12 Tips on how to Study Your Bible

Church on our couch during this pandemic has been wonderful in many ways. We are worshiping and engaging in service together as a family and we are usually on time! Every week after the sermon, we have sat and answered questions and have engaged in really great conversations.

One such conversation that has continually come up these past few weeks has been the importance of reading our bibles.

My youngest is still an early reader and I lead and encourage her in her daily bible time. I have a child who enjoys reading in general and looks forward to her daily devotional, when she thinks about it. And my 14 year old is not a fan of reading, but is a rule follower and so he reads as part of his routine when he remembers. We have been having more and more discussions about routines and disciplines, especially as they grow older and we desire so much that studying and reading their bibles becomes a habit in their lives. Lately, especially as summer has begun, that routine has taken a backseat in some ways.

From my children I am hearing the same struggles I hear from women all the time. “I don’t have time.” “I don’t understand it.” “I get distracted.” “I don’t get anything out of it.” And I totally understand and sympathize because I say some of these things as well.

I have gone through the ebb and flow of reading my bible and keeping up with that habit. I have walked through seasons of hunger and seasons of drought. There are days when I can not wait to spend some time studying and days when I put it aside and never get to it.

The truth is that no matter where you are spiritually or in whatever circumstances, reading our bibles is a spiritual discipline and studying our bibles comes with maturity and growth.

I imagine that those of the first century church were hungry to read the words of the old testament and the letters of the apostles. These people didn’t have bibles. They didn’t have the letters and scriptures bound together, in fact many were probably illiterate or uneducated. But Acts 2:46 says that they met together DAILY. “Every day they continued to meet together…”

Daily they sat at the feet of the apostles and disciples, being themselves discipled so that they could learn and do the same.

They were desperate for the hope that the Gospel proclaimed.
They were desperate for its teachings and wisdom.
They were desperate for community and purpose.

We struggle with reading our bibles because we aren’t hungry. We aren’t desperate. We aren’t in a desperate need of hope.

As I told my children in our little house church, sitting in our living room like our brothers and sisters of the first century did; do not be foolish in thinking that we are safe from desperate or hopeless times. Don’t be foolish in thinking that our comfort is a part of our purpose. We should fill ourselves on God’s word always so that when those times of drought come we are full and ready.

The word of God is our sword and yet, many of us have had little training in how to use our sword. Could you imagine going into a battle and not know how to defend ourselves? Imagine being exhausted from the fight and not being able to tear down or put up any kind of offense in order to move forward in the battle.

We read and study our bibles so that when the battle begins, we know how to fight with our sword of truth. We engage in scripture so that when times are desperate we remember that “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31.