Inspired Mentors

Over the years, the greatest gift to my life, other than the people God has put into my life (especially my wife and family, as well as my church, The Rock) has been books.  It’s been books that have brought the greatest contribution to my life.  They have inspired me, they’ve sharpened me, they’ve corrected me, they’ve taught me.  They’ve encouraged me and I wouldn’t be the man today I am without many of them.

Some day I hope to begin to write about some of the books that have been the most influential in my life and why. 

But whenever I look at my bookshelf and consider the wealth of knowledge they contain, I’m reminded that there’s been one book above all that I am seeking to pursue and understand and know. 

According to Google, there are 130 million books in the world.  So in all of those books, which one should I read and more importantly, which one should I trust and allow to shape my life?

As I was reading through the life of Joseph today in the Book of Genesis in the Bible, I was freshly reminded of how only the Bible speaks to every person uniquely, to every life circumstance and situation a person many find themselves in.  It can encourage, inspire, correct, shape, enlighten, and guide each person through each circumstance in life.

Joseph was treated unjustly, he was betrayed by his own family, he was sold into slavery, he was convicted for a crime he didn’t commit and sent to prison for 10+ years.  

People who have written the Bible have written it from every possible range of human emotion - from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows.  Jeremiah, saw his entire country obliterated, destroyed and carried into exile, and forced to watch unspeakable horror and anguish.  And yet there’s also the great hope for a perfect, eternal kingdom one day to come and swallow up all the evil, sin and injustice we see all around us.    We read about the reality of the Kingdom that will come, certain of it because of Jesus conquering sin and death through the cross and resurrection.  

It’s also full of flawed humans (just like me!) who make mistakes, learn from them (or not) and doesn’t sugar coat the reality of the world we live in - ideas have consequences, choices have consequences, and I would do well to heed the lesson from the lives of the men and women in the Bible, so I do not have to suffer the consequences that they faced.

The Bible inspires me as a father, husband, pastor, friend, and person.  It helps me to understand and sympathize with others with whom I am friends with and am ministering to.  It matures me and is the most inspirational piece of work every written.  

They provide the inspired mentors that God would have me influenced by in my life.