There are many milestones along the path of life. As a child those milestones come and go at a very rapid pace. There is rolling, crawling, and eventually walking. There is ooh’s and ah’s and one day words. As kids get older there are bigger milestones that hit. Potty training, kindergarten, bike riding, middle school, driver’s license and the list could go on. However, there is one occasion that I didn’t think of as a milestone until more recently. The day we give our children their first “real” Bible.

By “real” I don’t mean the one’s we have given them in early childhood (you know the storybook bibles) are not important. The Bible’s they read and have known as God’s story are vital to their understanding and learning of God. What I mean by “real” is the type of Bible most adults think of when we speak of the Scriptures. The kind of Bible with all 66 books that have chapter and verse numbers included. I have been challenged to think of this event as a milestone for multiple reasons. One major reason is that, as my kids begin to read a “real” Bible for themselves and by themselves it will raise many “aha” moments, but also many “huh?” moments that I may not be there to walk through with them.

No question you ask about this book will scare your dad or me, and even more importantly, no question you ask will scare the God behind it all.

Sarah Anderson

To be honest, I always knew I was going to give my kids Bibles. My wife and I have been intentional about talking about how we will help our kids develop a habit of Bible reading. But I never thought about how important the day we give them their own “real” Bible was a stewardship we were entrusting to them as well. That thought never struck me until I read Sarah Anderson’s article, “The Letter I Wrote My Son When I Gave Him His First ‘Real’ Bible.”

While I may have written a different letter with varying challenges or encouragements than Sarah, I love the intentionality and purpose with which she wrote. I wish I would have done more to make that gift being given a bit more special for my son. But I have a few more chances to correct that in the future. While I think how I interact with my kids about the Bible over their lifetime is more important than the day I give them their first one, I have been challenged to see that singular day and hand off as important nonetheless.

Enjoy the article and I’d love to hear what you did or may include in a letter like this if you were to write one. As always, be with the Lord’s people on the Lord’s day!

Photo by Samantha Sophia on Unsplash