Yes, the Bible can be confusing at times. But there is a secret to reading the Bible that will help you understand. But before I share this secret with you (I promise I will), let's start off with the basics.
What is the Bible? It's like a library of books. There are historical, poetic, narrative, letters, and proverbs just to name a few. This library of books is written by the Holy Spirit through many different authors.
What's in the Bible? There are not many details in the books, but if there is a detail, it is because it is important. For example, Luke 16:19 says "A rich man dressed in purple and fine linen." Back in biblical times, purple was the hardest color to dye. So it was a way to show off you were loaded. So if the passage was written today, Jesus might have said "A rich dude with a toilet made of gold."
Why is there a Bible? The Bible is like an owner's manual for your life rather than your car. It teaches us how to act in certain situations, gives us encouraging words when feeling deflated, and gives us the best chance to thrive in the world.
How do I read the Bible? It can be confusing and tough to pick apart...that's because we're not meant to pick apart the Bible, the Bible is supposed to pick us apart. It should pull back the layers of our lives and teach us how to improve on them. What's more likely to need correction, a compilation of books inspired by the Holy Spirit or you and me?
**Disclaimer, if some of the Bible confuses you, talk to a priest or someone who can shed a new light on it. There may be a deeper part of the passage you may be missing.
Love is... A lot of people say that love is a feeling...they are wrong. Love is more than a feeling #Boston #GoodMusic. Love is an action.
The Catholic Church sometimes replaces the word "love" with "charity." The definition of love has been tainted, but charity has not. Charity is giving without expecting anything in return. Love isn't a give and take, it is just give. Love is putting someone else's interests above your own. That means treating your date like a person rather than a scorecard, not seeking revenge, offering to help in any way, and the list goes on.
Why do people think it's a feeling? Two reasons. The first is because the feeling belongs to the receiver of the love. It gives the receiver a sense of belonging and importance. You don't need a feeling to express love towards someone. It is simply putting their needs before your own. The second is that expressing charity towards someone creates a feel good chemical in your brain called endorphins. Kind of like when you eat ice cream or watch your favorite tv show. But unlike tv or ice cream, love doesn't always create endorphins quickly, but they last much longer. The happiest people in the world are the ones who express charity to others...do you want to be happy?
Ways to love...babysit your younger siblings for your parents, do your chores without being told, help someone with their homework, pay for someone's meal, pray with someone,
Life is like a boxing match. Yes, many of us were disappointed in what turned out to be the Mayweather/Pacquiao dance off, but I digress. On a more positive note, in boxing, you need to keep your pace. If you stay with your opponent, it means that you're letting them dictate the bout and you will lose. In life, we allow what goes on around us to dictate how we act. Let's say you failed a test. That's a solid punch in the nose. Do you study more next time, or do you think "I hate my life. This test punched me in the nose." If a boxer did that in the ring, they'd get knocked again and again and again.
Bad things are going to happen to us. We can't change the past, but we can use it to improve the future. If you keep forgetting to do your chores and you get grounded. That's like a boxer letting his defenses slip and get hit with a left cross. Learn to keep that right hand up to block the next left cross of your parents grounding you by doing the chores on time.
"Jason, why'd you use boxing?" Because if you give up you get beaten worse. Life is about rolling with the punches and making adjustments as needed. So next time you get hit with a bad grade, a break up, bad news, or something else, are you going to just complain, or are you going to learn to defend against it the next time?
Yes, the Bible can be confusing at times. But there is a secret to reading the Bible that will help you understand. But before I share this secret with you (I promise I will), let's start off with the basics.