Why is it important to develop a Bible habit?

We believe that one of the primary ways that God reveals himself to us is through the Bible. So what could be more important to our personal relationship with Him than reading His words? If a close friend or even your spouse had written a book about themselves, what they were like and what they loved or hated, you would read it if you wanted to know more about them! The same should be true for the Bible. It was written by the Holy Spirit through men (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21) to reveal the His nature to us. In communicating His nature and character to us in the Bible, He also shows us about what our nature was intended to be. As we were created ‘in His image’ (Genesis 1:26-28), when we learn about His ‘image’ we begin to understand what we were created to be and do (and also what we were not created to be and do). Reading the Bible is paramount to a personal relationship with the Lord!

For many people, habits are associated with routine and while routines can be great, they often don’t have the personal feeling that an intimate relationship carries. Routines can sometimes feel like things that we do with out thinking. This is certainly not what we want your time reading the Bible to feel like! The key here is intentionality. For a married person, it can be easy to talk about loving their spouse but if they leave their displays of affection only to the spur of the moment, the amount and quality of those times will fade as the initial spark of love fades. Without intentionally making a plan to show their love day after day, it will eventually grow cold. Intentionality does not rule out spontaneity, it sets it up to mean that much more!

This is also true for your time reading the Bible. You are intentional with what you see as a priority. This is so much more than keeping your reading streak alive or simply not forgetting something. It is about choosing to prioritize the one thing that truly breathes life into you.

So how do you keep it from just becoming ‘routine’?

Invite the Holy Spirit

Reading the Bible is one of most unique experiences because not only was it written by the Holy Spirit, but the same Spirit wants to walk you through each chapter and word! Before you even get started reading, stop and invite the Holy Spirit to be a part of your time in the Bible. Ask Him to reveal truth to you in both your mind and your spirit as you read His words. Jesus was when He said, “Ask and you will receive” (Matthew 7:7-11). When the Holy Spirit is apart of your time reading the Bible, it will become anything but routine!