The Value of Memorizing the Bible

This semester, one of our ladies Bible study groups has been reading a wonderful book about Bible memorization. Memorizing Scripture: The Basics, Blessings, and Benefits of Meditating on God’s Word is exactly what is sounds like: a guidebook to how and why we meditate on the Bible.

Memorizing is quickly falling out of favor in all areas of life. Spelling tests, multiplication facts, state capitals, things everyone had to memorize a generation ago are no longer required or even encouraged in some spheres. Why? Because we have phones, tablets, the Internet is available 24/7 with all the answers. When your math teacher told you to memorize the 12s times tables because you wouldn’t always have a calculator with you…that no longer applies. So why spend the time, effort, and brain space on things that we can look up faster than we could recall?

The case for Bible memory is stronger than any other subject because God’s Word is different than any other subject. It has the power to change us, help us, comfort us, guide us, convict us, and the list continues. While I still encourage my kids to memorize facts that others look up, my encouragement to memorize the Bible is far stronger because the Bible isn’t man’s ideas, it’s from God.

My own road with memorizing is shaky. As a kid, my mom would record herself saying Bible verses on an endless cassette tape {if you don’t know what I’m talking about, ask Google}. As I played or colored, I would listen and absorb those verses. It was multitasking in the 1990s. As I got older, I would read verses to myself on repeat, look away, and try to say it as fast as possible before it slipped away. In high school and college, it was required to write out our memory verses for tests and quizzes and I learned that writing something memorized is not the same as repeating it.

As an adult, memorizing became less of an emphasis in my life. I read the Bible and studied it, but not to the point of being able to quote a passage I was going through. It was now readily available on my phone! I could search for a phrase and get a whole list of verses! Surely we had arrived!

But after becoming a parent and going over verses with my kids on repeat{we no longer have endless tapes}, I became more and more convicted about my previous lack of conviction about Bible memory. I started finding a verse in my daily Bible reading and repeating it over and over throughout the day, trying to seal it in.

When Glenna Marshall, an author and pastor’s wife, posted that she had written a book on memorizing, I preordered it. And when our Bible study decided to read it together, I volunteered to lead the study and write discussion questions. It’s been a true blessing to learn about this topic, encourage each other in our personal memorization habits, and discover why this is a crucial part of the Christian life.

I don’t want to give away Marshall’s points because I want you to purchase the book and read them yourself {wink, wink}. But I will say Bible memory is not as daunting as I believed it to be. She breaks down every excuse for why you haven’t been memorizing and offers so many helpful tips to get you started. She also goes through biblical principles of why Bible memory helps us in various times.

I am currently memorizing Psalm 107. Unlike previous attempts at remembering a jumble of words to repeat as quickly as possible, I’m letting the words soak in and make sense. I’m connecting the thoughts and allowing the truth to grow my love for Who God is.

Bible memorization is for all Christians. Your age, time constraints, stage of life, profession mean nothing. God’s Word is profitable for all people to know, love, and hide in their hearts.

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out

Final Week in Proverbs

We made it! A month in Proverbs.

I hope it was a blessing to you and that you see the relevance for today’s world in this 31 chapter book. Here is a brief recap from the last seven days of reading.

• Several times we are reminded not to be jealous of the wicked {23:17; 24:1, 19} because they will be punished {24:16; 24:20; 26:27; 28:18; 29:6}. This is a theme throughout the book, where we see the ultimate end of the evil.

• More pleas from a father to a son to listen, heed, obey his voice/commands {23:19, 22, 26; 27:11}. We first saw this in 1:8 and it runs throughout the book. Think of Solomon, the wisest person in history, pleading with his son to listen and not make the same mistakes he did.

• The difference between the wise and the fool are listed many times {23:9; 24:7; 27:12; 29:9}. The fool continues in his folly until judgment while the wise strive to live upright and gain reward.

• The last two chapters are a slight break. Chapter 30 has a pattern of, “these three things, yet four…” which is a way of drawing attention and repeating for emphasis. Chapter 31 is most famous for describing a virtuous woman and all the ways she looks after her household.

June is over and with it, our first reading of Proverbs for the summer! In June, I read the New King James Version and for July, I’ll be reading the Christian Standard Bible. I hope going through a chapter a day for a month was helpful for you to get a good overview and see some of the themes and repeated words in Proverbs.

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Week One in Proverbs

I’ve been reading a chapter of Proverbs a day for a week now and I have thoughts.

Let me begin by saying that no overview is ever going to be exhaustive. On several days, I read the previous chapters again because in reading chapter two, I was reminded of something from chapter one and chapter five started similarly to chapter four. I will be learning and noticing things from this book every time I read it. But here are a few observations from the first seven chapters.

• Chapter one opens with why we read Proverbs in the first place: to know, to perceive, to receive, to give, to hear, to attain, to understand. All these words are connected to words used for wisdom: wisdom & instruction, understanding, instruction of wisdom, prudence, increase learning, wise counsel, proverb, words of the wise.

• We also see the reverse of being wise — listening to the enticements of sinners {v10} and the consequences of that action {vv11-19}.

• Chapter two begins with the same call to wisdom with an “If…then…” statement that runs from verse 1-5.

• In 2:21-22 we see good and evil contrasted. We will see more of these contrasts in coming chapters!

• We are very familiar with 3:5-6. It is often memorized and quoted. But I loved connecting it with vv7-8. Part of trusting God and not leaning on our understanding {v5} is humility, meaning we shouldn’t consider ourselves wise {v7}. By acknowledging him and follow his path {v6} we gain strength and health {v8}.

• Again we see the contrast in good and evil {3:33-35}.

• Chapter four ends with a lengthy reminder that choosing wisdom over foolishness is a definite action. We can’t be passive in seeking wisdom, because wisdom will cover every aspect of life. Read 4:23-27 and note the actions mentioned for how we should seek wisdom and abandon evil.

• I had to chuckle at the repeated tone of, “Listen, my son, hear me, children” in so many of these chapters. what parent isn’t constantly reminding their children to pay attention! Listen! This is important! It’s very relatable. But also shows how much we need to actively seek after wisdom! We won’t stumble onto the right path any easier than children making good choices without prompting, reminders, and encouragements.

• I found 5:21 to be an encouragement in our present day when wickedness and sinful people seem to be winning. Have courage, Christian. God sees, God knows the ways of all people.

• We see two physical examples here that we can observe. First, the ant, diligently carrying food and storing it {vv6-8}. Second, the picture of fire and what happens when you carry it {vv27-29}. Just as it is impossible to not be burned, so is it impossible to sin — particularly in adultery — without physical consequences.

• Chapter seven is a sad picture of how easily and quickly sin can overtake us. Just like a harlot, sin looks appealing, maybe even like something we could get away with. But the end result is always a tragedy. It always leads to death.

This is just scratching the surface of what I learned and observed in my readings this week. There are certainly more points I could write out but these stood out to me.

If you haven’t been reading along, please consider joining! We are only one week in and it’s not too late to grab a Bible, open a Bible app, and start reading {or listening} to one chapter of Proverbs a day.

What are some of your takeaways from this week? I’d love to read in the comments!

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Stay Encouraged in Bible Study

I wrote previously on the similarities between Bible study and working a puzzle. But with more puzzling and more studying, I have continued to think about this. :) I realize people have different methods and habits when it comes to puzzling and Bible study. But here are some observations and tips I have found helpful, in both habits.

Beginning

Whenever we start a new puzzle, my kids are all excitement…until I insist on picking out the edge and corner pieces and turning every piece so the correct side shows. They quickly lose interest and disperse to other activities, leaving me to sort through 1000 pieces on my own.

When my son asked why we always begin a puzzle this way, I told him it makes the process of working the puzzle easier. Having the frame set before you tackle the actual picture of the puzzle is helpful because 1) you clearly see how large the puzzle will be, 2) you can begin to see where the inside parts of the puzzle will connect, 3) the picture starts to make sense.

A few times, my kids have started working the middle of the puzzle before the edges are put together and it is rough! The picture on the box gives us a reference of what we’re going for but without the borders, we have no overall vision for size or placement.

In a similar way, when we approach Bible study by choosing our favorite verse and reading it multiple times, we are bound to not understand it completely. We need the context of the surrounding verses, the chapter, the book. By skipping this crucial step that might not seem important, we are making it more difficult and frustrating to get to the meat of the passage and what it’s about.

Let’s consider the book of Ruth. I’ve seen on walls and wedding announcements and everything in between, “For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” {Ruth 1:16b} Now, this is a lovely sentiment and one I agree with BUT Ruth is speaking these words to Naomi, her mother in law and not her future husband {she hadn’t met Boaz at this point in her life and had no idea what was coming. But she was demonstrating a loyalty to her deceased husband’s mother and to the Lord}.

Without looking at the context of the first chapter, we can easily be confused about who is actually talking to whom. And without studying the background and historical placement of this book, we don’t understand the cultural significance or why Ruth’s dedication to go with Naomi is so shocking. Those beginning study tips before diving into the “meat” of a passage will serve us well in the long run.

Middle

Once we have the puzzle edges outlined, my kids continue to be frustrated at my process: grouping colors. I do not like simply picking up two puzzle pieces and seeing if they fit, then moving on to two others, two others…. That is not helpful or efficient to me.

But if I look through all the pieces, study the picture on the box, and group pieces together that are a similar color or show a similar texture or image, I have a much smaller group of pieces to try and match. Suddenly, I have many small sections of the puzzle complete and ready to piece together.

When we apply this practice to Bible study, we see the importance of context. We cannot grab two random verses that we think should go together and make up a new interpretation. What is the whole chapter or book focusing on? What themes or key words do we see woven throughout the passage?

The whole of the Bible is one story. It is not a collection of interesting stories or sayings. It is the story of God’s redemptive plan and every part of the Bible tells us something about that plan and the God who holds this universe. When we try to grab a handful of pieces and make sense of the puzzle, it doesn’t work. When we focus on the verses that make sense to us and declare the rest unnecessary, we will never understand God’s complete message.

Again, we can go back to Ruth. On the surface, the book seems to be a straight forward Cinderella story of a widow who was loyal to her mother in law and it paid off by finding a kind husband. But that’s not the reason Ruth is in the Bible, and if that’s all we get from it, we are missing a lot!

Taking the time to read God’s instructions about leaving harvest in the fields for widows and poor {Lev. 19:9,10; Deut. 24:19}, the idea of a kinsman redeemer {Deut. 25:5-10}, how God sees those in need, etc. we begin to understand more than just a casual read through gives us.

I’ve also noticed that the more I look at the puzzle, the more quickly I recognize pieces I need. I notice the color or shape of the piece and I can grab from the pile of pieces and fit it into the larger puzzle more easily.

In Bible study, this looks like recognizing a theme or reference and plugging it into the greater picture of the Bible. As mentioned above, when Naomi tells Ruth to go and glean in a field because they have nothing, we can pull from our biblical knowledge and remember what God commanded the Israelites in Leviticus. When we reach the end of Ruth, we recognize the names Jesse and David and we can put together the significance of including the story of Ruth and Boaz in the Bible. The more we read the Bible, the more familiar we become with it.

Near End

You probably thought the next part would be to complete the puzzle. But as a puzzler, I’m here to tell you, unless you’re working a 100 piece children’s puzzle, there will come a time in every puzzle I like to call the near end. This can be the frustrating time in puzzling. You can almost see the whole picture! You have a smattering of pieces left! The end is in sight! And yet, it seems so far because all the pieces remaining could go anywhere. They have no distinctive coloring or marking to indicate where they belong.

And so you have to try every remaining piece in every location still blank. After a while, it seems like you’ve tried every piece from every angle and when will this puzzle be finished?! But you are so close and so you keep going, trying every piece again.

In Bible study, it’s not as obvious when we’re at the end…because we will never finish. There’s always going to be something else to learn from our Bible reading and study. But at times, we can feel like we are going in circles in our studying or standing still; we might feel like we don’t understand a passage or a chapter any better than when we first read it.

Just as in working a puzzle, we cannot be discouraged by what we see as an impossible problem. There are many difficult things in the Bible — topics and stories and instructions that we struggle with. That doesn’t mean we gloss over them or ignore them. We can pull out commentaries, dictionaries, and other translations and take the time needed to arrive at an answer.

The third chapter of Ruth has always been a head scratcher for me. Laying at the feet of someone winnowing grain? Checking with another man to redeem her? What is going on? The events of the Bible happened in the midst of cultural traditions and geographic locations that are very foreign to us. So commentaries and dictionaries and maps become a friend for us in unraveling some things that don’t make sense.

However, it is important that we don’t give up! When we read something in the Bible that has us confused or staring into space, we ask questions, we consult reliable commentaries, we press in. Of course, we won’t learn or understand everything in the Bible. Our finite minds can’t comprehend it all. But we do what we can to understand what God has revealed and pray for his guidance as we study.

End

And now we’re there! Every puzzle ends the same. That last piece. It’s never in the same place for every puzzle, but there is always one piece left that once placed, signals the end of this picture and time to start on new one. There is a great feeling of accomplishment and joy when you put that final piece. I usually let one of my kids do it but then, I run my hands over all those beautiful pieces.

Individually, the pieces don’t look like much. They certainly don’t look like they will become something beautiful. But placed and linked in the right place, all those single pieces make one cohesive picture.

As I said before, we never reach the end of Bible study the same way we finish a puzzle and mark it complete. There will always be something to learn and apply from studying God’s Word. However, we will finish a certain study we’re doing in the Bible, whether it’s going through a particular book or topic.

While we might not have all the answers, with careful study we can get a beautiful picture of God and his plan. I already mentioned how the Bible is one story — from Genesis to Revelation, it tells of how man fell, sin entered the world, and God provided salvation instead of punishment. That’s the beautiful, final picture of our puzzle that guides us as we study.

In Ruth, we see not only a picture of God’s care for one family. We see God providing the foundation for the salvation message. Ruth became part of the lineage of Jesus {Matt. 1:5}. The story of Boaz redeeming her is a picture of Jesus redeeming us. It is not an insignificant, inconsequential event in biblical history. It’s a picture of God’s mercy on mankind and his plan for salvation.

I hope this encourages you to not give up on those difficult puzzles {wink} but more important, to not give up on studying your Bible. Any time spent in God’s Word is never wasted.

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Hero Worship or Bible Steeped?

Have you heard the saying, “Don’t meet your heroes”? Google many sports figures and celebrities and you will probably find a story about a regular person meeting someone famous and coming away not impressed. So many people seem amazing from afar but the more you know about them, the more you realize they have feet of clay. It’s hard to know what people are actually like.

We also see this in politics. We choose a candidate who looks like a savior, someone to make a difference the way we want, and suddenly they fall short. They turn sides and take bribes and disappoint us.

You might think that this wouldn’t apply to Christians. However, with people following authors, pastors, and Christian influencers, we can easily get caught up in the wrong thing and focused on the wrong person.

We don’t like to think that by following everything a certain person says or by believing he/she can do no wrong equals hero worship, but that is essentially what it is. We are propping people up on a pedestal and basing what we believe on what they say. We feel the need to defend them to others because some of our identity is wrapped up in how people perceive them. If someone has a problem with my person of interest, they must have a problem with me too!

I’m not saying it’s wrong to have a favorite author or to learn from a popular Bible teacher. I hope you respect your pastor and church leaders. I have podcasts, books, and people that have definitely helped me in my Christian walk and taught me things that are valuable and biblical. But I always have to remember a few things, no matter how I’m gleaning wisdom from others.

• Everyone is a sinner and therefore capable of getting something wrong.

• Only God is omniscient (all knowing).

• I am capable of responding in a sinful way.

• I only know one side {usually my person’s side} of the story but there are two perspectives in every incident.

By reminding myself of these truths, it helps me keep men (or women) in the correct place and God in his much deserved place.

I don’t log in to Twitter often because it’s too overwhelming for me. But I have the people I follow grouped into lists so I can choose to only read updates from authors or Christian leaders or Princess of Wales fashion posts. Unfortunately, the times I’ve logged in to Christian Tweeters I follow, there’s usually some disagreement or conflict going on. A popular Christian has been involved in a scandal or said something contradictory in a new book. Or someone just decides to go after someone else. It’s a messy place.

But the problem doesn’t stop there. Sometimes the person in question jumps on social media to defend his/her position. Sometimes it’s gracious, oftentimes not. Then their followers will lash out with name calling, Bible misquoting tweets to defend the honor of their favored influencer. And the mess just gets messier.

This exulting in people rather than God is contrary to the examples in the Bible. Think of Joseph in Genesis 40-41. Before he tells the two prisoners and Pharaoh what their dreams mean, he makes sure to mention it is God, not him, who can interpret dreams and should get the credit. Think of David in I Samuel 17 as he boldly goes against Goliath. He declares several times that God will deliver him from this Philistine. In another event concerning dreams, Daniel gives God the credit for showing Nebuchadnezzar’s dream meaning to him in Daniel 2. In fact Daniel points out that no one except God can do this (Dan. 2:27-28).

We also see New Testament examples of doing things for God’s glory, not man’s attention. In this, we see that God should be preeminent in everything. In everything we do and, therefore, in how we treat and emulate others. If we are respecting the words and teachings of a person — no matter how well educated or intentioned —- over the words and teachings of the Bible, we need to recognize the hero worship in this and follow God above all else.

I’ve recently seen someone post, “If this {supposedly bad thing} happens to so-and-so {read Christian teacher who is important to her}, my faith in God’s justice will be broken.” Really?! Your faith in the Creator of the Universe rests on how your favorite Bible speaker is treated, talked about, etc.? What a sad place to be in! To have your very faith in the power of Who God is hinging on a mere mortal who I guarantee is sinful and will make mistakes. We must be careful, even as we learn and grow from the teachings and writings of others that their words, actions, and personalities are NEVER a substitute for the actual Bible.

If I get too caught up in the unfairness, the injustice, the criticism, it might hurt my testimony with others. Christians shouldn’t be backbiters. Even if we don’t like an outcome or what we see as unjust commentary, we need to watch our mouths and monitor our hearts.

Consider this small sample of verses from Proverbs:

The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses. {Prov. 10:11-12}

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouths of fools pour out folly. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good. A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit. {Prov. 15:1-4}

And so my challenge to you is this: consider those in your life who have impact and influence. Do you accept everything they say without reading or studying for yourself? Do you only believe their version of events and criticize any who speak against them? Do you assume if so-and-so said it, it must be true? Do you find yourself getting into arguments defending the honor or insight of a certain person?

None of us are able to walk through this life without making mistakes. We will say the wrong thing, be swayed by popular teaching, respond sinfully to situations. But if we spend more time reading and studying God’s Word than we spend hearing from the popular voices of today — however wise they may sound — we will have a better foundation to respond biblically and know God’s teaching on certain matters. In a society of ever-changing opinions and “truths,” I’m thankful for the unchanging God we can trust Who has given us unchanging truth to live by.

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A Summer in Proverbs

In May, I wrapped up a Bible study with some ladies. We had been going through Proverbs for several months and as we ended, I realized I was only starting to understand it. There are so many themes and pictures and repeated ideas.

So I decided for the next three months {June, July, August} I would read a chapter in Proverbs a day, make notes, study deeper into word meanings and comparisons. So over the course of the summer, I read Proverbs three times. Here’s {some} of what I learned:

1. The line between the wicked and the righteous is distinct. There is no straddling a fence when Proverbs talks about these two. The evil choose one path/decisions that lead to death and the righteous choose the opposite path/decisions that lead to life.

2. The mouth is important to God! I was amazed at how much this one book had to say about the mouth, tongue, lips, gossip, etc. Sometimes it was phrased in terms of, “Speak like this…” Other times, it was clear warning, “The fool speaks…” I was very convicted by these verses about how we use words and what we say. I anticipate a deeper study into just this aspect of Proverbs in my future!

3. The five types of fools. As I read several different translations of Proverbs, I noticed several words were used to reference a fool or a foolish person. My dad {who was teaching Proverbs in Sunday School} gave a very helpful breakdown of how five words for a foolish person were different from each other. They ranged from a simple ignorance to a blatant turning from God. I found it very helpful to keep these in mind while I read.

4. I still have a lot to learn! One would think reading the same thing three months in a row would give me a leg up! And while I do feel like I learned a lot and understand Proverbs better than I did before, I still found myself, reading chapter 28 and thinking, “This seems familiar, what chapter was this already in? What does that word mean?” Inexhaustible is definitely a word I would use to describe reading and learning from the Bible!

Now that the summer of Proverbs has ended, I’m slowly reading through Psalms and studying it as time allows and keeping up with my chronological study. There’s always something to learn!

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Why We Read the Bible

I know hard things aren’t bad; in fact, many times it’s the difficult, frustrating things that grow us the most. But if we had a choice, I think we would gravitate toward the easy side of things. I think this is also true of our Christian growth. We WANT to be more biblically literate, we WANT to have a close relationship with God, we WANT to have wisdom for how to live. But those take time, effort, energy. It doesn’t happen overnight or reading the Bible one morning. It takes commitment for the long haul {your lifetime}. You will read hard truths, you will come across things that take extra time and study to understand. But you will grow.

I believe Bible reading and prayer are two of the hardest disciplines we need to cultivate. In theory, they sound so easy but in practice, it takes commitment and a conscious decision to include both of these in your day.

One of the most helpful things for me to remember when I’m struggling with Bible reading is that God wants me to know him. He gave us the Bible so we could know him personally, so we would know how to live in this world and what he has promised. This isn’t an impossible task set before us by an impersonal God. It is an invitation to grow closer to the One who created all things. Yes, maybe it’s hard some days but it’s worth every effort and every moment of time.

I’ve found it the most difficult to read my Bible when it becomes a task, a checklist instead of something I’m looking forward to. So how do I look forward to it? Below are some ideas.

• I always have a notebook with me when I read the Bible. I write down questions I have about the passage, verses that stick out to me, and things I hadn’t noticed before. This helps keep my mind engaged and it keeps familiar passages/stories fresh.

• I look for what the section I’m reading is teaching about God. When I was younger, I was always curious why God included some things and not others. Out of all the history of the Israelites or miracles of Jesus, why were these given to the biblical writers to record as inspired? God doesn’t do anything on accident or mistake. So what we have in the Bible has been given for a purpose: to teach us about God and who he is compared to who we are. {NOTE: this is one of the things I love about The Bible Recap podcast and book. The host/author offers a “God Shot” of what in that day’s reading taught her about God. It’s so helpful!}

• Some days when I know it’s going to be crazy, I choose to listen to my Bible app for that day’s reading. This engages my mind in a different way than reading and it keeps me in the Word even if I know I won’t have time to sit a read. I also like having it on for my kids to listen to.

• Ask a friend to keep you accountable or have someone you can text each day with one verse or thought from that day’s reading. I love hearing what my friends are reading and learning from the Bible and I often benefit from their insights.

Imagine a world without the Bible. It truly is an amazing gift from God that we can read, listen to, and share it. But it won’t just happen. We need to make the decision to include it in our day and then to live out the principles we discover. I’d love to hear what you are reading! Comment below and let’s encourage each other on!

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Reading Time!

If you know me even the slightest bit, you know I love reading. I love books. I love words and how they come together to make people laugh, cry, think, learn, and experience new things.

The power of the written word is something I think some people underestimate. This might just be me — because I’ve been told I remember way too many things — but I remember sitting on my daybed with a stack of Nancy Drew books and not moving all afternoon. I remember carrying Gone with the Wind outside and sitting under the apple tree for hours reading. I got through the first semester of high school by devouring The Count of Monte Cristo on the wooden swing in our backyard. And I stayed up way too late one night to finish Crime and Punishment as a high school senior.

I have very vivid memories tied to when and where I read certain books. I remember the emotions I felt, the parts that confused me, the French and Russian names I stumbled over. Words and the ideas conveyed through those words have changed and shaped me in ways movies haven’t.

My oldest is ten years old and just as avid a reader as I was/am. She’s definitely stretched herself more than I did at her age; she’s already polished off all the Jane Austen novels, A Little Princess, and is currently deep in Anne of Green Gables, plus reading quite of stack of more recently written books. She set a goal of reading 25 books this year…she just finished her 24th so we’re upping the challenge to 50 books this year!!

I love talking about books with her; what she thought of them, her favorite parts and why, words she didn’t understand in context. I love seeing her mind grow through these book interactions and I’m enjoying the journey with her.

People often ask me how I continue, as a homeschooling mom, to read book after book. It’s not because I’m just sitting on the couch all day! But it is a priority for me. While others binge watch a show, I choose to read. Instead of shopping, I read. It’s not a magic formula. It’s an intentional choice to make time for reading when what I need to do is finished. It’s relaxing and enjoyable for me. Here are a few things that help me, maybe they’ll help you also.

1. Read in the small moments. I’ve said this before, but if I’m just stirring something for dinner in a pot, I will read while I do it! Now if I’m doing something that requires my attention {chopping, measuring, etc.} then I keep my focus on the cooking. But if I’m waiting for rice to finish cooking or the InstantPot to beep, chances are I’ll sneak a few pages in.

2. Read while the kids fall asleep. My younger kids are notorious for not wanting to be alone. They want to know I’m close by, not across the hall, but in their room while they fall asleep. So after I read a bedtime story aloud {I’m currently reading Bear Grylls survival series to my son}, I’ll sit on the floor and get some stretches in while I read. This time is golden. It helps me slow down before bed, the house is quiet, and I can fully focus on what I’m reading.

3. Read during the kids’ activities. When I sit with my children for their piano lesson, I take a book with me. I can still hear what’s going, what we need to work on at home, interact with the teacher as needed, but I’m using the other moments in that hour to read, not scroll my phone.

4. Read, don’t scroll! Which leads us to this point: when you find yourself reaching for your phone when you don’t really need to, pick up a book instead! If you sit in carline, at the sideline of soccer practice, waiting for your curbside grocery delivery, take a book with you. These are moments we have trained ourselves to think of as small, inconsequential blocks of time that aren’t good for anything but catching up on memes and Instagram. I get it. I’ve done it. But honestly, you can read a lot in those moments. If that means you keep one book in your car so you don’t have to remember to grab one, do it!

5. Read what you love. If you struggle to read, start with something that interests you. Whenever I read a historical novel, I will inevitably read a non fiction book about that time period/event after. Even if it’s something I hadn’t been interested in before, experiencing it through the eyes of a novel with characters and a story can make it intriguing enough to make me want more. This happened with the children’s blizzard, the depression, the Spanish flu, immigrants coming through Ellis Island, and the Revolutionary War. I read a novel, my interest was piqued, and I went in search of more.

6. Read a variety. I’m a read-more-than-one-book-at-a-time girl. I usually have a fiction, nonfiction, Christian living, light read, and maybe biography going at the same time. This way, no matter what my mood is, I have something to read!! Some days, if the bad news comes pouring in and the weight of the world is too much, I don’t want to read about the suffering of child laborers in Victorian England, no matter how interesting the story is. On those days, I want a book that encourages me and helps me dig into my Bible study more. If my kids have asked about a certain time period, I may feel like reading about it on my level. If I’ve been curious about how to organize, clean, or decorate my home, if I’m interested in pursuing a new hobby, if I’m studying a certain word or topic in the Bible. There are books and words and answers for all these. And I always have a selection on hand.

I hope this helps you look for the little moments in your day as new possibilities to enjoy a book. I didn’t even cover audiobooks {I really struggle with these because I like to see the words to fully focus on them} but I know people who listen while they drive to work or on errands, while they walk through the neighborhood, or while cleaning the house. If you have a hard time reading but not listening, I highly suggest looking into audiobooks. Most books are available this way now and many libraries offer them for free, either on CD or to download to an audio app.

We never stop learning and books are an excellent way to stretch the mind. If you’re interested in what I’ve read/am reading, check out my GoodReads profile and follow along! You can see all the books {read and want to read} in reverse alphabetical order by author or you can look under certain bookshelves to see what I’ve read/want to read in that category!

Photo by Vladimir Mokry on Unsplash

A Happy New Year!

We are almost finished with 2021!

This week, I’ve been looking back at things I learned, read, tried, and failed at. I’ve also been anticipating everything 2022 might hold. Even though change is not my favorite, there is a special excitement going into the new year.

I’ve been planning my Bible reading schedule, setting up my planner, and trying to organize the house from the Christmas chaos. Today the decorations will start to come down and I’ll get my kids on dusting/vacuuming duty!

Whenever I look ahead to January and beyond, I try to think back over the previous year. How did I struggle? Where did my habits falter? How can I keep from making the same mistakes again? The Bible has many passages about Israel remembering their past. They were to look back and reflect on what God had done for them, how he had shown himself and protected them. And that looking back was to give them hope and courage for how he would continue to work in the future.

Of course, we see Israel struggling with this but it’s a theme we read again and again… “Remember how God brought you out of Egypt” “Remember when God provided manna in the wilderness” “Remember when God delivered you by parting the Red Sea”….

Our moments of protection might not be so dramatic but God certainly brings us through many trials, joys, hardships, and changes. And just as Israel was reminded to look back, we need to also. With the remembering, I hope we can also evaluate what we need to adapt going into 2022. Not everything worked or went well in 2021; maybe some bad habits were fostered and good practices lost. Each of us — with prayer and not pride — needs to honestly look back and decide what to keep and what to loose from 2021.

I created a simple printable for you to download and print off as a reminder of 5 small ways to make 2022 better. These are simple suggestions but they will take effort, time, and a decision to put them into practice. If you think of other things to add, I’d love to hear! Click the button below to access the printable! And thanks for reading in 2021.

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness! Psalm 115:1

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Good, Better, Best

One of the joys of being a homeschooling mom is that I get to teach my kids about many different things.

The hard thing about being a homeschooling mom is that I have to teach my kids about many different things.

Do those seem at odds? Let me explain. I don’t just get to teach the fun things that I love and find interesting. Things like literature, history, geography, and art are all really fascinating and, I think, fun to teach. But then I also have those other subjects. Things like math and science and grammar that just aren’t…fun. And because they don’t appeal to me, I don’t always enjoy the process of laying out the facts behind these subjects.

But what! You might be asking, “How can a person who loves reading and writing not like grammar?! Aren’t those related?” Well, here’s the thing. Because I’ve been reading and writing for so long and have loved to for so long, the grammar is kind of lost on me. I don’t think about the rules or parts of speech or the technical terms of what I’m doing. I just use the language and it makes sense to me. It sounds right.

So when I’m faced with explaining to my children how to diagram a sentence, what the different phrases in a sentence are, singular vs plural rules, and tenses…it just doesn’t excite me. I find it monotonous and it’s really hard for me to not just say, “Can’t you hear why that’s not right?” to my second grader who’s never heard a word labeled as a direct object before.

I know a lot of people have issue with the weirdness of the English language {been there} and one of the harder things to teach and get is when a word doesn’t follow the rules. My son and I were talking about adding an -er or -est to a word {like fast, faster, fastest} to help us describe something more clearly when he — totally believing he had caught on and was about to impress me — said, “Like good, gooder, goodest!” To which I took a deep breath, prepared myself, and said, “Nope. Some words, like ‘good’ have their own rules.” His eye roll and frustration were completely understood.

That launched us into a conversation on good, better, and best and why it gets special attention. Then we practiced using each word correctly {He is good at math but she is better at spelling}. And it got me thinking about the good, better, and best situations in our lives.

Sometimes in practical living it’s difficult to distinguish between what is good and better. We want to believe that the opportunities we choose are the best options for us. The things that we want to do, the choices that offer the biggest paybacks or results or growth. We want to be people that choose the best for us and our families.

Often the problem comes when we have to stop doing something good in order to do something better. If you’re like me, you think, “I can just cram this other thing into my life because it’s a good choice but I don’t want to give up anything I’m currently doing…because those are all good things too!” But then all the running around to all the “good” things wears us out. We become short and temperamental with our families because we’re tired. We don’t fully enjoy the things we’re doing because we always have one foot out the door to “get to the next thing.” We moan over our busyness but we don’t want to give anything up. “It’s all good,” we tell ourselves.

But sooner or later, something will break. Something will have to be given up, no matter how “good” it is. And sadly, as a pastor’s wife I’ve often seen church as one of the first “good” things to go. People have offered reasons like “Our family just needs a day to ourselves” “We’ll be back when schedules slow down” “We want to be there but we’re so busy” and on they go. What breaks my heart in these excuses is that people are choosing to give up the best thing for their family {being in a church community, learning about God together} for a good thing.

These “good things” vary but when I talk with people, it usually comes down to prioritizing other things and getting so tired they need a free day and that becomes Sunday. Because it’s easier to not come to church on Sunday than miss a soccer game on Saturday. You see, extra curricular things for your kids aren’t bad. Those can be good things that teach valuable lessons. But when you choose to spend so much time on those that your family is too tired to come to church, the “good” activities have replaced a better option {i.e. church}.

Now I know vacations, sickness, unforeseen circumstances happen and keep us from meeting on Sundays. Even as a pastor’s family, we miss services on occasion. But when we get into the habit of making Sunday our “free day” and we do all the good things through the week, thinking we can always regroup on Sunday if it’s too much, we need to seriously reevaluate what we consider good, better, and best in our lives.

And this isn’t just about church. Think how easily we can push daily Bible reading and prayer out because “We have to get to work, take the kids to school, get homeschool done, have coffee with that friend, tackle those chores, make dinner, get everyone to their after school activities…” Now when we read this list, these things aren’t bad. Most of them are necessary {work, food, education, etc.} but when the list takes the place of spending time in God’s Word, we need to think about our priorities and how things can be rearranged to give more time for the best thing.

It’s difficult to stop doing something “good” in pursuit of something “better.” Sometimes it feels like we failed or gave up. But the truth is we can’t do everything and our culture is constantly bombarding us with possibilities. Sometimes certain seasons of life mean we can’t do all the good things we want. But that season will pass and we can say yes to other things.

As nice as it would be, there are no hard and fast rules for what is “good, better, and best” in our lives. Choosing the best requires us to take an honest look at our lives continually. What is good today might need to be replaced by something better next week. But, unlike pesky grammar rules, I can guarantee that choosing God over whatever the world throws our way will ALWAYS be the best choice. Reading your Bible, praying, being in a church family should never be cut out to make room for something better. Because that “something better” will not be worth it.

Photo by Patrick Bald on Unsplash

Why Personal Bible Study Matters

I recently purchased The Daily Grace Co’s Bible study called “Search the Word.” The purpose of this six week study is to show why personal Bible study is important and how to do it.

Even though the information in this study is not new to me, it has been an extremely helpful study and I’ve enjoyed it so much. One of the big takeaways from it is that reading and digging deep into the Bible is not for a select group of special experts. It’s for ALL people. No matter your education level, time, resources, skill…you can read and study God’s Word and learn.

If you go to church every week, maybe you’re wondering why you need more than that. Consider these points:

• We should never blindly believe anyone. Know what the Bible says so you can know when it’s falsely used/applied, even if it sounds good.

• A relationship with God is personal. He wants us to know him as he knows us. We can’t fully do that if we don’t personally spend time learning about him.

• The Bible wasn’t meant for one person. It was written for ALL to read and know and learn. Think about the Epistles written to entire churches. EVERYONE in that church was to read/listen to that letter and then know how to live as Christians.

• We have more Bible resources/helps that are more available than ever better in history. Don’t read Greek or Hebrew? We have the Bible translated in our language. Find parts of it confusing? We have commentaries {many online for free!!}. We have it on audio to listen while driving to work or walking the dog. We have dictionaries and atlases and online tips.

• You cannot grow spiritually and truly apply God’s Word to your life by only being exposed to it one hour a week. The Bible offers wisdom, comfort, encouragement, help for EVERY SITUATION AND CIRCUMSTANCE. But if you’re just waiting for your pastor to get to a certain passage to glean that wisdom, you are missing out on something you could benefit from now.

So if those are the reasons, how do we do it? This is one of the things I love about the study I’ve been going through from The Daily Grace Co. They break up the process into simple steps with lots of examples and helps. They explain how the Bible works together across every book, major themes and words to look for, how to highlight and underline to see each chapter/books main theme, and more. Using I Peter 2:1-12 as a guide, you read and walk through the text multiple times, adding a new step to each reading. They make it not overwhelming and very doable. Then they show how those same steps can be applied to every Bible passage. There are workbook pages, charts, examples, memory verses. I love it!

This is a great place to start if you’ve never studied the Bible on your own, if you’re starting a Bible study with friends, if working through a chapter study seems impossible or overwhelming. As I said, the information in it isn’t new or earth shattering but it’s so practical and well laid out. It takes the guess work and excuses out!

If you are interested in checking out this exact study, click here.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Making Sense of the Puzzle

We’ve been a puzzling family lately. By that I mean we’ve been working a lot of puzzles!

When my oldest was younger, she worked puzzles constantly. We started with 9 piece puzzles, moved to 24 then 48. She would ask for a new puzzle every time we went to the Dollar Store and work it as soon as we got home. I was always amazed that as a four year old, she could look at the pieces, observe the colors and patterns, and patiently work through it.

I showed her to put the edge together first and work from the outside in. She would try a piece, turn it all four ways, then pick up the next piece. We did puzzles more than we played games.

My son was completely different at that age. He loved the idea of a puzzle — of taking all those pieces and making one picture — but he hated the process of doing it. He didn’t like turning all the pieces face up before beginning, finding all the edge pieces before jumping into the ‘fun’ part of the actual picture, trying a piece and not having it fit. Even wood puzzles with the shapes cut out were never his favorite.

But recently our family interest in puzzles has picked up again. We bought some educational ones for school and have made family nights of working them by the fireplace, taken breaks during our school morning to put a few pieces together, and turned on movies to serve as a nice distraction for the kids while Tommy and I work through the difficult parts.

The thing about puzzles is that it takes time. There is prepping an area, sorting the pieces, getting everything face up and spread out. Then you find the corners and edges and just start trying to fit pieces together. It is daunting at first; the perfectly clear picture on the front of the box looks nothing like that jumble of shapes staring at you now. Sometimes it’s hard to know where to focus or what you’re doing. You may sit at the puzzle an hour and see very little progress. But if you want it completed, you have to keep coming back and working through the impossible sections and trying again.

This is the way Bible study is at times. We love the thought of knowing God’s Word, of having an answer for difficult questions, of growing closer to God. But when we sit down to read, we get discouraged. Maybe we’re confused about what the Bible is teaching or why certain passages matter.

However, just like working a puzzle, if we give up when it gets difficult, we’ll never get any farther. Our understanding of the Bible will only grow if we put in the time and effort to actually study it. This means reading it daily, praying for guidance and understanding, consulting commentaries or reference books when we’re stumped, and looking up words we don’t understand.

Psalm 119 is all about why God’s Word is so important to not only know but to apply to our lives and meditate on. It shouldn’t surprise us that the longest chapter in the Bible is about the richness of the Bible!! Consider these words:

How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.

With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!

Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You. {119:9-11}

My soul melts from heaviness; Strengthen me according to Your word.

Remove from me the way of lying, And grant me Your law graciously.

I have chosen the way of truth; Your judgments I have laid before me.

I cling to Your testimonies; O Lord, do not put me to shame! {119:28-31}

Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it.

Incline my heart to Your testimonies, And not to covetousness.

Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things, And revive me in Your way. {119:35-37}

And those are just in the first 37 of 176 verses! Reading and studying the Bible is a necessary daily habit for all Christians. No matter how long you’ve been saved or how many times you attend church, you need to daily, personal practice of being in God’s Word for yourself.

Even when you don’t see the whole picture of the puzzle and the pieces of what God is doing don’t seem to fit, don’t get discouraged! Keep reading, keep studying, keep praying. It’s the most important way you can spend your time.

Photo by Hans Peter Gauster on Unsplash.

Bible Truth for School + a Printable

I think we can all agree that this school year is going to be crazy.

No matter what choice we made for our kids, there are going to be challenges and adjustments. And even if we aren’t doing anything radically different, the world around us is a completely different place. Wearing masks, not going certain places, not being able to visit friends or family. Depending on where you live, it might feel like what was normal last fall will never return.

I’ve been struggling with keeping a positive attitude. I’m usually an optimistic person and I genuinely try to not let things get me down. But there are some aspects of 2020-21 that I am not looking forward to. And I’m not excited about explaining things to my kids or dealing with their frustrations.

This summer as I prepared for our school year and planned curriculum, there were moments when I wondered if my efforts would even matter. Will we be able to do the fun things I’ve researched? Will field trips be a possibility? How can I get my kids excited for things without risking having to cancel our plans and disappoint them?

There’s always a measure of unknown about the future but this year feels completely uncertain. Thankfully, we are not alone. And the One Who is with us is Sovereign over all. This summer as I’ve prepared curriculum and spreadsheets and my lesson planner, I’ve also been praying and meditating on Bible verses a lot. When the wisdom of this world is complete foolishness and I’m at the end of my mental and emotional rope, I can always rest in the truth found in the Bible.

The Bible never grows old or outdated. The truth that comforted David as he ran from Saul can comfort me in 2020. The grace Paul wrote of is available to me now. The wisdom Solomon gave his son thousands of years ago is relevant for us to pass on to our children. And God Who inspired and directed its words is still in control of the world He created.

So as I approached this unprecedented 2020-21 school year, I wanted to make sure I was filling myself with God’s words and not the discourse of today’s news. The Bible is brimming with encouraging verses that we often forget.

To help myself — and hopefully you — I’ve created a very simple printable of 47 verses. My hope is that we print off and cut out these small cards, put them in the schoolroom, in our planners, on our bathroom mirrors, in our kitchen windows, and recite these promises to ourselves and our kids.

I made them simple because 1) I’m not a graphic designer, 2) I know not everyone has a color printer, 3) I wanted the Bible verse to take full attention. If you want to color, draw, glue on scrapbook paper, make it pretty, go for it!! Print it and make it yours. Read a new verse everyday then circle back to review throughout the year. Or mediate on the same verse for a whole week.

Just click the button below and a PDF should open for printing.

Photo from Jeffrey Hamilton on Unsplash

Happy New Year!!

2019. It doesn’t seem possible yet here we are, at the start of another year.

2018 was filled with…lots of different things. Good, bad, hard, memorable, victories, laughter, tears. We had a baby, we moved, my grandma died, my parents moved, we started another homeschool year, I lost sleep. It’s hard to imagine how 12 months - 365 days - could hold so much. But here we are, on the threshold of doing it all again. Facing the unknown and trusting God to see us through.

Last year my focus was on quieting my heart. Not getting so caught up in what happened that I forgot to take time for God’s Word and peace. For this year, I didn’t choose a word to dwell on but rather a group of words. Over the last several months, the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) has come up in many conversations with my kids and members of our church. Those nine words seem so simple yet put into daily practice become so difficult. So for 2019 I’m thinking, repeating, dwelling, and focusing on those: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control. Look for future posts about what I’m learning and how I’m applying them to my life.

For Christmas I received from my sister a journaling Psalter. It is a book with just the Psalms but every other page is blank for notes, thoughts, doodles. Then one of my sisters in law gave me a book about the Psalms and the themes of each one. So expect to see some blog posts about what I’m learning as I read through Psalms this year.

For my daily Bible reading, I’m using my She Reads Truth Bible again and the reading plan that’s in the back of it. This version {Christian Standard} I’ve probably read/heard the least so I decided to read it again. The plan I’m using is two Old Testament and two New Testament chapters each day. It goes through Psalms and the New Testament twice in the year.

I have some goals and projects I’m working on but I’ll save those for another post. Happy January 1! Let’s use this year to serve others, glorify God, and draw closer to our Lord.

Photo by Wout Vanacker on Unsplash

Worship and Bow Down

Merry Christmas!

This morning I read Psalm 95 and it seemed fitting for what we are celebrating today. As we gather around Christmas trees with presents and tables laden with food, let us shout joyfully to God for Who he has given. Let us worship and bow down to our Lord Who offers hope, peace, and joy for today and all our tomorrows.

Psalm 95

1 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

3 For the Lord is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;

the heights of the mountains are his also.

5 The sea is his, for he made it,

and his hands formed the dry land.

6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!

7 For he is our God,

and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.

Today, if you hear his voice,

8 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,

as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,

9 when your fathers put me to the test

and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

10 For forty years I loathed that generation

and said, "They are a people who go astray in their heart,

and they have not known my ways."

11 Therefore I swore in my wrath,

"They shall not enter my rest."

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

Looking Ahead

It’s December. Days are ticking away until Christmas and the beginning of another year. If this month follows the pattern of the previous eleven, it will go fast! I love the season from Thanksgiving to the New Year because of all the joy, traditions, fun, and family that it comes with. But because I love to plan and because I like to start the year off on a good foot, I always carve out some space in this busy time to focus on what happens beyond December 31.

During this time I decide on a Bible reading plan for the year and what version I plan to read. The past few years, I’ve chosen a word and Bible verse to focus on in addition to my read the Bible in a year plan. But this year I’m going to be doing something a little different.

I’ve decided to read my She Reads Truth Bible again in 2019 and use the reading plan that it has in the back to guide my daily reading {it usually is two Old Testament chapters, two New Testament chapters per day and you read Psalms and the New Testament twice}.

However, instead of focusing on one word for the year, I’m going to focus on prayer in general. I’ve been very burdened about my prayer life recently and the importance of asking God FIRST. So I’m going to focus on praying for specific people or things on certain days of the week. Of course there will be a certain amount of flexibility and some things I will pray for everyday, but hopefully this will help me to remember things like our government leaders, the persecuted church, etc.

I’ve also seen on Pinterest calendars for praying for your kids or spouse everyday for a month but being more specific than, “Please help little Johnny obey” or “Help my husband communicate better.” I want to incorporate some of these specifics - things like my children’s salvation, wisdom for my husband as he leads our family, good friends and influences for my kids. I believe when we are specific in our prayer requests we see how much God has already blessed us with and what he is already doing in certain circumstances.

2018 has been quite the year for our family. God blessed and went before and worked out so many things in ways we could never orchestrate on our own. I’m excited to see what I will learn, how God will stretch me, and what he has in store for our family in 2019.

Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash

Five Tips to Start Consistent Bible Reading

We are a society of how tos. In our independence and drive to do more things, we are forever looking for the best way to do something, the new thing to try, the easiest way to get a job accomplished. You don't have to look far on Pinterest or YouTube to see we are obsessed with DIY.

This mentality has run over into our spiritual lives as well. For better or worse, we look at what others are doing and try to emulate their style of devotional life. Is there benefit to that? Yes, in moderation. At some point, we have to stop looking at what everyone else is doing and just start doing something ourselves! We will not know what helps us until we try it out.

The tips I'm going to share are not new with me or anything lofty and profound. These are things that have helped me and guided me on a track of consistency. There is nothing magical about these five things or nothing wrong with adding to this list. It is merely a tool to get you started on your way.

1. Know when you are reading. Having a consistent time is key to accomplishing your devotions. If you have the attitude of "I'll do it when I have time today," it'll be easier to slip through the cracks. Stuff happens, things come up, schedules change. If you aren't purposefully setting aside time, that time will be filled by other things. As a mom with young kids, I know it's difficult to always plan on the same schedule. It's also difficult to find long stretches of uninterrupted time.  If you struggle to get away from distractions for long amounts of time, try breaking up your devotional time throughout the day. Plan to pray when you get up, read a chapter during lunch, etc. It'll keep you from getting discouraged that you only have five minutes at a time free and it will help to keep the Word fresh in your mind all day.

2. Know what you are reading. Have a plan for where in the Bible you will be reading each day. There are multiple plans available for you to choose from. If you sit down, randomly open your Bible, read a chapter, and call it good you will not grow spiritually and you will quickly get frustrated. The Bible needs to be taken as a whole, not as a series of disjointed verses.

3. Know where you are reading. I struggled with this for many years before finding the solution I use now. It might not be as important for some people but I need a consistent place to keep my Bible, pens, notebook, etc. I can also easily remove distractions from this one place so when I sit down, I know it's with the goal of studying the Bible. If you don't have a set place you can consistently read, I would recommend keeping all your Bible study tools in a basket or tray, something easy to move from place to place so you don't have to gather everything each time you read your Bible.

4. Know your goal. Because we are a people obsessed with deadlines and goals, it's helpful to know where we're going and what we plan to accomplish. Are you reading the New Testament in a year? Do you want to understand the attributes of God better? Are you focusing on reading two chapters a day? Without this kind of focus we can quickly and easily get lost and discouraged. At the beginning of the year, I like to choose a keyword or phrase that guides my Bible memory and focus for the year. It's not the only thing I read about but it helps to pinpoint an area I need to dwell on. I also choose a plan to read through the Bible in a year so I can mark off what I've read and see what I'm reading next.

5. Know your limitations. This might seem like a strange point to end on but we are usually so focused on what we want to get done we rarely stop to consider if it's even possible for us. We all have different strengths and talents and so we need different things. We have different energy levels and obstacles. Seasons of life change. So we need to step back, consider the life we have, and set realistic goals so we don't overwhelm ourselves and grow discouraged. If you aren't a morning person, don't set your alarm for a 5am wake up to read your Bible. If you have young children, don't plan to read your Bible when they are most needy (right before a meal, nap, etc). Don't set yourself up for failure by trying to incorporate every Bible tool and study idea at once. Try something, if it doesn't work try something else. You don't need to follow someone else's template to have a successful Bible time. Realize what works for you and what doesn't and don't get discouraged if your devotions look different than your friends.

What's the main takeaway I want you to get? The biggest part of having a successful Bible study time daily is to just do it. Don't get so caught up in having the right tools, the right ambiance, the right way of doing it that you never actually do it. Get some ideas, pray for guidance, and dig in!

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash