My Beef With Bible Study

Plus: a sold-out family camp, crying when my neighbor died, and determined beetles

Hello! Hope you’re well. Here’s the latest:

Gather ‘Round

I had the privilege of bringing Holy Ghost Stories to some University of Arkansas students recently. Their hungry attention was proof of the enchanted power of Biblical narrative—especially when we take a moment to experience it as story.

I love getting to sit inside these moments with live audiences, and I’m leaning into creating more of these opportunities in the coming year. (Some very exciting things on the horizon!) If you’d like to bring HGS to your people, I’d love to talk. Reply and tell me what you’re thinking.

Paying Attention to God > Bible Study

I posted these thoughts on Instagram recently and they struck a chord, so I wanted to share them here: Paying attention to God is better than Bible study.

There. I said it.

To be clear, I believe there’s value in what usually call “Bible study.” But I also believe your Bible should be less an object of study and more a tent of meeting in which you gaze upon God.

This credo has changed my faith and lies at the foundation of Holy Ghost Stories. So here’s my humble argument for a different kind of interaction with Scripture.

3 Reasons to balance your Bible study with some focused meditation on Yahweh:

1. Scripture is a means, not an end.

God did not give us the Bible so that we would know the Bible. He gave us the Bible so that we would know Him.

2. Stories want to be stories.

While it’s fine to draw behavioral lessons from narrative Scripture, our primary objective should be spending time with God in the core memories He’s preserved for us.

3. Meditation draws you close.

While study makes an object out of something (or someone), meditating on a story about God (or even one of His laws) pulls you closer to His heart. “Who is He, really?” “What’s driving His behavior?” “What does He really enjoy?” “What gets on His nerves?” “What does He do again and again?” These questions draw us into Yahweh’s presence (especially when we talk to Him as we meditate). “What kind of leader should I be?” is a fine question, but results in a different experience.

(By the way, if you’re not sure exactly how to approach the Bible this way, Bonfire should be a great resource for you. It’s a 10-week guide to encountering God in the story of the Exodus. If you enjoyed HGS Season 4, this is the perfect next step as you move toward balancing your study with some meditation.)

Storied Family Camp Is Sold Out

Wow. I haven’t gotten a chance to share this, but Storied Family Camp sold out a full four months before the event. The team and I were delighted to see how much interest there was in an experience like this, and cannot wait to give families a weekend full of fun, connection, adventure, and inspiration.

In fact, we’re so excited about Storied Family Camp that we’ve decided to open spots for two more families. So! If you’re interested, head over and grab your place before it’s gone—we’d love to have you.

(Oh—and if you’re new here or missed it somehow, here’s what Storied Family Camp is.)

Got Plans Sept 8-9?

My wife and I will be leading a Storied Family workshop outside of Nashville next month. It’s open to the public and we’d love to have you!

Friday night we’ll focus on marriage, and Saturday morning we’ll talk parenting. (Disclaimer: we are not parenting—or marriage—experts.😅 But we love both and are happy to share what we’ve learned along the way.)

Childcare and food will be provided at no cost, and we’ll also be having a roundtable discussion with our teenage daughters—should be fun.

The event is free, thanks to our gracious hosts—but you’ll need to register.

A New Season Draws Nigh

When is the next season of Holy Ghost Stories happening? Soon enough, my friend.

I’m sharing the Season 5 premiere date with patrons over on Patreon this week, and I’ll also be giving my beloved patrons the chance to help me choose which stories we jump into this season.🎉

If you’d like to have a voice in that decision, by all means: come on board as a patron. If you’ve been a listener for a while, perhaps now is the time to become a contributor and help make it possible for me to tell these stories to the world.

5 Cool Things

Lectio 365’s Pilgrimage Series - I’ve recommended Lectio 365 before, but their recent series on pilgrimage was so very good. A great way to start your next 21 mornings. (You can also find it in the ‘archive’ tab on their app.)

Well Dung👏 - When this species of beetle gets gobbled by a frog, it simply crawls out of its predator through its backside. For real—scientists have run experiments to verify this behavior. (“93 percent of the beetles he fed to the frog Pelophylax nigromaculatus escaped the predator’s ‘vent’—aka anus—within four hours, ‘frequently entangled in fecal pellets.’”) I suppose Jonah didn’t think to do this.

And He Was Ours - Did you catch this extraordinary essay? A story about neighbors, death, and cats that is not to be missed.

Missing - This movie was surprisingly good. The entire story is told through screens (FaceTime, Youtube, security cameras, instagram posts, text messages) and it really works. A fun study in creative storytelling and a good movie night pick.

Bonfire: A Guide to Encountering God in the Exodus - I love what JL and I were able to put together for you, and I hope it’s a great help as you seek a less “studious” quiet time.

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That’s the latest!

Don’t forget to hit me back if you’re dreaming about bringing Holy Ghost Stories to your people.

Gratefully,
Justin