Trilogy
From the 21st to the 28th of July in Velingrad we held our first interactive manuscript Bible Study camp – called Trilogy. The purpose of the camp was to dig deep into the Gospel of Mark together for a week. Every day we spent hours observing, interpreting, and applying God’s word. We discovered many connections, came to important conclusions, and sought to understand the meaning of each passage. For each of us the time raced by during our study together. A few times during the week we had the opportunity to enter the passages and experience the stories of Mark as we “became” the disciples, those healed by Jesus, or others in the passages. We began to understand more clearly the words of Jesus, to better understand his character – and most importantly, we began to be changed as Jesus worked in our hearts through his word.
During these days we all became like a family that grew together. We asked questions, sought answers, prayed and praised our God together. We learned together how to study God’s word – especially understanding the important roles of historical, geographical, social, and cultural contexts as well as the genre.
One of the strongest moments for me was when we read Mark 8:34 – 35. We were made to decide whether we wanted to save our lives or lose them for Jesus, as we took up our crosses. As we each made our decisions, we became more aware of the price through a symbolic gift, which brought me to tears. The price for us all was to be ready to suffer and to die. During this week I realized again how great our God really is, how much love is in His heart, and how much He desires for us all to have soft hearts and to follow Him.
I pray that more people will have the opportunity, which I had, to be part of this great event, Trilogy. I once again rededicated my life to Jesus – putting in his hands my future with new faith.
