The whole point of it is to know God.

That's the point of why we know our Bible is to know Him and to also know the truth,

to be able to discern what's the truth and what's a lie and to wield it as the, you know,

the sword of the spirit against the lies of the enemy and the lies of the world.

But the heart of it is that we would

know him. And so not that there's like, God has this heavenly gold star chart that, well,

I don't know, you didn't do it today. So, but, but that the time will come and you'll get to

sit down at a feast and just get it where you can for now.

Welcome to the Crossway podcast, a show where we sit down with authors each week for thoughtful interviews about the Bible, theology, church history, and the Christian life.

I'm Matt Tully, and today I'm talking with Lauren Chandler.

Lauren is a Bible study leader, a speaker, and a singer-songwriter who ministers alongside

her husband, Matt, at the Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas.

She's also written or contributed to a number of books and Bibles, including the ESV Women's

Study Bible from Crossway.

Today, Lauren and I discuss her habit of reading and studying the Bible.

She reflects on the biggest influences on how she engages with Scripture even today, explains

the way the Bible impacts her work as a songwriter, and shares how God used his word to strengthen

her faith when she first learned her husband had been diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Let's get started.

Well, Lauren, thank you so much for joining me on the Crossway podcast today.

Thanks, Matt. I'm really excited to be with you guys today.

So on the bio on your website, you write something that I found kind of interesting,

...