This is what some folks want when they read the Bible: they open their Bible looking for a good word, but by "good word" they mean a daily habit of reading the Bible in search of a blessing (a quiet moment of affirmation or a flush of confidence) or a promise (God, tell me something nice and something good about me and my day). So, they read the passage with that end in view.Let me back down one moment before I push harder: yes, God is good and God blesses us and God offers us incredible promises in the pages of the Bible. We need this; we need it daily. No, I don't question the goodness of God but I question the goodness of reading the Bible habitually in search of a promise or a blessing. Here's why, and I address this in The Blue Parakeet: Rethinking How You Read the Bible
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Question: What do you think of the Smiley Face approach to Bible reading? Do you see problems? What kind of problems?
First, God tends to become our servant and our need provider and the Great Big Blesser. In other words, this approach to Bible reading tends to see God as One who makes us happy. This short circuits the fuller approach to Bible reading.
Second, this tends to turn the Bible into verses and lines and statements instead of a coherent narrative that begins with creation and leads us to Christ. I don't believe it is enough to read passages of the Bible in search of a blessing or a promise. Yes, there are blessings and promises along the way -- but they are part of that Story and need to be read in that context.
Third, if Thomas Jefferson cut out verses from the Bible, imagine what happens if we read the Bible as little more than blessings and promises! Whoosh, out goes Job. Whoosh, out goes Ecclesiastes. Whoosh, out goes the Exile. Whoosh, out goes the Temptation of Jesus. Whoosh, out goes all kinds of stuff.
Fourth, reading the Bible as a collection of promises and blessings turns the Bible into a Hallmark calendar of blessings and promises. The Bible is not that. It is so much more.
Finally, think of what this does to the Christian life and spirituality: it turns everything into the quest for happiness and the quest for inner contentment and the quest for self-affirmation. Friends, God is more than your Yes-God; sometimes God is the Naysaying-God.
Frankly, some days are good and some days are bad. Some days we sin and some days we do right. And the Bible speaks to and in each of those circumstances.
First, God tends to become our servant and our need provider and the Great Big Blesser. In other words, this approach to Bible reading tends to see God as One who makes us happy. This short circuits the fuller approach to Bible reading.
Second, this tends to turn the Bible into verses and lines and statements instead of a coherent narrative that begins with creation and leads us to Christ. I don't believe it is enough to read passages of the Bible in search of a blessing or a promise. Yes, there are blessings and promises along the way -- but they are part of that Story and need to be read in that context.
Third, if Thomas Jefferson cut out verses from the Bible, imagine what happens if we read the Bible as little more than blessings and promises! Whoosh, out goes Job. Whoosh, out goes Ecclesiastes. Whoosh, out goes the Exile. Whoosh, out goes the Temptation of Jesus. Whoosh, out goes all kinds of stuff.
Fourth, reading the Bible as a collection of promises and blessings turns the Bible into a Hallmark calendar of blessings and promises. The Bible is not that. It is so much more.
Finally, think of what this does to the Christian life and spirituality: it turns everything into the quest for happiness and the quest for inner contentment and the quest for self-affirmation. Friends, God is more than your Yes-God; sometimes God is the Naysaying-God.
Frankly, some days are good and some days are bad. Some days we sin and some days we do right. And the Bible speaks to and in each of those circumstances.
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Scot, this is why I've had some problems with The Shack. It seems to present that God is only and always loving. What about the jealous God? And the God of righteous anger? The book seemed a little one-sided to me.
Smiley face bible reading involves the readers life too - they probably think their purpose is to be this smiley face influence in other's lives, and, as you point out, it cuts out what makes the rest of the whole of human experience. What a burden for someone to carry since they have non smiley face moments, days......
I agree with what Scot and additional posters have written, as one who teaches and preaches primarily from a perspective of the responsibilities of Christians.
I would only temper my comment by saying that there are certain seekers and new and young Christians who come from a background of personal abuse or distress, or who have been beaten over the head with the image of an angry God. They need to hear large doses of the promises and the good stuff, preferably in the company of a more seasoned guide who can also gently guide them into the responsibilities and difficulties.
As one who feels a preaching burden for the sections of Scripture that call us to responsibility, I agree with Scot and our previous posters.
I would only temper my comment by saying that there are certain seekers and new and young Christians who come from a background of personal abuse or distress, or who have been beaten over the head with the image of an angry God. They need to hear large doses of the promises and the good stuff, preferably in the company of a more seasoned guide who can also gently guide them into the responsibilities and difficulties.
But I realize these are different cases than folks who just want "positive energy for the day," each day, all the time.
I would take this one step further and say that we can't go through the Bible also looking for verses with which to proof text. Oftentimes people pull out isolated verses to prove their points of view and again, we're short-circuiting Scripture by doing so. What is the larger context? Can this verse really, legitimately be applied to my particular situation? God is not only NOT a genie in a bottle, He is not a weapon to be used against others.
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