“Joy is God’s smile; love is God’s laughter.” ―
Do you love to smile? Smiles can make you feel better even when you don’t really feel as though you have any reason to smile. I just wrote a post about how smiles are good for us last month. So this seemed the perfect time to share a devotional about the Bible and about smiles with a little something at the end that might bring on one of those smiles.
First, here are a few interesting facts about the Bible.
The Bible contains 3,566,480 words; 31,173 verses; 1,189 chapters and 66 books. The word “and” occurs 46,277 times. The word “Lord” occurs 1,855 times. The word “reverend” occurs but once, in Psalm 111:9. Ezra 7:21 contains all the letters of the alphabet except the letter J. The middle verse is Psalm 118:8. The longest verse is Esther 8:9. The shortest – John 11:35. (If you ever had to memorize a verse for school, you know what that one says!) There are no words or names of more than six syllables. (These all apply to the King James Version)
As a writer, I’m very conscious of word counts. I don’t know who did the counting, but I’ll take their word for it especially about how many times the word “and” is in the Bible. Of course, computer programs can probably figure all that out in seconds these days. My computer knows exactly how many words I type each time I sit down to work. This post will end up around 700 words if I wrap up my thoughts soon. 
Oh, and here’s Ezra 7:21 so you can check out those alphabet letters yourself if you want. I did check to see if the New King James Version had all the letters but “j,” and it does.
And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, issue a decree to all the treasurers who are in the region beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, let it be done diligently. (Ezra 7:21 NKJ)
The following verse about happiness and sorrow in Proverbs is one I used in my second Hollyhill book, Orchard of Hope, where Wes is feeling broken and fighting against that sorrow of the heart. One of the ways he pushed back the darkness that threatened him was through times with Jocie that had him smiling and through searching the Scriptures.
A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken. (Proverbs 15:13 NKJ)
Most of my books do have some Scripture threaded into the story in what I hope is a natural way. Some of my stories have more than others. In the Shadow of the River, releasing this spring, has very little quoted Scripture. The book I’m working on for next year is going to be heavy with Scripture because one of the main characters is a preacher. Bible verses in stories please some and upset others. On the other hand, some readers are disappointed when no Scripture shows up in a story.
Perhaps one of the best things to know about the Bible is that it often meets a person opening it right wherever they are and presents them with the verses that will heal and comfort or celebrate and rejoice. I had that happen with Dirk in When the Meadow Blooms, when he stumbled across Ezekial 11:19.
Smiles can be part of healing and part of rejoicing.
I hope The Bible in 30 Seconds shared below will make you smile. I first saw it shared by Mark Lowry, a Christian comedian, but when I tried to find who might have written it, I wasn’t able to find a source. But if we start with a smile and end with a smile, then all is good.
The Bible in 30 Seconds
God made.
Adam bit.
Noah arked.
Abraham split.
Jacob fooled.
Joseph ruled.
Bush talked.
Moses balked.
Pharaoh plagued.
Sea divided.
People walked.
Tablets guided.
Promise landed.
Saul freaked.
David peeked.
Prophets warned.
Jesus born.
God walked.
Love talked.
Anger crucified.
Hope died.
Love rose.
Spirit flamed.
Word spread.
People saved.
God glorified!
Happy are the people whose God is the Lord! (Psalm 144:15 NKJ)
May you have many reasons to smile in the week ahead. You are a reason I can smile when doing my posts here. Thank you for reading.
Do you like to read novels that has Scripture as part of the story?