A Tale of Two Bibles

In a fete of generosity, I purchased new Spanish-English Bibles for Hannah, Colton and myself. Shortly thereafter, I noticed Hannah carrying her old Bible. She explained that she had recently shared her faith with a girl and that she felt the Holy Spirit nudge her to give the girl her Bible. I was proud of Hannah for sharing her faith, but scolded her for giving away a new Bible. I said, “Hannah, that Bible was expensive and we have cheap Bibles at home that we buy to give away.”

A week later, I was in Iquitos with a medical team from the Timberline church. Some members of the team began to witness to a young man who was studying English. He said that he wanted to read the Bible, but that he couldn’t afford to buy one. He then said that what he really wanted was a Spanish-English Bible so he could read the Bible and improve his English. I, of course, had my Spanish-English Bible in my backpack. But, if I gave him my bilingual Bible, how would I explain it to Hannah? I decided to suck it up and take my lumps. I gave the guy my Bible. (In the picture, here, I’m showing him verses on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.) I saw Hannah a few minutes later and confessed quickly. She was very gracious. Later that week, I saw her having her quiet time. (She’s very faithful in her devotions.) I noticed she was reading a new Bible just like the one I had given her. I asked, “Where did that come from?” She smiled a wry smile and said, “Mom bought it for me.”

To see more pictures from the Timberline medical mission, visit http://picasaweb.google.com/BillandLenaPics/200907TimberlineMedicalMission#