Turn the gem. It’s an old, old Jewish term that rabbis used to describe interpreting scripture from different perspectives. It’s like the Bible is a big diamond (hello, I’m here for that) and as the light hits, it’s reflected out of the diamond in a particular path. Turn the gem & the light hits in a different place, resulting in a different refraction of the light.
I’ve always been drawn to verses about light. I want to be light. Shine light. Burn bright. To reflect God’s glory and light the way for others. Turning the gem, for me, is about using the light inside of me to reflect God’s message in a new way. In a very Kristin way. With humor and cultural parallels and by sharing how God has inserted his truth in my life in a real & applicable way. Some days we’ll laugh together. Some days we’ll dive deep into the well and get serious. But I know that my life is bigger than me and anything God’s taught me can surely be applied by someone else as well. Maybe you can be quicker than me and learn a lot faster. I tend to need multiple chances to finally get what God’s trying to teach me.
There have been many times, based on season, stage of life or the lens I was reading through, where I felt like I was reading scripture for the first time. Verses I read as a child now mean completely different things to me as an adult. Bible stories I’ve known my entire life suddenly presented themselves in a completely opposite way; instead of relating to the disciple, I would see myself as the Pharisee. Identifying with a different character completely changes the story. That’s what people mean when they say that scripture is alive, that the Bible is God’s living word. It’s not about changing the meaning of scripture, but turning the gem allows us to look at stories we’ve always known and see them from a different perspective. To see things in a way that maybe we hadn’t before.
That’s what this blog is about. I have a hard time relating to certain stories of the Bible if only because they’re predictable. Growing up hearing the NIV version, my mind jumps ahead to what’s coming next. What I’ve heard or read a hundred times. Even small changes like reading different versions gives God’s voice a place to come through and speak into what I thought I knew it was about.
When I share what God’s showing me in scripture, I tend to put a current spin on it. If these were real people and real events that took place, I need to see them that way. If I can imagine Joseph saying “Hold up. You’re what?!” to newly pregnant Mary, I better understand their relationship. Clearly, he would be bothered about his virgin fiance being pregnant by someone else. If I can allow myself to imagine Jonah talking to God from the belly of a whale like “Ok, God, I get it. I understood my mistake yesterday. How many days are you going to make me wait in here before this fish pukes me out?” I can relate to his struggle in the waiting.
Am I saying something new with my interpretation of scripture? No. And I hope I never do because truth is truth. Turning the gem isn’t about distorting the message. It’s about seeing it in a different way. From a different perspective. I’ve come to realize that making the Bible applicable looks different for different people. You may not like my version of the flood when I say that Noah was like “TBH, I have no idea what an ark is but it must be massive. Do you see all this wood?!” but for another person, it may be the very perspective they need to have a connection to the story. To scripture. To these real people that actually lived these crazy stories out. It’s not that my version is THE correct way but by turning the gem and seeing God’s word from as many viewpoints as possible, we can only end up understanding it more fully.
And lemme keep it real real with the term gem. I’m always here for a little bit of sparkle.
