On one of the loveliest days of last summer, my family drove to the quay in Cork City where the Logos was docked. It was a delightful visit, meeting the staff, taking a tour of the ship, and of course, perusing the bookstore.

I came home with a small stack of books, but the best choice by far was The One Year Bible, New Living Translation. No matter that I started it when the year was half-finished.

Every night, it’s like sitting down to a meal. I love it. I love the variety of Old and New Testaments, with Psalms and Proverbs every day. I don’t stress out with guilt for skipping over the genealogies and such like, and the portions aren’t too long–actually, I often think they’re not long enough, that the meal was finished too quickly. The translation helps give a fresh message, so I don’t become lulled by words I’ve read all my life. Lately, in Genesis, I’ve been swept up with the narration and God’s amazing understatements.

A long time ago, every day for 40 years, God fed His people a mysterious food. It was unlike anything they knew so they called it “What is it?” The daily snowing of manna sustained them on their rigorous journey because it came from Him whose hand is strength and grace and love.

So when I pray before I begin my nightly “meal”: “Give me today the food I need” I am asking God to send me sustenance and strength that I can never get anywhere else. What He sends is often a mystery, not always acknowledged for the wonder that it is. But it is a wonder, and a beauty, and I love Him for it.