Apathy to Anchor.
When Timothy del Risco received a Teen Study Bible from his parents on his sixteenth birthday, he wasn’t immediately thrilled. “A lot of people on their sixteenth birthday get their parent’s old car or maybe a new one, but my parents got me a Bible.” He soon realized, however, that this Bible would impact his life far more than any car ever could.
Tim’s relationship with God changed when he was preparing to graduate from high school, two years after receiving the Teen Study Bible from his parents. “That was when I really started to follow Jesus personally. And it was through my time with the Lord in Scripture [that] I started connecting with him in an incredibly personal way.” Despite growing up “exposed to the things of God,” Tim wasn’t comfortable reading Scripture up to that point. “Anytime I would open the Bible it was very daunting or I didn’t connect with God or the Bible.” But all that changed when he joined a local Bible study—suddenly “Scripture started to come alive” for Tim. “It wasn’t these distant ideas [anymore]. I really started to grow in my relationship with God.”
Like all young adults raised in Christian homes, Tim faced a pivotal season when he left for college. Would he, like his parents, enjoy a close relationship with God? Or would he part ways with the faith of his family. By God’s grace, Tim’s first time living outside his parent’s home didn’t ruin his faith—it deepened it. And the Teen Study Bible from his parents played an important role. “It was in college that I really dove deep into this specific Bible…whenever I would read the Bible, God would encounter me. It became something that I would do almost everyday.” Quickly Tim developed a familiarity with this Bible, helping him share Scripture with others. “I had these very specific passages of Scripture that became anchors in my life. They were so meaningful to me, and if I was going through the Scripture with someone or I was at a Bible study, I knew exactly where on the page the passage was.”
As Tim’s life was being transformed through his time in God’s Word, the Bible he enjoyed using started to transform as well. “Recently I really didn’t enjoy reading this Bible because things were falling apart. It was getting really inconvenient.” Tim turned to our Bible Restoration Service in order to repair any damage to the Bible and protect it with a new leather cover.
Perhaps receiving a car on his sixteenth birthday would have helped Tim get around town for a few years. But instead his parents gave him a Bible that has helped him get through life for over a decade. And now that it’s restored, Tim can continue reading it far into the foreseeable future.
BIBLE REPAIR NEEDS
Tim’s Teen Study Bible needed several key repairs: 1. The Bible’s cover needed to be removed and replaced. 2. The Bible’s fold and wrinkled pages needed to be flattened. 3. The Bible’s spine needed to be strengthened.
BIBLE REPAIR PROCESS
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Tim’s original cover posed several significant issues. The cover was made from two different materials, and both were deteriorating. Additionally, one side of the cover was hanging on by a thread (literally). We removed the Bible’s worn-out cover and replaced it with one that would wear in with time, crafted in our c1382 leather color. Tim also had us personalize the new cover, adding his full name to the bottom right-hand corner.
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Multiple pages in Tim’s Bible were wrinkled or folded over. In addition to being visually unappealing, this issue can make it difficult to underline passages or take notes in the margins. Our team removed the wrinkles from many pages in the Bible and permanently unfolded those pages that required it.
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While no pages had yet detached from Tim’s Bible, we did need to reinforce a section of pages in the front of the Bible to ensure no pages would be lost in the future. Now Tim can read his Bible with confidence, knowing that none of the Bible’s pages will fall out.
Ready to Restore Your Bible?
We were honored to restore Tim’s Teen Study Bible. We would be honored to restore your Bible next.