"Buckin' Bible"

They said go read the Bible,

It’s really what you need,

They said the truth would free me,

And I’d be free indeed.

But what they didn’t tell me,

Is how rough it can be,

When I started reading,

And ‘fore long to see,

That the Book could be a bucker,

Could duck its head and pitch,

And I’d be pulling leather,

To read some verse, learn which,

Way I should be turnin’,

And not be bucked right off,

But stay screwed in the saddle,

And not get sent aloft.

It’s not that that old Good Book,

Wanted rid of me,

But just my way of sayin’,

It wasn’t tame, you see.

But wildly made the challenge,

To show me a new life,

That asked me to die to myself,

And sharper than a knife,

Was there to purge and change me,

A new and different man,

If I’d become a doer,

Of God’s Word and His plan.

And that’s the way it’s happened,

Though still I’m wild at heart,

The Good Book calls to cowboy up,

And if I’ll do my part,

The very One who authored,

Every word and page,

Will come and help me live it,

Every day and every stage.

So read the Book, my brother,

But take the deepest seat,

‘Cause it will test your mettle,

And make your life complete.

“Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions…” (Ps. 119:18, NLT)

What other book can you read and have the author sitting beside you to help you understand it? Yet, that’s exactly the way it is with the Bible. It is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and when we open our hearts to what it says, the Spirit will help us understand and apply it to our lives. People make all sorts of excuses about reading it- I’m not a reader, I don’t understand it, I’m so tired by the time I read it I can’t stay awake, etc., etc. I would never try to guilt someone into doing anything they don’t want to do. But if the truth will set us free, and it will, the question we must ask ourselves is: How free do we want to be? Here’s another: Do we really want the real answers to life’s deepest questions? If we do, the Bible is there to help us. I never wanted to read it until I realized my personal relationship with Jesus required it. Then, I just couldn’t get enough. Even when it bucks…

Lord, change our lives with the truth of Your Word, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Tyler Crow, tylercrow.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Tyler, and God bless you.