Reading your Bible is one of the most important parts of our Christian walk. It’s how we hear from God directly, as He speaks to us through words written thousands of years ago. There’s a reason why the Bible is the bestselling book of all time! So here are some easy ways to get started when reading your Bible.
- Keep it simple. It can be easy to get overwhelmed when you first open up your Bible. There’s such a depth of wisdom and accounts to read through and learn from, that it can be hard to know where to start. The key thing to remember when setting time aside to read your Bible is that it isn’t a task that you tick off on a checklist for being a good Christian. Reading your Bible is about connecting with God and His word, it’s so much more than a book to read. Simply put, find a translation you understand, pick a book and start reading.
- Find a plan that works for you. A reading plan helps to keep us accountable, and gives us a guide through which we can read God’s word. The church SOAP plan takes you through the whole Bible in a year, with four chapters a day to read. Every month going through Proverbs, working through Psalms cyclically, and then a chapter from the Old and New Testament daily. You can find the church SOAP plan on the City Impact Church App or on the website. Another popular plan is reading a Chronological Bible, in which the books and chapters are laid out in order of events rather than the traditional format. This plan allows one to read the Psalms that David wrote, while following along with the accounts of his life in first and second Samuel. Both of these plans are very different, and will suit people differently. It doesn’t matter how you read the Bible, only that you do; and do so with a heart to hear from God through His word.
- Set time aside. Setting time aside in your day to spend with God, in His word, is so essential. Just like any habit that you put in place in your life, reading your Bible becomes easier the more you do it. As it becomes a regular part of your daily life, you’ll find reading His word becomes a crucial and much-loved part of your day. And that’s where we want to be as Christians. We want to be at a point in our walk with God where we are reading his word daily. In the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) the Bible is referred to as our ‘daily bread.’ Meaning that it is our spiritual sustenance, and we should consume it daily.