몇 년 전 연말이 보이는 시점이었습니다. 새해 계획을 세우고 싶은 마음이 간간히 들기도 했으니까요. 새해가 되면 개선했으면 하는 것이 묵상과 통독이었습니다. 그런데 두 마리 토끼를 다 잡으려 들다가는 한 마리도 못 잡을 것 같아서 일단 통독은 접어두고 큐티라도 개선해야 하겠다고 마음을 먹었습니다. 그렇다고 제야의 종소리가 울려 퍼지는 순간 큐티를 열심히 하지 않는 나쁜 악습이 물러가고 곧 바로 날마다 큐티를 하는 새 습관이 찾아올 리 만무할 것 같아서 그 해 남은 날 동안에는 한 주간에 다섯 번 이상을 하는 훈련을 시작했습니다. 하지만 모두가 아시는 대로 소원만 가지고는 행동이 바뀌지 않았습니다.
그러다가 감사하게도 반신 욕조를 선물 받아서 욕실에서 성경 테이프를 듣기 시작했습니다. 속독 테이프였습니다. 빠른 속도로 “태초에 하나님이 천지를 창조하시니라”고 카세트에서 흘러나오는 말씀을 듣는 순간 거부감이 생겼습니다. 이렇게 ‘빠른 = 경망스런 속도’로 하나님 말씀을 들어도 되는가 하는 생각이 스쳤습니다. 얼마 후에 뉴스를 듣는데 이전과는 달리 아주 집중해서 듣는 자신을 발견했습니다. 속독 테이프를 듣다가 집중해서 듣는 훈련을 마친 셈입니다. 그래서 그 때부터 한 해에 신구약 성경 네 번을 듣는 일이 가능해졌습니다. 이제 생전에 나이만큼 성경을 들을 수 있겠다는 희망이 생겼습니다.
그런데 이게 왠일입니까? 한 해가 다 지나가도록 듣는 것과 읽는 것이 같은가 하는 의문이 떠나지 않았습니다. 사람들은 보통 성경 몇 번 읽었냐고 묻지 성경 몇 번 들었냐고 묻지를 않기 때문입니다. 그러다가 섬광처럼 말씀이 기억났습니다. “그러므로 믿음은 들음에서 나며 들음은 그리스도의 말씀으로 말미암았느니라”(롬 10:17) “이 예언의 말씀을 읽는 자와 듣는 자들과 그 가운데 기록한 것을 지키는 자들이 복이 있나니 때가 가까움이라”(계 1:3) 성도들이 성경을 읽는 것은 기껏해야 수백 년밖에 안된 습관입니다. 그러나 하나님의 말씀을 듣는 것은 수천 년 된 전통입니다. 말하자면 읽는 것보다 듣는 것이 원조(元祖)입니다.
사랑하는 울산교회 성도 여러분, 올해 우리는 “말씀을 사모하는 해”라는 표어를 걸고 “2009 독”이라는 목표를 설정했습니다. 혹시 여러분 가운데 올 들어 아직 한 번을 읽지 못하신 분은 이제라도 전략을 바꾸어 듣도록 하십시오. 듣는 것도 읽는 것처럼 인정하겠습니다. 꼭 욕실 아니라도 거실이나 차량에 카세트나 CD, MP3를 설치하십시오. 유심히 보면 MP3를 귀에 꽂고 길을 걷는 사람들이 많습니다. 무엇을 보고 무엇을 듣는지는 여러분의 선택입니다. 그러나 보고 읽고 듣는 바에 따라서 여러분의 삶은 영향을 받습니다. 기쁨 기도 감사의 삶을 원하시면 그 말씀을 꼭 가까이 하십시오.
A few years ago, as the end of the year was fast approaching, thoughts of setting New Year's resolutions crossed my mind from time to time. What I truly wished to improve upon in the new year was my personal meditation and reading through the entire Bible. Yet, fearing that chasing two rabbits at once would leave me with neither, I decided to set aside reading through the whole Bible for the time being and focus on cultivating a better daily devotion (Quiet Time) habit. Knowing full well that the ringing of the New Year's Eve bell would hardly banish my bad habit of neglecting daily devotions or magically usher in a new daily discipline overnight, I began training myself during the remaining days of that year to have QT at least five times a week. But as we all know, mere wishing does not bring about a change in behavior.
Then, gratefully, I received a half-body bath tub as a gift and began listening to audio tapes of the Bible while in the bathroom. They were speed-reading tapes. The moment I heard the fast-paced words pouring out of the cassette player—"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth"—I felt an instinctive resistance. The thought crossed my mind: Is it reverent to listen to God’s Word at such a 'fast, almost frivolous speed'? Yet, not long after, when listening to the daily news, I caught myself listening with an unprecedented level of focus. Without realizing it, listening to those high-speed Bible tapes had trained me to listen with deep concentration. From that point on, it became possible for me to listen through the entire Old and New Testaments four times a year. A quiet hope arose within me that I might be able to listen through the Bible as many times as the years of my life.
Even so, what a strange dilemma followed! Throughout the whole year, a persistent question lingered in my mind: Does listening really count as the same as reading? After all, people usually ask how many times you have read the Bible, never how many times you have heard it. Then, like a flash of lightning, the Scriptures came to mind: "Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ" (Romans 10:17). "Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near" (Revelation 1:3). Believers reading the Bible for themselves is a practice that spans only a few centuries at best. However, hearing the Word of God is a sacred tradition thousands of years old. In truth, listening is the original way.
Beloved congregation of Ulsan Church, this year, under the motto "A Year of Longing for the Word," we have set a shared goal of "2,009 Bible Readings." If any of you have not yet managed to read through the Bible once this year, change your strategy now and start listening. I will gladly count listening just the same as reading. It does not have to be in the bath; set up a cassette player, CD, or MP3 player in your living room or in your car. If you look closely, so many people walk the streets with earphones plugged into their MP3 players. What you choose to look at and what you choose to listen to is entirely up to you. Yet your life is inevitably shaped by what you behold, read, and hear. If you truly desire a life overflowing with joy, prayer, and thanksgiving, keep that Word close to your heart.
Enkele jare gelede, toe die einde van die jaar vinnig nader gekruip het, het die begeerte om nuwejaarsvoornemens te maak van tyd tot tyd by my opgekom. Wat ek werklik in die nuwe jaar wou verbeter, was my stiltetyd en die deurlees van die Bybel. Maar uit vrees dat ek met twee hase gelyk geeneen sou vang nie, het ek besluit om die deurlees van die hele Bybel eers opsy te skuif en my liewer toe te spits op die verbetering van my daaglikse stiltetyd. Aangesien die lui van die oujaarsaandklokke beslis nie die slegte gewoonte van nalatige stiltetyd sou verdryf en oornag ’n nuwe daaglikse dissipline sou meebring nie, het ek in die oorblywende dae van daardie jaar begin oefen om minstens vyf keer per week stiltetyd te hou. Maar soos almal maar te goed weet, verander ’n blote wens nog nie ’n mens se dade nie.
Toe het ek, baie dankbaar, ’n sitbad as geskenk ontvang en in die badkamer na Bybelkassette begin luister. Dit was snellees-kassette. Die oomblik toe die woorde teen ’n hoë vaart uit die kassetspeler stroom — “In die begin het God die hemel en die aarde geskep” — het ’n gevoel van weerstand in my opgekom. Die gedagte het by my verbygeflits: Mag ’n mens die Woord van God teen so ’n 'vinnige = ligsinnige spoed' aanhoor? ’n Rukkie later, terwyl ek na die nuus geluister het, het ek agtergekom dat ek met ongekende aandag luister. Sonder dat ek dit besef het, het die luister na die snelleeskassette my geoefen om met diep konsentrasie te luister. Van daardie oomblik af het dit moontlik geword om die hele Ou en Nuwe Testament vier keer per jaar deur te luister. Daar het ’n stil hoop in my ontstaan dat ek gedurende my leeftyd die Bybel soveel kere sou kon deurkrag as wat my lewensjare tel.
Maar wat ’n vreemde gewaarwording was dit nie! ’n Hele jaar lank het die knaende vraag my bygebly: Is luister werklik dieselfde as lees? Mense vra mekaar immers gewoonlik hoeveel keer jy die Bybel gelees het, nie hoeveel keer jy dit gehoor het nie. En toe, soos ’n weerligstraal, het die Skrif my te binne geskiet: “Die geloof kom dus deur die aanhoor van die prediking, en die prediking wat ons hoor, is die verkondiging van Christus” (Rom. 10:17). “Geseënd is die een wat die woorde van hierdie profesie voorlees, en die mense wat daarna luister en ter harte neem wat daarin geskrywe staan, want die eindtyd is naby” (Openb. 1:3). Dat gelowiges self die Bybel lees, is ’n gebruik wat hoogstens ’n paar eeue oud is. Maar om na die Woord van God te luister, is ’n duisende jare oue tradisie. Om die waarheid te sê, om te luister is die heel oorspronklikste wyse.
Geliefde gemeente van Ulsan Gemeente, vanjaar het ons onder die leuse “’n Jaar van verlange na die Woord” ’n mikpunt van “2009 Deurlesings” gestel. As daar van julle is wat vanjaar nog nie daarin kon slaag om die Bybel een keer deur te lees nie, verander gerus nou julle strategie en begin luister. Ek sal die luister net soos die lees ten volle erken. Dit hoef nie noodwendig in die badkamer te wees nie; sit ’n kassetspeler, CD- of MP3-speler in die sitkamer of in die motor neer. As ’n mens fyn kyk, loop daar so baie mense met oorfone in hul ore op straat. Waarna julle kyk en waarna julle luister, is julle eie keuse. Tog word julle lewens onafwendbaar gevorm deur dit wat julle sien, lees en hoor. As julle ’n lewe van vreugde, gebed en danksegging begeer, hou dan daardie Woord altyd baie naby aan julle hart.