7 Tips to Build up a Habit of Reading the Bible Daily
The Bible is a precious gift from God. It conveys so much to us, including God’s purpose and way of salvation. As believers, we can’t afford to be unfamiliar with its contents.
In a previous post, we saw that the first, most basic step in understanding the Bible is to read it, cover to cover. This is how we acquire a basic familiarity with the Scriptures that lays the foundation for us to understand God’s Word.
The Bible is a lengthy book. It consists of 39 books in the Old Testament, 27 books in the New Testament, hundreds of chapters, and thousands of verses. Reading through the entire Bible requires our commitment to make it a habit. And even if we’ve already read through the Bible, God’s Word is profound; we need to read it again and again, throughout our whole life.
But how can we develop this healthy and necessary habit?
In this post, we’ll go over seven practical tips to help build up a daily Bible-reading habit.
1. Pray for a hunger for God’s Word
Amos 8:11 says:
“Indeed days are coming, declares the Lord Jehovah, when I will send a hunger into the land, not a hunger for bread nor a thirst for water, but for hearing the words of Jehovah.”
There may be times when we’re not eager to read the Bible. It may sometimes even feel like a burdensome task to complete. When we feel this way, we simply need to ask the Lord to give us a hunger for His Word. We can pray something simple, like:
“Lord, thank You for giving us Your precious Word. Give me a hunger for hearing Your words. Help me build up the habit of reading the Bible daily.”
2. Set a definite time to read the Bible
It helps to schedule a consistent time for reading the Bible. An excellent time is early in the morning, before the busyness of the day begins. We can also read during lunch or before going to bed. No matter when it is, having a designated time incorporates Bible reading into our daily routine.
3. Read the Bible consecutively, book after book
Perhaps we’ve jumped around in our Bible reading before, reading a passage here or a verse there. We certainly benefit any way we read God’s Word, but it’s hard to read the entire Bible this way. A good strategy is to read book by book, chapter after chapter, without skipping any portion.
And this means we don’t have to spend time deciding what to read each time we open the Bible. We just continue where we left off. As we complete our reading of the Old Testament and the New Testament, we’ll begin to see how cohesive the Bible is.
Do you need help understanding the Bible?
Order a free study Bible that will help you to understand God’s Word.
4. Come to the Word with your heart turned to the Lord
Every time we come to the Word, it’s good to first turn our heart to the Lord Jesus. The Bible isn’t like a dry, dense textbook. It’s the word of our loving God to us. So even before we start reading, praying a simple prayer like this helps open our heart to Him:
“Lord Jesus, I turn my heart to You right now. Speak to me in Your Word. I’m open to whatever You have to say. Dear Lord, enlighten me as I read today.”
5. Pray over what you read
In the course of our reading, a particular verse or phrase may stand out to us. It may comfort us, convict us, or apply specifically to our situation. Other times, a verse may perplex us. Whatever our reaction, when we’re struck by a particular portion we should stop and pray over it.
We can thank the Lord for the comfort, encouragement, or promises we find in His Word. We can also ask Him to show us the meaning of a passage or just talk to Him about a verse.
In this way, the Bible can become a book of prayer to us, leading us to spend time with our dear Lord Jesus and develop an intimate relationship with Him.
6. Keep track of your Bible reading
It’s helpful to keep track of your progress as you read. You can write down the date you finish a chapter or book in your Bible, or check off each book in the table of contents after you’ve read it. You can also use an online scheduler, an app, or a journal to track your progress.
Keeping track of our progress can be very encouraging. You may not think reading one chapter per day is significant. But if you do this, you’ll finish the whole New Testament in less than a year!
7. Guard against distractions
Since reading the Bible is so important, we have to treasure and even guard the time we’ve set aside to enjoy God’s Word. Today, many things can interrupt or distract us. We may tell ourselves we don’t have the time to read the Bible, yet we can spend an hour or more scrolling through social media.
When it’s time to read the Bible, it’s helpful to set your phone to Do Not Disturb so incoming notifications don’t interrupt you. This can help keep you focused on the Word of God.
Some people find that reading the Bible on a phone or tablet is less than ideal because there are so many distractions right there. If you feel this way, try using a print version of the Bible instead to help you focus your whole attention on God’s Word. If you live in the US, you can order a free print New Testament from us here.
A daily Bible-reading habit will lay a strong foundation for our Christian life, increasing our faith and helping us know the Lord Jesus more. May God grant us all a hunger to read His Word!
