I just received the Spring 2009 Bible Catalog in the mail from Christian Book Distributors.  And let me say right up front, I buy from CBD.  I enjoy browsing through their books and Bibles. 

And believe me, they have them all…Maximixed Living Bibles, Power of a Praying Woman’s Bibles, Extreme Teen Bibles, Children’s Study Bibles, Bible-in-a-Bag Bibles, Livin' Out Your Faith Bibles, Duct Tape Bibles, Word on the Street Bibles, Revolution Bibles, Spirit-filled Life Bibles, Study Bibles, Learning Bibles, Journaling Bibles, Backpack Bibles, and of course, Veggie Tales Bibles.  Oh yes. 

And guess what?  All of those Bibles come in multiple translations, print sizes, and bindings with every kind of feature you can imagine.  The 64-page catalog is jammed with fine print listings of Bible after Bible.  And just in case I can't find the right Bible from thousands of choices in the catalog, well then, there are even more Bibles on the website.

But hold on...why do we need so many Bibles?  Especially when research shows people are reading them less and less.  And especially, especially, when there are places in the world that have no Bible translation at all.  Seriously…why?

I say it’s time for Christian publishers and retailers to rethink their true motivation for selling Bibles; is it really to promote the Word of God?  And I say it’s time for Western Christians to stop spending so much money on designer Bibles; couldn't we use at least some of that money to support efforts to translate and distribute Bibles in areas of the world that have none at all, like the Last Languages Campaign sponsored by Wycliffe Bible Translators? 

But most of all, I say it’s time for me to stop lusting after a new leather-bound Kitchen Sink Bible and start doing a better job of reading and living the one I already have.  How about you?