• Home
  • Issues
  • Articles
    • Alan Day
    • Alan Stewart
    • Ed Litton
    • Gary Miller
    • Keith Drury
    • Michael Catt
    • Stephanie Bennett
    • Vance Havner
    • Warren Wiersbe
  • Quotes
  • Sermon Outlines
  • Podcasts
  • More
    • Book Reviews
    • Calendar
    • Odds n Ends
    • Web Resources

Calendar

May 2022
S M T W T F S
1234567
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728
293031  
« Jul    

Archives

  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019

Categories

  • Alan Day
  • Alan Stewart
  • Articles
  • Book Reviews
  • Calendar
  • Ed Litton
  • Gary Miller
  • Issues
  • Keith Drury
  • Michael Catt
  • Odds-n-Ends
  • Podcasts
  • Quotes
  • Sermon Outlines
  • Stephanie Bennett
  • Uncategorized
  • Vance Havner
  • Volume 01 | Issue 01
  • Volume 01 | Issue 02
  • Volume 01 | Issue 03
  • Volume 01 | Issue 04
  • Volume 01 | Issue 05
  • Volume 01 | Issue 06
  • Volume 01 | Issue 07
  • Volume 01 | Issue 08
  • Volume 01 | Issue 09
  • Volume 01 | Issue 10
  • Volume 01 | Issue 11
  • Volume 01 | Issue 12
  • Volume 01 | Issue 13
  • Volume 01 | Issue 14
  • Volume 02 | Issue 01
  • Volume 02 | Issue 02
  • Volume 02 | Issue 03
  • Volume 02 | Issue 04
  • Volume 02 | Issue 05
  • Volume 02 | Issue 06
  • Volume 02 | Issue 07
  • Volume 02 | Issue 08
  • Volume 02 | Issue 09
  • Volume 02 | Issue 10
  • Volume 02 | Issue 11
  • Volume 02 | Issue 12
  • Volume 02 | Issue 13
  • Volume 02 | Issue 14
  • Volume 02 | Issue 15
  • Volume 02 | Issue 16
  • Volume 02 | Issue 17
  • Volume 02 | Issue 18
  • Volume 02 | Issue 19
  • Volume 02 | Issue 20
  • Volume 02 | Issue 21
  • Volume 02 | Issue 22
  • Volume 02 | Issue 23
  • Volume 02 | Issue 24
  • Volume 02 | Issue 25
  • Volume 03 | Issue 01
  • Volume 03 | Issue 02
  • Volume 03 | Issue 03
  • Volume 03 | Issue 04
  • Volume 03 | Issue 05
  • Volume 03 | Issue 06
  • Volume 03 | Issue 07
  • Volume 03 | Issue 08
  • Volume 03 | Issue 09
  • Volume 03 | Issue 10
  • Volume 03 | Issue 11
  • Volume 03 | Issue 12
  • Volume 03 | Issue 13
  • Volume 03 | Issue 14
  • Volume 03 | Issue 15
  • Volume 03 | Issue 16
  • Volume 03 | Issue 17
  • Volume 03 | Issue 18
  • Volume 03 | Issue 19
  • Volume 03 | Issue 20
  • Volume 03 | Issue 21
  • Volume 03 | Issue 22
  • Volume 03 | Issue 23
  • Volume 03 | Issue 24
  • Volume 04 | Issue 01
  • Volume 04 | Issue 02
  • Volume 04 | Issue 03
  • Volume 04 | Issue 04
  • Volume 04 | Issue 05
  • Volume 04 | Issue 06
  • Volume 04 | Issue 07
  • Volume 04 | Issue 08
  • Volume 04 | Issue 09
  • Volume 04 | Issue 10
  • Volume 04 | Issue 11
  • Volume 04 | Issue 12
  • Volume 04 | Issue 13
  • Volume 05 | Issue 01
  • Volume 05 | Issue 02
  • Volume 05 | Issue 03
  • Volume 05 | Issue 04
  • Volume 05 | Issue 05
  • Volume 05 | Issue 06
  • Volume 05 | Issue 07
  • Volume 05 | Issue 08
  • Volume 05 | Issue 09
  • Volume 05 | Issue 10
  • Volume 05 | Issue 11
  • Volume 05 | Issue 12
  • Volume 05 | Issue 13
  • Volume 05 | Issue 14
  • Volume 06 | Issue 01
  • Volume 06 | Issue 02
  • Volume 06 | Issue 03
  • Volume 06 | Issue 04
  • Volume 06 | Issue 05
  • Volume 06 | Issue 06
  • Volume 06 | Issue 07
  • Volume 06 | Issue 08
  • Volume 06 | Issue 09
  • Volume 06 | Issue 10
  • Volume 06 | Issue 11
  • Volume 06 | Issue 12
  • Volume 06 | Issue 13
  • Volume 06 | Issue 14
  • Volume 06 | Issue 15
  • Volume 07 | Issue 01
  • Volume 07 | Issue 02
  • Volume 07 | Issue 03
  • Volume 07 | Issue 04
  • Volume 07 | Issue 05
  • Volume 07 | Issue 06
  • Volume 07 | Issue 07
  • Volume 07 | Issue 08
  • Volume 07 | Issue 09
  • Volume 07 | Issue 10
  • Volume 07 | Issue 11
  • Volume 07 | Issue 12
  • Volume 07 | Issue 13
  • Volume 07 | Issue 14
  • Volume 07 | Issue 15
  • Volume 07 | Issue 16
  • Volume 07 | Issue 17
  • Volume 07 | Issue 18
  • Volume 07 | Issue 19
  • Volume 07 | Issue 20
  • Volume 07 | Issue 21
  • Volume 07 | Issue 22
  • Volume 07 | Issue 23
  • Volume 08 | Issue 01
  • Volume 08 | Issue 02
  • Volume 08 | Issue 03
  • Volume 08 | Issue 04
  • Volume 08 | Issue 05
  • Volume 08 | Issue 06
  • Volume 08 | Issue 07
  • Volume 08 | Issue 08
  • Volume 08 | Issue 09
  • Volume 08 | Issue 10
  • Volume 08 | Issue 11
  • Volume 08 | Issue 12
  • Volume 08 | Issue 13
  • Volume 08 | Issue 14
  • Volume 08 | Issue 15
  • Volume 08 | Issue 16
  • Volume 08 | Issue 17
  • Volume 08 | Issue 18
  • Volume 09 | Issue 01
  • Volume 09 | Issue 02
  • Volume 09 | Issue 03
  • Volume 09 | Issue 04
  • Volume 09 | Issue 05
  • Volume 09 | Issue 06
  • Volume 09 | Issue 07
  • Volume 10 | Issue 01
  • Volume 10 | Issue 02
  • Volume 10 | Issue 03
  • Volume 10 | Issue 04
  • Volume 10 | Issue 05
  • Volume 11 | Issue 01
  • Volume 11 | Issue 02
  • Volume 11 | Issue 03
  • Volume 11 | Issue 04
  • Volume 11 | Issue 05
  • Volume 11 | Issue 06
  • Volume 11 | Issue 07
  • Volume 11 | Issue 08
  • Volume 11 | Issue 09
  • Volume 11 | Issue 10
  • Volume 11 | Issue 11
  • Volume 11 | Issue 12
  • Volume 11 | Issue 13
  • Volume 11 | Issue 14
  • Volume 11 | Issue 15
  • Volume 11 | Issue 16
  • Volume 12 | Issue 01
  • Volume 12 | Issue 02
  • Volume 12 | Issue 03
  • Volume 12 | Issue 04
  • Volume 12 | Issue 05
  • Volume 12 | Issue 06
  • Volume 12 | Issue 07
  • Volume 12 | Issue 08
  • Volume 12 | Issue 09
  • Volume 12 | Issue 10
  • Volume 12 | Issue 11
  • Volume 12 | Issue 12
  • Volume 13 | Issue 01
  • Volume 13 | Issue 02
  • Volume 13 | Issue 03
  • Volume 13 | Issue 04
  • Volume 13 | Issue 05
  • Volume 13 | Issue 06
  • Volume 13 | Issue 07
  • Volume 13 | Issue 08
  • Volume 13 | Issue 09
  • Volume 13 | Issue 10
  • Volume 13 | Issue 11
  • Volume 13 | Issue 12
  • Volume 13 | Issue 13
  • Volume 13 | Issue 14
  • Volume 13 | Issue 15
  • Volume 13 | Issue 16
  • Volume 14 | Issue 01
  • Volume 14 | Issue 02
  • Volume 14 | Issue 03
  • Volume 14 | Issue 04
  • Volume 14 | Issue 05
  • Volume 14 | Issue 06
  • Volume 14 | Issue 07
  • Volume 14 | Issue 08
  • Warren Wiersbe
  • Web Resources
2ProphetU
  • Home
  • Issues
  • Articles
    • Alan Day
    • Alan Stewart
    • Ed Litton
    • Gary Miller
    • Keith Drury
    • Michael Catt
    • Stephanie Bennett
    • Vance Havner
    • Warren Wiersbe
  • Quotes
  • Sermon Outlines
  • Podcasts
  • More
    • Book Reviews
    • Calendar
    • Odds n Ends
    • Web Resources
Articles . Stephanie Bennett . Volume 08 | Issue 14

My Date with the Christian Bookstore

Due to the torrential downpours we’ve been experiencing as a result of Tropical Storm Fay, my husband and I have been trying to intersperse our evenings with quick errands or outings to curb our cabin fever. Last night, we went to our local Christian bookstore. I honestly don’t frequent Christian bookstores very often, normally opting to make my purchases online. However, my husband had his eye on a new CD, so we enjoyed a little shopping trip.

Once in the store, we ran into our pastor and his daughter, and were later joined by a high school girl’s discipleship group from our church. What was intended to be a quick stop turned into a 45-minute gabfest…and an article!

First, I was totally caught off-guard when I found a display of Betty Crocker cookbooks on one of the aisle’s end-caps. I continued wandering through the store, only to find an even greater variety of cookbooks in the Women’s section and the Christian Growth section. I didn’t know we had reduced Christian growth to literally expanding our waistlines, but evidently I’m not on the up-and-up of Christian chain stores.

One of the girls in the discipleship group asked me about a book I have been reading about feminism. It’s an excellent read that traces the roots of feminism through the culture and the church, and it’s chock-full of sound theology and meaningful teaching. So, I approached the counter and asked if they had said book in the store. After quite a bit of computer searching, the salesgirl responded with, “No, but we can order it for you.”

Very frustrated, I returned to my group and proceeded to wax eloquently on my soapbox. I had already perused the various titles on the shelves of the Women’s section. Some were about chocolate, others were about fashion or self-image or motherhood. Oh, and we can’t forget the plethora of Betty Crocker cookbooks. However, a basic book on biblical womanhood and the rise of feminism was nowhere to be found! So, let’s teach women how to cook, but not how to feast on the Word of God while understanding their God-given role. Let’s all rejoice in our shared love of chocolate while forgetting that God’s Word is sweeter than honey to our lips.

I left that section in disgust and joined my husband and our pastor in the Bible section. On my way, I passed another display of “The Smart Person’s Guide to” the Bible, women of the Bible, Revelation, prophecy, and so on. Actually, these were neatly packaged imitations of the Dummies book series. Unfortunately, we as Christians can’t admit that we’re biblically ignorant and illiterate. We make ourselves feel better by buying a “Smart Person’s Guide” because we’re too busy learning how to cook or solving Bible sudoku puzzles (that was another one of my amazing finds in the bookstore!).

Once I reached the Bibles, I was so irritated that I was ready to brave the monsoon outside in order to get back to the car and go home. But my “joy” only intensified as I examined these shelves. It seems like everyone these days has some type of study Bible. There are study Bibles for dads, moms, grandparents, lawyers, teenagers, women in ministry, history buffs, sports enthusiasts, leaders, outdoorsmen…you name it, it’s out there. I personally don’t agree with stamping your name or your idea to the outside of God’s Word, but that’s probably another article entirely.

In addition, I found another genre of designer Bibles. One Bible came in a waterproof case. Unfortunately, the pages were still thin paper, so what happens when you are scuba diving and decide to actually take it out of the case and read it? The warrior’s Bible was tightly bound inside a metal case. Other Bibles were ornately decorated with bright leather, camouflage, feathers, sequins and stickers. Really?

Seems to me like we’ve dolled up the outside of God’s Word while still neglecting what’s on the inside. Now my Bible is fashionable enough for me to carry in public, but it’s still not practical enough for me to read in private. Unfortunately, I think this merely mirrors the problem in our churches today. We masquerade in neatly polished facades of righteousness and religion, but we’re being eaten alive on the inside by sin and compromise and self. We’ve exchanged the true study of Scripture for spoon-fed Bible studies, feel-good sermons and self-help books, all the while pretending that everything in our lives is “just fine.”

In the book of Proverbs, Solomon encourages us to diligently seek after the wisdom and riches found in Scripture:

“My son, if you will receive my words and treasure my commandments within you, make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to understanding; for if you cry for discernment, lift your voice for understanding; if you seek for her as silver and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice, and He preserves the way of His godly ones. Then you will discern righteousness and justice and equity and every good course. For wisdom will enter your heart and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will guard you, understanding will watch over you,” (2:1-12, italics mine).

This article isn’t meant as an insult to Christian bookstores. They do provide valuable resources to the church and her members. More importantly, this is an admonition to believers to not forsake the ancient paths and the pure study of God’s Word.

What wealth, what treasure, what wisdom are found in its pages! The truths and promises and depths of God’s Word are inexhaustible. The cookbooks and sudoku puzzles will pass away. The metal cases will tarnish, and the feathers and sequins and leather will fade. But the Word of God will remain forever.

© Stephanie Bennett, 2008

Stephanie Bennett
Stephanie Bennett is the research assistant to Pastor Michael Catt at Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia. Stephanie and her husband, Ryan, minister to college-age students in the Southwest Georgia area. She also leads women in weekly Bible study and serves in the leadership of the Women’s Ministry at Sherwood. Stephanie and Ryan have two boys.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Print

Read An Article

  • A Step at a Time
  • Hard Words to Swallow Lead to Revival (Part 1)
  • Day and Night

RSS Warren Wiersbe Podcast

  • Warren Wiersbe End Of Content PSA
  • Hills And Valley (Warren Wiersbe)
  • Remember
  • Fruit Bearing

RSS Sherwood Baptist Podcast

  • Model Prayer
  • Seeking Treasure, Finding Joy
  • God’s Path to Spiritual Growth
  • God's Instructions for Husbands

MICHAEL CATT MESSAGES

Verse

Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!
Psalm 95:6

Quotes On

  • Hypocrisy

Search

Links

Michael Catt

Vance Havner

Ron Dunn

Sherwood Church

Copyright 2ProphetU 2021. All righrts reserved.