Earlier this week, my colleague Terri Lackey and I attended a Bible study introduction conference at Wartburg Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa. This annual event is one of my favorite road trips. We drive from Chicago to Dubuque, listen to Bob Wills music in the car (and sometimes sing along), and snack on Starburst and Chex Mix. But the best thing about this trip is meeting with the women who come to this conference—women who are steeped in the language of Scripture. They’ve been doing Bible study for many years, and it shows.
Some of the participants have been to the Bible study conference year after year. I met a saint there once who told me she’d been to 16 of these conferences! When Stan Olson, the president of Wartburg, asked for a show of hands of how many had attended for at least five years, it seemed that most of the group raised their hands. Then he asked about 10 years of attendance and many still had a hand raised. But there were also a group of first-timers—and that’s very exciting.
This year the writer and presenter of the upcoming Bible study is the Rev. Patricia Lull. As she led the group through the study themes and sessions, the participants’ questions were rich with insight—gained from years of faithful study. It was really wonderful to share in a discussion of Scripture with women (and a couple of men). To see photos from the event, click here.
So starting in September, we’ll be studying “To Follow and to Serve: the Gospel of Mark.” Join us! To learn more about the study click here. We hope you’ll be part of this conversation about Mark’s gospel and that you’ll be enriched by the first language of the faith: the Bible.