Word!

"Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?" ~Jesus

When I first became Christian, there was much ado about which translation of the Bible was the "real" word of God. The question of the day was a smug, "You don't read thaaaat version of the Bible do you?" I still remember the sting of being told that I should desire the "pure milk" of the word that was only found in one particular translation of the scriptures. When I read those translations (and I did) I spent more time trying to make out the meanings of the archaic words than I did living them. Simple stories became excruciating exercises of exegesis. All joy was lost in the muddle of verbiage. How was I ever going to be able to read this to children? It was then that I grabbed onto the above verse.

I asked my heavenly Father for bread and trusted that He wouldn't give me a stone. He desires me to have the pure milk of the word just as much as I desire not to be deceived by the teachings of men or led astray by the empty ceremony and tradition of religion. When I question the meaning and translation behind the words I read, the resources are there for me to take it back to the original languages if I feel the need. It's such a relief to read the Bible in a language I can relate to though. The Word comes to life! 

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." ~John 1:14