I write fact and fiction. In my contemporary novel, “Kiss Your Mommy Goodbye,” I use fictional characters to tell the story of broken relationships that happen in real life. In my historical novel, “Letters from the Past,” I used actual characters and let them tell their stories through fictional letters to today’s woman. In my devotionals, I used real-life scenarios to convey spiritual lessons. In my Bible studies, I used the Bible so that readers can answer personal application questions for true heart transformation.
But God, in His infallible Word does so much more. He used a few people – few in comparison to the millions and billions of people who have lived on earth – to tell His story. The Scriptures are an actual account of events that happened from the beginning of time to the end of time regardless if man wants to ignore, disbelieve, erase, or change it to suit his own agenda.
In God’s story, the people are real. They had names. They had occupations. They had relationships. These biblical characters had trials and sorrows and calamities just like we have today. It hosts more than facts and figures of wars and its casualties; commands and disobedience, judges and kings, priests and prophets, apostles and disciples. It has a heartbeat. God’s heartbeat!
The Bible is fast paced but lingers in just the right places so we can know the actual people written on its pages. People who cried tears and ones who laughed with joy, ones who strained under struggles and ones who rose up victorious. Those who cried because of disappointments for desires not met, others who were challenged to what seemed impossible to achieve and yet they marched in the winner’s parade.
The Bible addresses every emotion known to man. For instance, one of the most common emotions is anxiety. Through this example, we can learn a valuable lesson from the birds. When we are up at 2:00am being anxious over something outside our control, the sparrows are not pacing back and forth in their nests. They are resting. That is why we don’t hear birds chirping at 2:00am. The Bible reassures us that if God takes care of the sparrows, how much more does He care for His children. Anxiety from a vivid imagination triggers fear, and fear and anxiety live in a psychological state where God is absent.
However, because God is present throughout His Book, it is life changing, inspiring, and filled with truth that gives hope and encouragement to those who believe and consequences for those who rebel. It expounds on wars and famines, diseases and natural disasters. It explores the trials and outcomes of real people who battled the woes of the world on a personal level just as we do today. It portrays romance, love and marriage, tender times and brutal times. It raises unanswerable questions and answers the questions man needs to know for an intimate relationship with the Book’s Author. The Bible teaches us to love God above all else and to love others as ourselves. If we strive to do these two commands, we do well with no regrets.
From the creation of the world to the pending destruction of the world, it bookends the sum of man. It is God who knows the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet revealed. So we learn what we can, apply what we know, and leave the mysteries to God.
Be encouraged, loved ones. God loves you with an immense and eternal love. We can know the truth of this because He said so in His Word.