I shall want
Once a worried lady approached Robert Chapman, a dear brother from England in the 19th century, sharing her fears concerning the future. Chapman then quoted Psalm 23:1: "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall want." While she was correcting him, she got the message he tried to deliver.
Chapman loved to deliberately misquote Scripture in order to get people think about God's word in a new way.
When he was visited by John Knox and another brother called Hark, he said to Knox (a great Scottish reformer): "Mr. Hark is a very provoking brother." Knox was shocked, because Chapman was widely known for his loving attitude. Then Chapman carried on: "He provokes me every morning to love and good deeds."
Another time he said: "I can do everything!" and paused. The visitor was confused until Chapman added: "... in Christ who strengthens me." (Phil 4:13).
There are lots of other examples where Chapman made God's promises clear by playing with words. God's word and famous verses are often so common for us because we hear them so often (God loves you, he cares, Romans 8:28 etc...). One way of getting some attention and let other people re-think what God is actually saying is to play with the words.
Of course you have to do this wisely, not too often and not too cheesy, but in general I really like the idea.
Created over 1 year ago
