When the fear is loud and faith feels far, God’s Word is your lifeline. These powerful Scriptures offer steady peace when your heart is anything but.

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A friend or pastor recommends you read a book by a church father, promising it will change the way you read the Bible or enrich your spiritual life. The church fathers were some of the earliest Christian writers, pastors, and bishops, whose works shaped how the church read the Bible. Maybe you’ve heard a few of their names at some point—Polycarp, Augustine, Athanasius—but this will be the first time you try to read their writings. By the time you get to the fourth or fifth paragraph, however, your eyes have glazed over: The writing is weird, and you aren’t sure what the author is trying to tell you. By the time you get to the fourth or fifth page, you’ve all but decided the best use of your time is to return the book to your shelf until you have a little more mental energy. Our instinct is to blame ourselves—or them. But the church fathers’ obscurity is often intentional, and understanding why can change how we read them. One example of this obscurity is the Stromateis of Clement of Alexandria. It’s a deliberately dense work. For good reason, its title is more literally translated into English as Miscellanies or Patchwork. In one moment, Clement will catalog quotations from non-Christian Greek writers; in the next, he will describe the education of Moses or talk about Christian martyrdom. How could this be the book that the church historian Eusebius described as a “wealth of useful learning” (Ecclesiastical History 6.13)? Using Clement as a case study, let’s consider why the church fathers write in such an obscure fashion and why their obscurity makes them so rewarding. Book to Be Labored Over Clement of Alexandria lived in the second and early third centuries. Although a few additional works and fragments survive, his lasting legacy is a trilogy of writings: Protrepticus, Paedagogus, and Stromateis. These three books embody the progression from conversion to spiritual contemplation. Protrepticus is an exhortation to Greek pagans to convert to Christianity, while Paedagogus depicts Christ as a moral guide for his students. Clement’s weightiest work is the Stromateis. Early in the work, he offers a revealing comment that describes the nature of the book: The Stromateis, making a body of wide learning, aim to skillfully conceal the seeds of knowledge. Just as the one who loves the chase looks for, tracks, traces, and trails with dogs, winning the wild beast, so the truth appears sweetened when sought and brought about with labor. (Stromata 1.2.20.4–21.2) Clement’s strategy is to compile a wide range of learning, sources, and ideas so he can simultaneously conceal and reveal the seeds of divine knowledge. The rationale behind his strategy is that the truth appears sweeter when you have worked hard for it. As the reader progresses through the dense writing style, he or she works harder to make sense of Clement’s words. It’s like the hunter who chases after his prize game, tracking it, chasing it, and ultimately obtaining it. When we labor over what we read, we end up sharpening our spiritual intellects more than if we were told the truth directly. Principle from Jesus Clement, like other church fathers, gets this idea from Jesus’s ministry. One popular verse among these writers is Matthew 7:6, where Jesus implores his hearers, “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.” Clement and other early Christian writers interpreted this verse as a command to defend right theology against false teachers or poor readers of the Scriptures. When we labor over what we read, we end up sharpening our spiritual intellects more than if we were told the truth directly. Being careful hearers of Jesus, they recognized that premature or half-realized truth often gets trampled rather than received. And, so, in response, writers like Clement (or the monk Evagrius Ponticus shortly after Clement) often invoke this verse to defend their reason for concealing the truth as they write. It’s the same principle that Jesus reiterates in Mark 4:10–12. The disciples ask why he speaks in parables, and Jesus replies, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, so that ‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.’” Learning to listen patiently and attentively helps shape us to become certain kinds of hearers—hearers who receive the truth of the gospel message. Formed by Truth and Obscurity Clement uses an even more striking image in a lesser-known fragmentary work, the Prophetic Selections. There, Clement compares the relationship between books and their readers to magnets and iron: In the same way that a magnet ignores everything else and pulls iron toward itself, so books may be read by many people but only draw in those who are able to understand (Prophetic Selections 27.5). The magnet and the iron belong to one another by nature, and this is the case with the diligent reader and the truth contained within books. This example highlights a spiritual shift that takes place as we grow in the gospel. As we become more like Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit, we are able to read Scripture with new eyes. This is similar to Paul’s language in 2 Corinthians 3:12–18, as he talks about the reading of the law and the veil remaining over the Israelites’ hearts. In Christ, the text of the Scriptures is truly unveiled. The truth of the gospel in the Old Testament is drawn to the Christian reader like iron is drawn to the magnet, allowing him or her to behold God’s glory with an unveiled face. Read the Fathers Well Why, then, were the fathers so obscure when they wrote? Because clarity shapes us less than difficulty does. As Clement promises, truth tastes sweeter when it has been labored over, chased down, and drawn out from something that hides it. Truth tastes sweeter when it has been labored over, chased down, and drawn out. Perhaps this is what Eusebius meant when he called Clement’s work a “wealth of useful learning”—not that it was the quickest guide to interpreting Scripture or a handbook we could consult daily. Rather, it’s by working through the fathers’ obscurities that we are trained to notice how God guides us to the truth in unexpected ways. Not every patristic work is as intimidating as Clement’s Stromateis. Some, like the Didache, the epistles of Ignatius, or Irenaeus’s Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, are much more accessible entryways to reading and understanding patristic theology. Nonetheless, I challenge you: The next time you pick up a work from a church father and feel lost in the first few pages, don’t close the book. Treat the difficulty as the point. After all, the labor is oftentimes the formation.

If you’re a parent or a youth leader, you may be daunted by the challenge of engaging teenagers with the Bible. We long for the teenagers we love to hear the voice of their Good Shepherd: “Abide in my word” (John 8:31). Still, this can feel increasingly difficult as the din of competing messages grows louder throughout adolescence. Learning to love Scripture is the work of the Holy Spirit, but adults can show a little Spirit-inspired creativity to help spark curiosity, eagerness, and reverence in young readers. Here are some recommended practices from a longtime youth minister and a mom of grown kids. Work Through Books of the Bible When our children are small, we read to them from children’s Bibles, introducing them to the significant people, places, and themes that connect the Bible’s overarching storyline. As children grow, they need more meat on the bones in their biblical diet. While it’s tempting to assume that teenagers want short, digestible messages about Scripture, in reality, they often crave more substance. By working through whole books of the Bible together, we help them expand their understanding, encompassing more and more of the biblical narrative. As children grow, they need more meat on the bones in their biblical diet. When we engage larger sections of Scripture, we’ll naturally come across trickier parts of the text. This can cause adults some anxiety. For example, we might wonder, How will I answer if they want to know why God commanded the destruction of whole cities? Or, What if they ask questions and I don’t know the answers? When these feelings arise, take a deep breath and ask for God’s help to trust in the power of his Word. Engaging difficult texts in an honest way will draw your teenagers to you, and more importantly, to God and his Word. It’s always OK to admit you’re not sure how to answer a particular question, and teenagers will grow along with you as you look for answers together. There’s something about confronting the human messiness of the Bible’s story that God often uses to bring teenage readers into honest reflection together. But this rarely happens if we stay on the surface with short, predictable Bible lessons. Engage Their Hearts The Psalms can be an excellent entry point for teens with big feelings because this book encompasses the gamut of human emotions. Encourage teenagers to pray psalms back to God. One helpful way to practice this is to open a notebook, write the words of the psalm on the left-hand page, and dialogue with the text on the right-hand page. For example, if the text says, “Blessed is the one who trusts in [God]” (Ps. 84:12), the teenager might write in response, “It’s hard for me to trust you when everything’s falling apart—help me, please.” Remind them, too, that the Psalter is a songbook. A musical teen might write his own tune for verses he loves. An artistic teen might use a journaling Bible, or paint the scene she sees in her head when God comes to her rescue in Psalm 18. If a hymn in church resonates with your teenager, encourage him to look up the lyrics and hunt down the Scripture references in his Bible. Let Teenagers Lead Let’s face it—family devotions with teenagers can feel as awkward as a forced family photo. So can a small group with a quieter mix of teenagers, or with students who aren’t sure they wanted to come in the first place. One way to overcome these obstacles is to give teenagers ownership in the discussion. Rather than asking questions into a void of silence, hand over the roadmap and invite them to do the asking. Suggest teenagers follow a simple outline for digging into a passage, such as inductive Bible study. In a broad sense, inductive Bible study helps us to slow down in our reading of a passage. First, we observe what the passage says, noting the facts, choice of words, and any repetition. Next, we interpret, considering what our observations might mean. We might summarize a story or the main point of a teaching, consider why the author included this passage, or ponder what a specific turn of phrase is teaching. Finally, we apply the meaning of the passage to our lives, asking ourselves how God wants us to respond, change, or grow by his grace in response to what we’ve read. This is also a good time to consider how this passage lines up with other parts of Scripture. Handing teenagers a simple outline for inductive Bible study and inviting them to lead the discussion is infinitely more compelling than expecting them to sit passively and answer questions the adults ask. Not only does this approach invite more enthusiastic participation, but we also know that leading or teaching others increases retention to as high as 90 percent. Students will remember only a small portion of what they hear. When we invite them to lead, on the other hand, their spiritual learning becomes personal. Keep the Whole Story in View I once heard a pastor confess that he’d finished his PhD work before the Holy Spirit opened his eyes to the fact that the Bible tells one story. For teenagers looking at Leviticus or Micah and wondering what on earth those laws or that poetry has to do with anything, knowing that every verse reveals God’s character and tells the story of our Savior Jesus can turn Bible study into a captivating puzzle. The Psalms can be an excellent entry point for teens with big feelings because these verses encompass the gamut of human emotions. Discussing our reading together, we might ask, Why is this verse here? Where does it fit into the one story of Jesus? How can I get to know him in Judges or Jude? How is God asking me to respond to this passage? Every believer spends a lifetime putting the pieces together, but when we understand that every verse contributes to a unified whole, the portrait we get of Jesus becomes a little clearer—and a little dearer. Help teenagers make this connection by keeping them flipping back and forth between the Old and New Testaments so they can see the story’s continuity for themselves. (Much more concrete and visual on a physical Bible than on a phone!) When you discuss a psalm, check to see if Jesus or Paul quoted that psalm—and wonder why, together. Follow the trails of Abraham’s story into the Gospels and Epistles. Remind them that the story of Jesus includes them as young believers (Rom. 8:17). His story is our story; his gospel shows us how to live the life he has given us. Pray, and Persevere Passing on a love for God’s Word has a unique urgency. As teenagers live in this world with all its confusion and heartache, we want them to know that the Bible contains the words of eternal life (John 6:68). Whether you’re meeting with resistance or have teenagers on fire to know God better, the best practice we can recommend is praying continually that God will draw them to himself through his Word.