy Moments
