It’s the most incredible book ever written—so simple a child can understand it, yet so vast that theologians will grapple with it for a lifetime.
It’s filled with poetry…suspense…romance…foul play…espionage… murder… treachery…carnage…courage…nobility…benevolence…brutality…and the heart of God.
It shows the ugly, repulsive side of human nature as well as the kind of honor and selflessness that stirs your soul and inspires you to give your life away for a great cause.
There’s also a personal, interactive element to it that convinces you that the God who created the heavens and the earth knows YOU. Centuries before you were born, God took so much interest in you that He inspired a book that would contain the specific wisdom that you need today.
Sometimes though, the vastness and complexity of the Bible can discourage would-be Bible readers so here are a few suggestions to help us get started:
- Ask the Lord to help you fall in love with the Bible. Psalm 119:18 says, “Open my eyes that I might see wonderful things out of your law.”
- Follow a Bible reading schedule. It helps you read widely and systematically.
- Get a Bible that you find aesthetically pleasing. Today, in the 21st century we’re not limited to reading the Scriptures on scrolls or sheets of papyrus—get a Bible that you like.
- Write in your Bible. Record your thoughts, questions, and insights.
- Find your spot—a peaceful, comforting place where you regularly engage in Bible reading and study.
- Follow the S.O.A.P. model. Out of a 30-minute Bible reading session, identify one Scripture, Observation, and Application that you can turn into a short, personal Prayer.
- Read the red and pray for the power. One of my Bible college teachers used to say “Read the red—the words of Jesus Christ in the Gospels—and pray for the power of God to fill your life.”
- Finally…read the book like He wrote it to you. Because He did.