This time of year people are setting New Year's resolutions, goals, or choosing their One Word for the year. There are many great goals out there. You could choose to get healthy, lay down an addiction, spend less time on social media, tithe regularly, get more involved in your church, learn to dance, learn new recipes to cook, the list really is endless. Of all the goals you could set, there is one goal that you can never go wrong with: getting into the Word more.
Have you ever set a goal of reading the Bible more? How did you do? Was it hard? Did you start strong but fizzle out as time went on? Did you feel like you didn't understand so you just gave up?
We know reading the Bible is important, but it's not always easy to do. Here are a few tips to help you get into the Word more in 2018.
Get help.
Several months ago my family went on a journey to health. For this journey, we got a membership to the Y. It is easy to go when the whole family goes. But if my husband is busy, it is so hard to go by myself. I need the accountability. The push. When we have someone to go with us or someone waiting on us in the gym, we are more likely to stick to it. The same is with Bible reading. If we have accountability with Bible reading, we are more likely to stick to it. Woman to Woman offers Morning Reflections. Morning Reflections are private Facebook groups where you can share where you are reading in the Bible, what God is revealing to you through your reading, prayer requests, and praise reports. It is great accountability to help keep you in God's Word.
Find a reading plan that works.
If you want to read the Bible in a year, Our Daily Bread offers a great Bible reading plan. It consists of about 4 chapters a day; 2-3 from the Old Testament and 1 from the New Testament. She Reads Truth offers a Bible reading plan. You can get this right in their app. They also offer great studies throughout the year. Right now we are in the study of the gospel of Matthew. Many Bibles have a Bible reading plan, often in the back of the Bible. And the YouVersion Bible app offers tons of different Bible reading plans.
Make a plan.
Decide what is going to work best for you; reading in the morning, on your lunch break at work, or at bedtime. Then have your Bible out and ready. Maybe you keep it by your bedside. Or maybe you have a basket or bag that has your Bible ready. If you have little ones, try to plan your reading time when they will be sleeping.
Get rid of distractions.
When you sit down to read the Bible, set aside distractions. Power your phone off or leave it in another room. Turn the tv off. Whatever distracts you, set it aside.
Journal.
Journaling has been a huge help to me in Bible reading. I journal what verses I've read. If a verse sticks out to me or God shows me something through a verse, I write it out. I journal things I am thankful for and prayer requests. I love going back through my journals and seeing what God showed me in the past.
Give yourself grace.
If you miss a day, it's okay. Just get back to it. Believe me, I have missed many days at the Y. But we always get back to it. When you miss a day reading, you don't have to quit or start all the way over. Just pick it back up.
What are other suggestions you might have for getting into the Word more in 2018? Share in the comments.
It is time for the Woman to Woman Word Filled Wednesday Link Up. We desire to connect women of God with one another and encourage each other in Christ. So grab a cup of coffee or glass of sweet tea, sit back and visit a few blogs. Be encouraged and share your own stories in their comments.
Use hashtag #w2wwordfilledwednesday
Three rules to this link up:
1. Must be a {Christian} faith post.
2. Link back to W2W somewhere in your post. (Feel free to use our button if you want!)
3. Visit and comment on at least one other blog in the link up.
Taking grace for all our goals is the surest way to see them through. Blessings to you as you soak your heart in truth in 2018!
ReplyDeleteVery true. Grace is so important. Thank you for stopping in Michele.
DeleteMaking a plan and journaling are two of the things that help me the most. I'm temporarily veering off my normal plan, though, to read Proverbs this month, but it's still in the Word so I'm enjoying it. :)
ReplyDelete