I Don't Know How to Study

Need some study ideas? Do you feel like you just won't understand what you're reading? I know how you feel. I was in that same place not too many years ago. Finding the right tools and methods will make your study much more fruitful.

Write It Down - The more ways you get information into your brain, the better it stays. You can read it, say it aloud, write it down, the more ways the better. Copying down any scripture will help you slow down and really focus on the words and let it sink in. I copy a Psalm a day, or sometimes just a part of a Psalm if it's long. You can go through a book of the Bible, or just write down some favorite verses.

Understanding - Understanding what you're reading is key. Matthew 13:19 - When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. A good study Bible is very useful. I like my New King James Spirit-Filled Life Bible, many people like the ESV Study Bible. A study Bible will give you commentary (comments on passages), and other helpful things, like maps. My study Bible has little boxes here and there that explain certain concepts, or certain words. And it has articles on popular topics.

Commentary - Another way to gain understanding is to read various commentaries. You can download e-Sword for free, and download various commentaries they have available. My favorite commentaries are Dr. Chuck Missler's audio commentaries. I believe he has one on every single book of the Bible, many of them are streaming free on his website. If you pay, you actually get college credit for these. They are in-depth. Click here to see. Sometimes I listen and take notes, and if I'm short on time, I will listen while I do housework.

Teaching - Another useful tool is to listen to sermons by seasoned, mature Bible teachers and preachers. My favorite is Andrew Wommack (click on Extras at the top and then browse the left bar). He offers a large selection of free content. I also warn not to just go around listening to anyone and everyone. I listen on the recommendation of close, spiritually like-minded friends, or my pastor. And above all, check your Bible, to see that what they're teaching is truth.

Reading Schedules - There are many reading schedules out there that take you through the Bible. I tried the One Year Schedule for a while. I completed the Bible in 90 Days schedule. Biblegateway has many schedules to choose from, some short, others long, some on Bible highlights, other on Bible characters. I think these are useful because they keep us reading the whole counsel of God. Also, there is a time for shallow and a time for deep. And we need balance of both. When you dig into a topic so deep that you ignore all else, you can fall into error. But if you only ever skim the surface, shallowly, you also won't get the wisdom and insight that you need. So, some of both is wise.

My Favorite - A schedule I have found that I like a lot is different from the others. Dr. Chuck Missler's wife, Nancy, came up with it. You divide your Bible into eight sections and ideally read one chapter from each per day. Eight chapters a day were too much for me, so I cut it back to four. More recently I added sermon time to my study, so I have cut it back to one chapter a day, but I still go through the eight sections.

The eight sections I am referring to are as follows:
*Pentateuch/Torah - Five Books of Moses - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
*Historical - Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I & II Samuel, I & II Kings, I & II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther
*Poetic - Job & Psalms
*Wisdom - Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon
*Prophetic - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekial, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi
*Gospels + Acts - Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts
*Epistles - Romans, I & II Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, I & II Thessalonians, I & II Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, I & II Peter, I, II, & III John, Jude
*Revelation - this one is in its own group, it is prophetic, but references so many other books of the Bible. This book promises that the reader will be blessed. Rev. 1:3

Word Studies - Sometimes digging into the original language helps clarify meaning. You can go to BlueLetterBible.org or use a concordance to lookup the Hebrew and Greek. Greek especially is much more descriptive than English. For example, there are ten Hebrew and Greek words in Scripture translated by our one English word "world." All these words have a different shade of meaning. Even looking up the tense of verbs is very helpful. Greek has more tenses than English.

Dictionary - Would you like to know the difference between training and admonition, as described in Ephesians 6:4? It might be helpful, since this verse is about a topic that most of us are involved in every day--parenting. I wanted to know, so I looked them up in Vine's Expository Dictionary. I don't own one, so I used the online version, you can too, click here!

I hope these have been helpful. The important thing is to just dig in. Even if you only have 10 minutes a day, start now, and you will see a change in your life. And don't be afraid to change up your routine if it starts to feel stale.

Pray Ephesians 1:17 - 23, that God would open your eyes to His wisdom and He will!

Bible in 90 Days

Well, I did it, I finished my reading program. I have read through the entire Bible this summer. I don't say that to boast, but to encourage you. It can be done. I'm glad I did it.

I don't think it's essential for everyone, but it was for me. For more information, click here.

For a list of other reading schedules, click here. Some are longer, some are shorter, than the 90 day schedule.

I also highly recommend Learn The Bible in 24 Hours, by Chuck Missler. It is a nice overview of the Bible, giving a big picture perspective.

But the important thing is not whether you read the entire Bible, but whether you are consistently studying the Bible.

Bible in 90 Days

I'm excited at the reality of actually finishing a "read through the entire Bible" schedule.  I have 12 more "days" to go.  It will probably take me a little more than 12 days.  I can't seem to find as much time on the weekends.  As I mentioned earlier, I didn't want to have the attitude that I'm just reading to check off a list.  I've been relaxed with it.  Some days I read more than the day's selection, some days less and some days none at all.  I didn't want this to be a race to get through the Bible, I wanted to enjoy the reading, and I am.

I have experienced many benefits on this reading program.  I think the biggest benefit is the discipline it has brought.  I realize now that I have more time in my day to read the Bible than I thought.  I find myself sitting down to read for 5 minutes instead of checking facebook.  I find that I can read in more situations than I previously thought--with noisy kids, for example.  :)

When I finish with this reading schedule, I will start back at the beginning of the Bible, this time on a different schedule.  It is a schedule consisting of 8 chapters a day, one chapter from each of the following sections--Torah, historical, poetic, wisdom (Proverbs), prophetic, gospels, epistles, and Revelation (why Revelation?  Because it all ties together here.).  When I heard of this schedule in the past, I thought I didn't have time for it, but now I realize I do.  

Naturally we gravitate to our favorite parts of the Bible.  The parts that are uplifting and make us feel good, perhaps a Psalm or Proverb each day.  That is all good, but II Timothy 3:16 tells us that all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine (the basics of what we believe to be truth), reproof (examples of what not to do), correction (things we need to fix), and instruction in righteousness (how to live right).  But if all we are ever reading are just the "feel good" passages, we won't be learning doctrine (essential if you are ever going to mentor another or pass on your belief system to your children) or experiencing growth in our faith and character.  We need the well-rounded diet of the whole Bible.  It's like at mealtime you eat your meat,  veggies, bread, and some dessert.  Hopefully you're not eating dessert for every meal, and this is the attitude we need to take with our Bible reading.  No doubt reading the whole Bible will bring up lots of questions and then these are the areas you can do further study in.  Find a good commentary, dig further into the individual Hebrew and Greek words, their roots, other scripture references that contain the same word, etc.  Start a journal of your questions, like mentioned here.

Not sure what Bible in 90 Days is?  Click here.

Click here to read my post after 6 days on this schedule.

Bible in 90 Days

I completed Day 6 of the Bible in 90 Days reading schedule today.  I am really enjoying it.  The daily reading takes me between 45 minutes to an hour (I think I'm a slow reader).  It seems to be about 16 chapters a day.  Now I do notice it's harder to get in my time on the weekends, so it may take me a bit longer than 90 days.

Reading such a large amount each day gives a broader view.  Certain things stick out to me that wouldn't if I were reading a smaller portion.  (Of course, when you read a small portion, other details stick out to you.  There is a time and place for different types of Bible study.)

When I first heard about this fast-paced reading schedule, I was skeptical.  But once I got going, the thought occurred to me that I read Les Miserables in about 3 months.  (One edition is 1376 pages, can't remember how many my copy had.  This schedule, if read in the official Bible in 90 Days version is 1048 pages.)  Why is it that the thought of reading through the Bible, as I would a novel, seems so odd?  Perhaps it's because it really is different than a novel, there are so many depths, you can never really fully comprehend the Bible.  I will be reading it for the rest of my life and getting new revelations.  Les Miserables was wonderful, but I doubt it would require more than a few readings.

That said, I've had to train myself to read a little differently for this schedule.  I purposely don't stop and hunt down rabbit trails or dig very deep into study.  Otherwise I would be spending at least 2 hours a day on this schedule and I don't have that amount of time.  It feels a bit strange to be reading just to get to the end of the day's portion.  However, at the same time, I did not want to approach this with a, "let's just get through these chapters and check them off the list," attitude.  I am looking to learn something new each day and so far I have.  Even today, when the majority of the portion was all about details of the tabernacle and priestly garments.

That brings me to another point.  When you read about 16 chapters a day, you get to go through the "so-called" boring parts quicker.  :)  I say "so-called" because I am one that believes that every single detail in the scriptures is put there by design and is relevant and applicable to our lives.  But I admit, some of it isn't as entertaining.

I do think that you will get more insight and revelation out of the smaller bites that you take.  See Isaiah 28:10.  That is why I am keeping a certain few verses out to meditate on throughout the day.  I'm also still doing morning lessons with my children, so I have to study a bit for those.  (That study does me so much good.)  As a family, we read through one chapter of the Bible at dinnertime together.  We are currently in II Corinthians.  And, I like to listen to my favorite Bible teachers whenever I'm in the kitchen (which is a lot!).  So I feel that even though I'm skimming through the Bible in 90 days, I'm also getting those little bites throughout the day.

If you want to check out the schedule, click here.

Bible in 90 Days

I have tried (twice) to read through the entire Bible, using the One Year schedule.  Neither time did I complete it.  I did stick with it, both times, at least 90 days.

When I first heard about this schedule to read the Bible through in only 90 days I was quite skeptical, but now I'm excited.  Partly because now that summer is here (today was our last day of homeschool), I feel like I have extra hours in my day, I want to use that time productively.  And partly because I really feel the need to read through the entire Bible.  I know some don't.  I don't think it's important for everyone, but for myself, it is a goal.

Starting June 1st, Biblegateway will post the daily readings.  I found the schedule here, at Biblein90days.com, so I am actually going to start tomorrow.  That will give me a couple more days grace and I also need to be done a little early, since school will be in full force by the middle of August.  The schedule is for the New International Version (NIV), but I'll just read the same passages in my New King James Version (NKJV).  I'm not sure how long it will take to read each day's portion.  I may consider breaking it up into two to three portions each day.

To get the schedule for yourself, click here and then scroll down and find the Family Resources box.  The schedule is the last .PDF file, titled Bible in 90 Days Adult.

If you are also taking this challenge, I would like to hear from you.  I will post updates along the way and let everyone know how it's going for me.