Thursday, March 7

The Desk Series: Bible and Study Bible


The Desk Series :: My Meeting Place 
Bible and Study Bible - Part 1

Last week, I shared a simple picture of my desk that I lovingly called, "my meeting place".



After the kind response I received, I began thinking it might be nice to share just what goes on there. The more I thought, the more ideas I came up with. So what started with a picture has now turned into an on-going series simply entitled, The Desk Series

I want to begin with the most important item on my desk, that of my Bible. About six months ago, I retired the Bible that had served its 20 or so years of purpose, for one that I can now make notes, add dates and other small bits of meaningful sentiment next to what I am reading. I had been searching for that perfect one that would suit my needs and I finally found it! It is the hardcover NIV (New International Version) Journal the Word Bible from Zondervan.


Reasons I love it

~It has large enough font that does not cause strain on my eyes

~The pages are a rich cream color and they are not real thin or flimsy

~The words of Jesus are in red lettering (a must have)


~The margins are wide and go the length of the page and have lines to keep my writing neat and organized. 

~It does not have any maps, pictures, devotionals (my retired Bible had these) or anything that takes my focus away from the text at hand

~It has one red ribbon to use as a bookmark

~The style is plain and simple

~It has a black strap that holds it firmly together, protects it and trains it to lay closed when taking it away with me



Please note it does not come with the little rainbow colored tabs, they are an add-on that I love. You can find them on Amazon.




I do not draw, color, write over words, use pen or regular highlighters in my Bible. I use pencil with a neat gentle hand. However, I do use these wonderful highlighter pens that DO NOT bleed through to the other side. (my retired Bible had a lot of faded yellow marks and pen bleeding) I have a small notebook I keep with my Bible when taking it with me to church or ladies Bible studies, etc. There I use pen and write notes that mostly never are written neatly. Then, once home I add what I truly want from those notes onto the margins.

Of course, these are just personal preferences that we all hold to when choosing our Bible.
 We all love what we love.

The second item of importance is my Study Bible. It is the NLT (New Living Translation) Life Application Study Bible from Tyndale House Publishers. I have had this Study Bible for a very long time, and I think it is in it's second printing. It has everything that I need to take reading my Bible to another level of understanding. 



Every book of this Study Bible has a neat timeline at the top of the page. On the sidebar of the page it lists, "Vital Statistics" such as the following:

Purpose for the book
Author of the book
To whom it is written and the date it was written
The setting
Key Verses and Key People

Then, you have this wonderful outline of the entire book and maps that pertain to where it is written. It helps you understand the context of a passage, gives background and historical info, explains difficult words and phrases.



This Study Bible lies open on my desk, open to what I am concurrently reading in my Bible and being they are in different translations it gives me a unique word experience. I grew up using the King James Version and while I am glad I "cut my teeth" so to speak with that translation, I am happy to have this different version to use now. 

If you have not tried using a Study Bible for yourself, it would be a wonderful resource for you to add to your study time. It is well worth the small financial outlay to have it to use when you need it.


14 comments:

  1. That's a nice Bible you have Peggy. Study Bibles are great additions to our regular Bibles. They really help you dig deeper and help the meaning of the Scriptures be more clearer. Now that I'm taking Bible study more serious at this stage in my life, I bought a full concordance to use as well. Can't wait to see what you share next :-)

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    1. I have thought about a concordance and might have to look into one. And yes, to taking Bible study more serious. I hear you and thank you for reading.

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  2. Thank you for sharing Peggy. I have the CSB Study Bible for Women, a Thompson Chain Reference Study Bible and the Spirit-Filled Life Study Bible. I'm pretty certain we have the Life Application Study Bible here on the bookshelf somewhere. My husband gave me the last one one mentioned when we got married 26 years ago. At the time we were both NKJV but I'm KJV mostly. I do really like my CSB translation of the study Bible for Women I mentioned in the beginning. I think every women should have a good study Bible.

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    1. Thank you so much for sharing, Regina. I appreciate you so much.

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  3. I loved this and am looking forward to this series. I just have a regular KJV bible and I take notes in it, its just my go to bible for everything. It was a gift from my husband and son after my other bible was stolen. I have recently started blogging again thanks to your inspiration and wrote on having quiet time daily. I like to have my quiet time on my porch when I can and am thinking maybe I will share a picture of my favorite spot in my next post. Thanks for sharing your heart, bible, desk and more with us.

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    1. Great news dear friend! So glad you shared this with me. I love my porch as well...I sit on the swing and listen to the birds. It is a wonderful place. I am longing now for things to begin warming here.

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  4. I love this! My kitchen table is my sanctuary and quiet place every morning. <3 Looking forward to future installments.

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    1. Yep, I used the kitchen table as well over the years. I love your word "sanctuary"!

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  5. That sounds like a great study Bible. I only recently became acquainted with the NLT version and I love it. I usually look through the different translations at the Bible Gateway website. I have a desk up in my room where I have art supplies and my Bible and it's where I read and pray each morning. Blessings to you!

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    1. Hello dear Gayl! Yes, Bible Gateway is a great help we have to use. Thank you for your comment.

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  6. Hello Peggy, great start to what looks like a wonderful series, I'm looking forward to it. Please if you can would you let me have Pat Love's blog title so that I can look it up too. Thank you (mandycurrie@googlemail.com). Kind regards Mandy xx

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    1. Thank you and welcome, Mandy! This is Pat's blog link.
      http://livinglifewiththeloves.blogspot.com/

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  7. Hello Peggy, I have so enjoyed rereading the posts of today's date. I love my Bible it's the Amplified Bible Classic Edition with notes and short articles by Joyce Meyer. I also have the Life Application Bible. I unfortunately don't have that peaceful time in the mornings that all you ladies talk about. My hubby is up first and I find myself flung into the day whether I'm ready or not. I wish I could meet you Peggy there are so many questions I want to ask. But for the meantime let me just say thank you for your writing, I thoroughly enjoy it and save each post in a special file. Kind regards Mandy xx

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    1. Thank you Mandy for your kind comment. Actually I did not mean to send those posts thru again and clog up inboxes, but I was moving things around and they went out. Please know that elusive "quiet time" is just that...only in the past few years have I had the chance to create a good habit in the morning hours. Know that any time you can give to your "quiet time" is well worth the effort. Blessings!

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Thank you for taking a moment to share your thoughts.