How To Start Reading Your Bible
Reading your Bible can be a challenge sometimes. How many times have you picked up your Bible to read it, but then put it back on the shelf because you just didn’t know where to start? I can think of many times when this happened to me.
But not knowing where to start is not the only reason we put the Bible back...sometimes we just don’t feel worthy enough to even read it or we are just not sure that there is even a God out there who can speak to us. If any of these sound like you, dear friend, you are not alone in your struggle!
In fact, those last two excuses for leaving your Bible closed are quite possibly the biggest reasons to open it up! You can learn that you don’t have to be worthy enough and you can learn that there really is a God out there who loves you and knows you. So today I am here to help you get started with opening up that Bible and to provide you with a few resources to guide you in that process.
Since the Bible is not your average, every day book—it is the living, breathing Word of God—you don’t have to read it like your average, every day book. In other words, you don’t have to start at the beginning. Though the first book of the Bible, Genesis, isn’t a bad book to start with since it sets the stage for the entire rest of the Biblical story.
The best place to start, at least in my opinion, is in the Gospels because these books tell the story of Jesus Christ and His ministry here on Earth.
Now for those of you who don’t know which books are the Gospels, they would be Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Out of the four Gospels, I would recommend choosing either Mark or John to start reading first. Mark is the basically a condensed version of the other three, so it is probably the easiest one to understand. John is the book that I have always been told is the best place to start because it was written (most likely) to Gentiles, or non-Jews.
If you want a few more suggestions of which book of the Bible to start with, here is video that you can watch:
For those of you who want to dig a bit deeper into your Bible reading, here are some resources that can help you:
- The Bible Project - they have both a website and a YouTube channel; my favorite part of this project is that they provide overviews of every single book of the Bible to help you better understand it before reading through it.
- The YouVersion Bible App - if you prefer reading your Bible digitally, this is a great resource for you! It has so many different translations/versions of the Bible and it has hundreds, if not thousands, of different Bible reading plans that you can use.
- Delight Ministries Devotional Books - Delight Ministries is a ministry for college girls, but honestly their devotional books are great for any female to use. My favorite devotional books from them are the ones that go through a specific book of the Bible. Right now they have ones available for John, James, and Acts. They also have topical devotional books too, if that is more your style.
I also want to encourage you to not get frustrated if you struggle having a consistent devotional or quiet time. Just remember that like any habit, reading your Bible on a consistent basis TAKES TIME. I grew up in the church, but I have only recently developed a consistent quiet time and I am in my second year of college/university.
So my challenge to you is to find a time, anytime, during the day to set aside for spending time with God reading His Word. But also remain patient with yourself and give yourself grace as you work to find a consistent daily devotional time. If you miss it a few times, don’t get frustrated with yourself...just try again tomorrow. Ultimately, I challenge you to NOT GIVE UP!
Here is a great video that discusses how you can find a consistent quiet time (and not let your phone get in the way):
Reading your Bible consistently can be so hard, but friend, it is so worth it. Since I started reading my Bible on a daily basis, I have been so much happier and have experienced so much more peace. I
t may feel like a waste of time some days but spending time reading your Bible every day is a way of telling God that you trust Him. You are trusting Him enough to give up part of your day for Him. And how beautiful is that?
“Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful." - Joshua 1:8 (NIV) -