Searching for the Author

“If the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth were known, what verdict would be handed down to us, to you and to me, about what we’ve been pursuing for so much of our lives, and why? Had I been reading the Bible the way van Gogh’s sister read books, “to borrow therefrom the force to stimulate my activity?” Had I read it, searching for principles, to make my life in some way more successful? Had I read it, searching for promises, to make my life in some way more safe? Had I read it, searching for proof texts, to give certainty to my own faith or make it more defensible to others? Had I read it, searching for preaching material, because that was my job? Had I read it, searching for power, for whatever reason? Or had I read it, as van Gogh had read his books, searching for the man who wrote it?”

—Ken Gire, Windows of the Soul