In the first part of this post, I addressed calling on the Holy Spirit to help you understand the scripture. I hadn’t read the Bible like that for my entire life, but once I prayed “to be a woman of the Word” and asked for guidance and wisdom as I read, God transformed my Bible reading time.
Another obstacle I faced, like so many others, is what to read. When there are 66 books of the Bible to choose from, it is kind of hard to know where to begin. A few years ago, I read “Walking with God” by John Eldredge. In his book, he provides some of his own journal entries to show what a year of pursuing God can look like. John suggests, when sitting down with the Bible, pray and ask God what to read. I have used this approach many times and am always amazed by where God takes me.
At the conference I attended, one speaker addressed reading the Bible in chunks. Many times we focus on a verse or two, which is fine, but to get a bigger picture and understanding of the verses, she said we should read the entire chapter or read through an entire book over the course of several days. To gain understanding, it helps to know who the author is, what perspective he has, as well as the time frame he is writing in. I had never read the Bible this way, but I was determined when I returned home from the conference.
God led me to study the life of Paul. I started in the book of Acts, reading about his life, his conversion, and ministry. I proceeded to read each of the letters he wrote, but not as they are laid out in the Bible. The typical Bible is not chronological. The books are placed together according to genre. By reading Paul’s letters in the order he wrote them, I was able to compare them with details in Acts to see what he was experiencing when each letter was written. You can purchase a chronological Bible, or use a list as a guide. This site has more information about reading the Bible chronologically.
In my study, “30 Days with John”, I take you through the entire book of John. Throughout the daily reading, I have written about John’s background and specific details to give you a broader picture of John’s writing. John was Jesus’ youngest disciple, likely a teenager. His relationship with Jesus was unique. They were cousins and Jesus asked John to care for his mother as he was dying on the cross. The study helps you to get to know the writer so you can get to know Jesus through his eyes.
There are always going to be obstacles when it comes to reading scripture because the enemy doesn’t want you to do it! That is a topic for an entirely different blog post. Don’t allow distractions and obstacles keep you from growing closer to God. If you need more focus, pray and ask God. The more He draws you into His Word, you will find those distractions and obstacles won’t be a problem for you. I hope the suggestions I have given will encourage you and give you some confidence to reading and understanding God’s word.
Tuesday – Facebook Live Q&A about “30 Days with John” – 3:30 pm
Wednesday – LAUNCH DAY! “30 Days with John” will be available to order on Amazon.com, Giveaway Announcement at 3:30pm
Leah Lively 