Light seems to be a theme in my writing at the moment. Which is a little ironic considering the fact that there’s practically none to speak of here in North Carolina this weekend. I’ve raised all the blinds, but there’s barely more than a trickle of lumens making their way through the clouds and the trees and into Maul Hall.

It helps that I started my day in the presence of extra light and life via the Saturday morning men’s small group I’m a part of. We drink coffee, share our lives, study scripture, and pray for one another.

We’re working our way through Philippians, and today’s reading included the passage I’ve probably quoted more than any other during 2014. It’s the one that talks about the opportunity we have to be light in this broken world.

Today, rather than cut and paste one more time, I’d like to offer my own paraphrase. Here it is, then I’ll share a few observations about paraphrasing:

If you want to tell the good story about the Good News in a way that resonates, then you can start by making the decision to live without arguing, criticizing, whining, and complaining; then – because this world is so broken – your status as God’s children will be self-evident. There’s going to be something about you that rings true: it won’t be naiveté so much as innocence; not religiosity so much as light and life; not that you condemn but that you shine like stars in the dark night, pointing the way, helping your brothers and sisters find their way home. Do you know what, friends? It’s when I see you holding on to the Word of Life – and also holding it out as a generous gift – that I realize my work, my investment in your faith, is taking root in all the right ways.

First, a paraphrase is not a translation. Translation is a scholarly exercise that works to produce the best possible rendition of the original text in contemporary language.

A paraphrase is a rewriting of a translation in a way that is intended to help the reader connect with the meaning of the text. Most paraphrases stay within traditional interpretations, but they are – by definition – an exercise in exploration, modification, explanation, and elaboration.

For me, writing a paraphrase can be one way in which I immerse myself in a text. It’s almost as if I’m having a conversation with myself about meaning. The paraphrase above, then, covering Philippians 2:14-16, reveals a lot about what God is teaching me as I read.

And this is really the point of today’s post. I want to encourage each one of us to “get into” God’s Word more completely. To let it wash over us. To read and re-read and to make notes about what God is teaching us. To be in conversation with fellow travelers along the path. To ask God to open the eyes of our hearts, and to help us be less rigid when it comes to having all the answers, tidily arranged ahead of time. To allow the Spirit room to move. To be willing to grow…

…To hold on to the Word of Life – and to hold it out like a precious offering – and to commit ourselves to the journey. If I can encourage you in this way, then I realize that my work, my investment in your faith, has started to take root – DEREK