Bible Stories Told My Way

By Juan M. Perez

Have you ever wondered what Bible characters were thinking and feeling while all those things were going on around them? This book is about their thoughts, feelings, fears, and triumphs.

Bible stories are always short and to the point. Maybe the writers didn’t have more imagination, or God just wanted to get His point across and that’s it. Either way, we are left wondering about many things that aren’t answered. Bible Stories Told My Way goes a step further in telling some of these stories without losing the principle or teaching that our Lord intended. The stories in this book come alive with the thoughts, feelings, and additional dialogue that very likely were a part of what really happened. You will hear their fears, feel their victories, laugh at their comments, and cry with them as they experience God from a human point of view. Bible Stories Told My Way is author Rev. Juan M. Perez’s attempt at understanding the humanness of the people whose lives were touched by God in such powerful life-changing ways.

Rev. Juan M. Perez is the pastor of New Life Christian Counseling Ministry. He has counseled hundreds of people for thousands of hours in twenty-four years. Besides counseling, He also trains counselors to be a part of a counseling team in their own church. His calling by God and his passion is that every church will have a counseling team that ministers to the public.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Juan M. Perez
• Release date: Feb 28, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370435821

Juan M. Perez

Rev. Juan M. Pérez has counseled for over 30 years. He has counseled hundreds of people for thousands of hours. He has written several books relating to counseling, and/or Christian ministry. Rev. Perez and his wife, Lydia, have been married for 40 years, and almost divorced in their 7th year. They are the parents of two grown sons, who have given them six wonderful grandchildren. Rev. Pérez applies not only a sound Scriptural basis for all of his counseling, but includes his life experience in resolving issues with practical answers. He is also the pastor and Lead Counselor of New Life Christian Counseling Ministry, a ministry of New Life Outreach of Dallas, Inc. The ministry offers counseling to people in and around the Dallas Ft. Worth Metroplex. As well, they hold Faith Based Counseling training and certification.

Book preview

Bible Stories

Told MY Way

You’ve Never Read Them

Like This

Rev. Juan M. Pérez

Bible Stories Told MY Way

Copyright 2017 Rev. Juan M. Pérez. All rights reserved.

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Index

Preface

Poem 1 - Am Who I Am

Chapter 1 - Do I Really Want to Be Healed?

Poem 2 - Give Me Strength

Chapter 2 - The Issue of Blood

Poem 3 - Do You Cry When You Pray?

Chapter 3 - Dunk Yourself in a Dirty River

Poem 4 - The Search

Chapter 4 - Fishing the Empty Waters

Poem 5 - What Do You See When You Look at Me?

Chapter 5 - Calming the Sea

Poem 6 - You Are My Gift

Chapter 6 - The Walking Dead

Poem 7 - My Anger, My Monster

Chapter 7 - Long-Distance Healing?

Poem 8 - Just the Way He Led

Chapter 8 - Jesus Called Her a Dog!

Poem 9 - If I Believed in Prayer

Chapter 9 - What about Me?

Poem 10 - My Place in Him

Chapter 10 - Few Fish, Much Hunger

Poem 11 - The Best Treasure

Chapter 11 - The Ghost on the Water?

Poem 12 - Expect Me First

Chapter 12 - Unending oil

Poem 13 - My Promise to You

Last Word -

Dedication

Writing a book is something big, at least to me. The time required for writing, editing it (over and over), and then preparing it for possible publishing can be daunting. If not for my wife, Lydia, I would have had much trouble having and making the time necessary for this venture. Lydia, you make me want to be a better man. Thank you graciously, my Brown-Eyed Girl, for your support and faith in me. I dedicate this book to you.

Since writing this book, which is a revision, I have written 15 other books. Though they cover several genres, I have endeavored to do that which I love so much; write. I do hope you would consider visiting my web site to check out my other books. www.PracticalCounseling.Com.

Preface

There are many stories in the Bible that provide us with powerful teaching and enjoyable content; however, they lack in details. Many of these stories were included in Scripture almost as if by happenstance, kind of like a quick word about them just to make the point. I have always found this a bit sad because the details would (in my own opinion) only serve to enhance the stories, without taking away any of the value or obstructing the teachings of these wonderful tales.

I have given names to some of the characters in these stories that are consistent with their heritage and status in life. I have also extrapolated conversations and thoughts which I believe could have been true, given the circumstances in which they will find themselves. I was careful to avoid anything that might change the intent or teaching of the story. Also, I clarified things a bit better at points where the clarification served to make the points or teachings clearer.

I hope you enjoy these stories as much as I did when I wrote them. I believe that even with these enhancements, the stories will still be useful as scriptural teaching when they are related again to others. My experience was that those who have already read these stories written my way reached the same conclusions as when read directly from the Bible, and they enjoyed the additional material because it brought the characters to life.

You will also find some of my poems interspersed throughout the book I hope that you will enjoy reading them.

May God continue to bless the reading of his Word, whatever the form it is in when it reaches the seeing eye and listening ear.

I Am Who I Am

Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?

Were you there when all life through my spirit gave birth?

Who are you to question me?

Do you guide any star or cause the sun to shine bright?

Can you reach into darkness and bring out the light?

Who are you to question me?

Do the storms know your voice or the lightning your face?

Can you feed all the animals with the love of your grace?

Who are you to question me?

Who invented the snow, rain, ice, and sleet?

Does the moon do your bidding and lay at your feet?

Who are you to question me?

Who created the laws that the heavens obey?

Who darkens the night or lightens the day?

Who are you to question me?

From whom comes all knowledge?

Where does wisdom begin?

Can you talk to the clouds and make them thunder again?

Who are you to question me?

Can you whisper to trees, make them give you their fruit?

Can you curse any tree and make it die from the root?

Who are you to question me?

Do you know everything?

Are your judgments all true?

Can you show that I’m wrong that I must answer you?

Who are you to question me?

Can you hide any place, can you run very far,

Can you go down so deep that I won’t know where you are?

Who are you to question me?

Who created the angels?

For whom do they live?

Are you the recipient of all the praises they give?

Who are you to question me?

Can you set up a kingdom and bring it down again?

Can you live out your life without committing a sin?

Who are you to question me?

Have you given your life for another to save?

Have you mastered the battle between life and the grave?

Who are you to question me?

And now that these questions are all said and done,

I’ll ask you one more, have you given your son?

I Am Who I Am

Author’s Note

I wrote many of the poems in this book early in my Christian walk. This one was written at a time after my house had been burglarized. In my mind, I had been faithful in my tithing and obedience. I could not understand why God would allow thieves to steal our property. I imagined the angels sitting on the roof of my home saying, Wow, hey, look they’re stealing the TV, and doing nothing to stop it. You know the verse, right? (Psalms 34:7). I became very angry with the Lord. As I stewed over my anger and searched the Scriptures for a real answer, I wrote the above poem.

I wrote it in sections. Parts on napkins, some on pieces of paper, and still others I made up after I started piecing it together on my word processor (yeah, word processor). I did not see the whole poem together until I had finished. It got my attention, and it helped me see things a bit differently.

Chapter One

Do I really want to be healed?

The woman walked as though she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders. She stepped over and past many persons who were sitting or lying around.

Jared, please, she pleaded. You need to come home.

Leave me alone, Reba! he snapped at her. I don’t want to miss my chance at being healed!

The water is not going to stir, Jared, she argued back at him. You have been here for many days, and nothing has happened.

Yes, go, a nearby person shouted, hoping he really would leave so that there would be one less person to compete with if the angels were to stir the waters of the pool.

I want my healing! Jared yelled at her. You know that only the first person to enter will be healed, and I have had to outwait other people to be able to get this close to the pool. I am not going to throw away my chance after all of that. Just go away!

Reba stared at the stubborn man for a while longer. He never took his eyes off the pool. She then turned and walked away.

***

One day, Jesus and his disciples returned to Jerusalem so that they could be present for one of the Jewish Holy Days. They entered the city by the gate that was referred to as Sheep Gate.

Peter thought about that as they passed through.

Isn’t it funny how things end up with strange names? Just because shepherds use it to bring their sheep into the city due to its width and accessibility, the name Sheep Gate stuck.

Jesus and his disciples often used this gate to enter or leave the city. That is why Jesus was familiar with the pool called Bethesda that was located near the entrance. He had