Quite a few people have heard my complaints about how some of the questions are phrased in BSF and may have left with the mistaken ideas about it as well as my position on it. The fact is, currently, I'm still persevering in the system and fully intend to sign up for it again next year!
Like any other man-made system, including church congregations, there are flaws but would I have been able to come up with a better system myself?
Fact is, this system is the only system so far that had encouraged my daily QT, bible reading and prayer time. It has brought into my life friends-in-Christ who has the common and strong desire to read and understand what God is saying - free of the prejudices and biases of men's interpretation. Our discussions, encompassing all the lay people from different church backgrounds and spiritual experiences, do have the effect of broadening up our minds and gaining joy that our God is the head of a diverse yet united Church.
An added surprise is that I've come to know BSF leaders - humble, caring and showing genuine desire to do God's will in their lives - who upheld me in prayer, supported me when I was down and cared enough to contact me every week to find out how I'm doing.
Their structure also encouraged me to go through the same bible passages 4 times - first by myself while working through the questions each day, second in group discussion, third in a lecture by lay people and last in BSF notes (which are the same no matter which country we go to) that helped me understand the international perspective.
The truth is for me, this simple discipline of reading the bible daily, quietly; of weekly patiently really listening to others' answers and squelching my natural desire to interrupt with my "model" answer; of humbly willing myself to be taught by another lay person; of reading the BSF notes with an open mind; had helped me grow in knowledge and understanding of what God is saying. And with it, the consistent reminder of the greatest Hope and Joy in my salvation that leads to the Peace that surpasseth all understanding.
In the end, it is not THE ONE bible seminar or workshop that will MOVE me. Ultimately, it is these simple, consistent disciplines that help me LIVE.
2 comments:
Yeah, some of the questions are "leading" you to somewhere, may not be the only way to be led though. However, it's the community of people who are willing to learn the Bible in a systematic and regular basis. It's more about the 'volume' of studies and the 'wholeness' that make BSF a 'better' (but maybe not perfect) bible study. You should tell your leader about your comments on her :P
Yah, really dislike the questions that lead me to the authors' conclusions, which was why I had complained so much about it beforehand.
You are right though, the amazing diversity of answers and seeing how others in the community understood the same passage is a revelation to me and my own shortcomings in interpreting the same passage.
And totally agree with you that though the system is super simple, the continual compounding of volume and the study of the whole book (or related books) in one go really go a long way towards helping me grow in understanding.
Hehe, I think she knows, Probato.
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