Imagine something with me. You’ve been traveling non-stop all day. Your journey started long before sunrise and you’ve still got a long way to go before you arrive at your destination. You feel like you are running on adrenaline and/or caffeine, barely making it from one stop to the next. Your luggage is getting heavier by the moment.
You turn the corner and before you stands an oasis. There are comfortable chairs and friends to greet you. You sit down to rest. A friendly server brings you a sparkling clean glass of the purest spring water you have ever tasted. That water comes from an artesian well that has been providing refreshing, reviving water to weary travelers for millennia. Today, you will get one glass to restore you as you continue your journey, but you are invited to return when you have time to linger and drink your fill.
That’s my best way to describe an experience I had a few weeks ago.
Mrs. Sweetie and I traveled with a group of about 60 Baptist leaders to Washington, DC for some training and exploration of potential ministry partnerships. It was a fast and furious two days that I don’t have time to adequately describe in this context.
I want to simply mention one place that I think you should add to your bucket list: The Museum of the Bible. This state-of-the-art, multi-million dollar project is 6 floors of absolute amazingness!
The museum hosted us for a private two-hour tour, where we saw precisely 1.2 percent of what the museum has to offer, led by a passionate and engaging guide who spoke at a pace of 400 words per minute. Seriously, any person who went on that tour determined upfront to be aloof and/or bored could not pull it off.
Now, as a person who believes the Bible, loves the Bible, and is committed to seeing people embrace the truth of the Bible, I went in interested. I also have two seminary degrees and have spent 42 years doing “church work.”
But, can I simply say, “Wow!”
That two-hour tour was my glass of water. I can’t wait to go back and dive in. I want to drink it, gargle it, swim in it, throw out a picnic blanket and savor it. I’m not kidding! I don’t know when my next trip will be, but it is going to happen. I want to allow a full day to explore all the interactive displays, the kids’ area, the videos. I want to try some additional menu items in the cafe (the food is great, by the way).
The Museum of the Bible’s mission statement is “to invite all people to engage with the Bible.” You can learn more about it at https://www.museumofthebible.org/
The Bible’s impact on the world is unparalleled. There never has been, nor will there ever be another book like it because it is God’s recorded revelation of Himself and His eternal purposes. It is primarily through the Bible that we learn how much our lives matter to God.
“The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
Put this place on your bucket list. You won’t be sorry.
Be amazing today, my friend.
