In her spare time, she writes for Story of My Life – her personal blog.Have you ever tried a Bible reading plan and walked away saying that it just didn’t work for you? Most of the reasons that people address why they struggle with Bible reading plans have been dealt with when this plan was created. Mary Margaret has served several churches in the area of Girls Ministry and she recently completed a Master of Arts in Christian Education at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. She works alongside Chris Adams and coordinates training events for women’s ministry leaders like YOU Lead and the Women’s Ministry Forum. Mary Margaret is an Event Project Coordinator on the Church Education Ministry team at Lifeway. What one thing would you add to this list that has helped you as you’ve studied the Bible?ī (Online resources, commentaries, study tools) These are just a few ways to get started, and this definitely isn’t a comprehensive list. He truly does satisfy our souls ( Psalm 107:9)! My prayer for you is that you develop a love for God’s Word that’s unquenchable. Ask someone to disciple you and to challenge you as you study the Bible.Īs you dig deep into the Word, you will undoubtedly fall more in love with Jesus. Make sure you have people in your life who are at least a little bit ahead of you in their spiritual journey. Be a student of the Word. Be in the Bible daily. Don’t be afraid to ask questions – it’s a huge part of the learning process! The more you read and study, the more the Bible will come alive in your life.ĩ. Take it slow and ask questions. You’re not going to understand it all in one day! If you’re a verse-by-verse person, study it that way. The Word begins to come alive as you start to soak it in! As you spend time in the Word daily, it allows God to speak to you through His Word.Ĩ. Don’t just read to check it off a list, but read to understand and learn. So often, we approach the Bible with a “what’s in it for me?” attitude, and there are times that we just need to read to understand. Continue to ask hard questions, and don’t give up!ħ. It’s important to dig and ask questions, but knowing that we can’t (with our finite minds) completely understand it all. Sometimes, we’re just trying to understand a basic truth. We’re grappling with concepts and truths about theology and doctrine, and it’s hard. There are a lot of things about the Bible that we have to wrestle over. ![]() Approach the Bible with a teachable spirit. If I’ve learned anything over the last few years, it’s how much I don’t know. Each text must be understood not only in light of its immediate context, but also in light of the context of the whole of Scripture.” When you can look at Scripture as one big story, all inspired by God, you will start to see it more clearly.Ħ. Sproul writes, “We must not set one passage of Scripture against another passage. ![]() In his book, Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, R.C. Interpret Scripture by Scripture. Hang with me on this one. A study Bible or commentary can be a great resource.ĥ. Take the time to find out who the author is, who the book was written to, and why it was written, and it can clear up a lot of questions. Read the passage in context. It can be easy to just pick out a verse that sounds good to you, but to really understand it, you should read the context (the surrounding chapter/verses). These plans will walk you through the Bible and can be a great way to start or enhance your journey of studying Scripture.Ĥ. Choose a plan. For those of you who like some structure, there are a ton of resources available! Here are some great places to start: One Year Bible, SheReadsTruth, YouVersion (smartphone app), Read the Bible for Life, and Reading God’s Story. ![]() We are given the Holy Spirit as a guide ( Acts 2) as we interpret the Word.ģ. Ask God to reveal himself to you through his Word. When we approach Scripture, it should be with humility and an attitude to receive and learn. This may seem obvious or redundant, but it’s critical. People will often study Scripture asking the question, “What does this passage mean to me?” when the better question would be, “What does this passage mean?” The interpretation of the Bible isn’t up to us and our best guess as to what it might mean or could mean God inspired it with a specific interpretation, and our goal should be discerning what that is.Ģ. As I read, I’m watching everything unfold as one huge story, which all points to Jesus. This year, I’ve been reading through the Bible chronologically, and it’s been one of the richest seasons in Bible study I’ve ever had. Many of us have participated in Bible studies but have never taken the step of learning how to read and study the Bible. And sometimes all those things keep us from really digging into Scripture. It’s filled with big words, parables, and measurements that can be hard to understand.
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