Have you ever traveled internationally? If you have, I’m sure you’ve seen the reality of differing cultural values. You can often tell you’re rubbing up against a different cultural value when you have one of those head-tilting (or fist-clenching) “why on earth are they doing that?” moments. Some cultures see time as a specific value as shown on my watch, others as the appropriate timing as dictated by life events. Some cultures prize privacy, and some prize interconnectedness and hospitality. Some value planning ahead and saving for the future, others value enjoying life in the here-and-now. Which of these is correct? Well, it depends on who you talk to.
Cultural differences can be the source of hilarious blunders and extreme frustration. They can also lead to profound miscommunication. Talk to anyone who has spent an extended amount of time living abroad, and they will have ample stories to illustrate.
We expect some level of culture difference when we travel—it’s why we use terms like “culture shock”—because we recognize that we’re entering into a cross-cultural experience. We prepare ourselves. But when was the last time we consciously prepared ourselves for a cross-cultural experience when we picked up the Bible?
Most of us have been there—sitting down in the morning, cup of coffee in one hand, Bible in the other. We flip through thin pages until we find where we left off the day before, and we pick up with the next chapter or verse. The tiny words dance in front of our eyes, as we try to concentrate, try to pay attention to what the Lord might have for us in His Word that morning. We read the section—a few verses, a few chapters—and although we know we did something good by taking the time to read the Bible, we’re left with the question “now what?” as we end. So we sigh, not sure how to approach this passage of Scripture, not really sure what to do with it, we close the covers of our Bibles and put it away until (hopefully) the next morning.
While I hope that this is not always the case for us, friends, I know there are seasons in which we need something fresh to apply to our Bible study. It is not that the Bible is insufficient. It is that our eyes and ears need some freshening up. We need to cycle back to the simple basics.
I have said previously that there is more to spiritual disciplines than the traditional evangelical “quiet time.” This is true. But regardless of what our spiritual life may look like, we cannot escape the importance of the Bible. It must find a place in our walk with the Lord—though what that looks like may vary based on our season of life or temperament. The Bible contains the words of God for us. It reminds us who He is, what He has done, and what He is doing. It shows us his way to live, inviting us into the abundant life of following his commands. We cannot set the Bible aside or shrug off the critical importance it holds for the Christian life.
