Example: I just received this text in my email today. Each line was separated by stunning pictures of beaches, rivers, deserts, mountains, waterfalls, etc.:
CENTER OF THE BIBLE (awesome)
Q: What is the shortest chapter in the Bible? A: Psalms 117
Q: What is the longest chapter in the Bible? A: Psalms 119
Q: Which chapter is in the center of the Bible? A: Psalms 118
Fact: There are 594 chapters before Psalms 118
Fact: There are 594 chapters after Psalms 118
Add these numbers up and you get 1188.
Q: What is the center verse in the Bible? A: Psalms 118:8
Q: Does this verse say something significant about God's perfect will for our lives?
The next time someone says they would like to find God's perfect will for their lives and that they want to be in the center of His will, just send them to the center of His Word!
Psalms 118:8 'It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.' Now isn't that odd how this worked out (or was God in the center of it)?
Q: What is the shortest chapter in the Bible? A: Psalms 117
Q: What is the longest chapter in the Bible? A: Psalms 119
Q: Which chapter is in the center of the Bible? A: Psalms 118
Fact: There are 594 chapters before Psalms 118
Fact: There are 594 chapters after Psalms 118
Add these numbers up and you get 1188.
Q: What is the center verse in the Bible? A: Psalms 118:8
Q: Does this verse say something significant about God's perfect will for our lives?
The next time someone says they would like to find God's perfect will for their lives and that they want to be in the center of His will, just send them to the center of His Word!
Psalms 118:8 'It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.' Now isn't that odd how this worked out (or was God in the center of it)?
And the forceful conclusion of all of this was:
When things get tough, always remember... Faith doesn't get you around trouble, it gets you through it !! God Bless You!
Now here's my problem. First, the Bible wasn't written with verses or chapters (they were added about 1000 years after it was finalized). Second, it wasn't written in English! But someone had a computer program that counted all these words and did all this math and landed on this verse. I wonder what would have been the results if they did it in Aramaic, Hebrew, and Greek (the way God originally wrote it). What if they did it in French or Russian or Swahili. Would those readers get different verses to be encouraged by? Regardless. Couldn't one pick almost any verse in the Psalms and be inspired. Actually, shouldn't we be inspired by all the verses in the Bible? Ultimately, what does the conclusion have to do exactly with Psalm 118:8 any way?
This only illustrates to me that people are egocentric - we think God's Word revolves around us, or at least our version of it. The only truth in the entire Forward is that God IS at the Center of it ALL. It's just this Forward almost unnoticeably turns it around to put us/English-speakers at the center of it. Additionally, it seems by the presentation of this information that we get more inspired by pretty pictures and clever math tricks instead of the truth and depth of God's Word.
If you were amazed (or amused) by this Forward, I'm sorry to rain on your parade. I just am generally so thirsty for something substantial to be communicated and shared among Believers, yet almost always end up getting this type of "spiritual cotton-candy" more than not [Sweet sugar puffed up with a lot of empty hot air that gives you nothing more than a sugar rush and rotten teeth - physically AND spiritually speaking.]
Be Blessed! And Remember to Keep God at the Center of All Things!