In April I told everyone about the prison officer who often helps us when we come for prison ministry Wednesday morning. He would even share testimonies and exhort the men from Scripture!

One Wednesday he noticed my Bible (and Bible cover), then leaned over and whispered “I want one just like that.”

That day the money was raised to purchase and ship the Bible…

And Tuesday it finally arrived!

Unfortunately it takes three to four weeks to receive a package from the States. So the prison officer has been anxiously waiting for his Bible, and asked me about it a few weeks ago.

I am very excited about giving the officer his Bible because it will help him reach the prisoners for Christ.

And because a physical copy of the Bible is better than a digital copy

I understand lots of people may disagree with me about this (and that’s okay). But It’s my belief a physical copy of the Word of God is far better than the digital.

1. It leads towards active reading of Scripture: We read countless things from screens such as news, social media, emails etc. Scripture should be something taken seriously, so i’ts better to read it in a special way
2. It Removes Distractions: No matter how focused we are on the reading of Scripture, our phones bring far too many distractions. Everything from emails, to text messages, or social media posts can break our concentration.
3. It leads to Marking, and Taking Notes: Some individuals prefer to have their Bibles clear of notes or notations. I disagree with this since the beauty of having Scripture is being able to make notes or marks in it. Then later you see those markings again, and it’s a reminder of God’s goodness. Marking and taking notes also makes us THINK about what we are reading.
4. It Helps Prove the Truth: It is far easier to hold a physical Bible in front of someone and turn to cross references that defend your point. As you turn to each passage physically (and they read it with you) God’s truth becomes clearer. This can be done with a phone, but not very effectively. The amount of finger typing and swiping makes the process difficult.
5. And finally They Read it For Themselves: Bill Faye in his book “Sharing Jesus Without Fear” encourages us to have the unsaved read verses of Scripture. Then we ask the simple question “what is God saying here?” (Notice we don’t ask about their own opinion). If they say the wrong thing we just ask them to read it again. The Holy Spirit speaks to us through the Word of God. This is done much better with a physical Bible.
   

Again you may disagree with me on this point (and that’s okay). But I firmly believe replacing physical Bible’s with apps or software is a very big mistake.