Finding Meaning
- Jada Kamau
- Aug 15, 2017
- 4 min read
We are excited to bring you a guest post from our close friend, classmate, and fellow blogger on NJB Not Just Another Blog, Jada Kamau. She is so honest and inspiring. Enjoy her tips on how to dig deeper in the Bible.
Well, I guess I should start by introducing myself. My name is Jada Kamau. I’m a 15 year old Texan, homeschooler, and pastor’s kid. That’s right, I’m a pastor’s kid. Some might say that I’ve been a Bible know-it-all since birth. In Sunday School, when asked what my favorite verse was, my reply was, “Would you like it in English or in Latin.” (To be fair, I only know one scripture in Latin.) I’ve teamed up with organizations to go and share the gospel in malls, grocery stores, and neighborhoods. I’ve helped edit my dad’s theological dissertation. You would think that I am more in tune with the Bible than I really am.
The thing is, despite my knowledge, the Bible used to feel dead to me. I read Scripture everyday, but I didn’t enjoy it. I read my chapter and kept moving. There wasn’t anything per se wrong with my relationship with God. I had a desire to know Him better and seek after His heart, and that is what I strove for. I even constantly asked God to make His Scriptures speak to me in a fresh and new way.
My dad was pretty shocked when he heard this. He totally couldn’t relate. From the time he started reading the Bible when he was 14, he found it fascinating. He loved the correlation, the discoveries, the logic. It excited him, and still does. That surprised me. Has anyone else felt like the Bible is a dry read? Well, if so, we’re missing out on something. Big time.
Since my period of disinterest in the Bible, my dad has made it clear to me that the Bible is the answer to the questions the world is asking. Global peace? Purpose? True love? All of this is answered in one book. One book that we have readily at our disposal. Sooooo, I’m going to show all you lovely people how I now read the Bible using the word ACTS. Easy enough to remember, right?
A- Association
C- Context
T- Tools
S- Spirit
ASSOCIATION means, how can I understand how the author is using this word? Where could he have gotten his understanding from? Does he use it other times in his book? What is he trying to signify with this word? How else is the word used in the Bible? Finding correlations between scriptures can totally change your understanding of a scripture!
CONTEXT is so so so important when reading the Bible. Some people have the idea that the Bible was written TO US. This simply isn’t true. I’m pretty sure that the Book of Romans was not written to Jada Kamau to address 244 Willy Wonka Drive Dallas, Texas. No! Romans was written TO the Romans! So how would a Roman understand that book or phrase or word? (That’s when knowing your Latin comes in handy, hehe.)
TOOLS are pretty handy things. You know, your concordance, dictionary, Table of Contents, google, Daddy. Don’t be afraid to flip to the concordance to look up how a certain word is used in the Bible! Look up what the word means in the original language. Ask for help to understand things, knowing that someone’s answer might or might not be the right one! The only thing tools can do is help.
HOLY SPIRIT is real and working and present. He is your biggest help because He knows all the answers. He’ll make a certain scripture stand out to you and help you understand it. Trust that He pleasures in revealing to you the hidden secrets of His Word.
Reading the Bible is important. It teaches you about God, why you’re here on earth, and the way to excel. It is relevant to you. But it’s hard to understand the Bible when it doesn’t even interest you. Using ACTS is one way to read the scriptures for what they’re worth. Trust me, when you seek with your whole heart, God will show you answers. When you knock, He’ll answer. When you ask, He will give. So take this promise, and seek with your whole heart.
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”-Matthew 7:7-8
Jada Kamau
Thank you so much for reading my article! My name is Jada Kamau. I have a love for food, a truckload of responsibilities, a bucketful of joys, a richness in friends, a passion for music, and a longing for Christ. It would please me deeply if you would grace my most prized blog contributions with your eyeballs: Not Just Another Blog
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