When I was in Byron Bay, Australia, I wanted to buy Bibles for some of the individuals I met that month. I went to every single bookstore in the town, including the library, several times trying to find a Bible or even a book that proclaimed truth about Jesus Christ. There were none. There were several spiritual bookstores with books about everything from Hinduism to witchcraft, but not a Bible was to be found in the town. A few days after my several futile attempts I found out that the city council did not allow Bibles to be sold in the bookstores. Obviously it’s a Book of power! The only book that I found that had Jesus Christ written on the front was heretical, following Gnostic teaching. It was appalling. A town who practiced every form of spirituality available and who claimed to be a center of spiritual healing rejected the Truth.
Here I am in a Buddhist nation and I have had the opportunity to pass out hundreds of free Bibles to villagers who have never heard the Word of God. The church that we have been working with this month has boxes and boxes of Thai-English Bibles that the Gideons provided. Yes, the same Gideons who we are accustomed to seeing the mark of in the side table drawers of just about every motel room in the States. What an incredible blessing it has been to cross the language barrier by handing a villager a brand new Bible! I loved walking back to the van and seeing people delving into the Truth that had been placed in their hands.
I think the purpose of this blog is to not only commend the Gideons for their incredible ministry of placing Scripture in the hands of so many individuals, but I also hope to provoke at least the slightest bit of recognition that Scripture is such a precious gift! Even in the midst of a huge language barrier people are able to have the Truth for their own!! I just wish you could see the looks on people’s faces. It’s absolutely priceless!
