Read your Bible, pray every day, pray every day, pray every day
Read your Bible, pray every day, if you want to grow.
If you want to grow, if you want to grow oh-oh-oh…
Read your Bible, pray every day, if you want to grow!
The song above is a well-known children church chorus that teachers sang to their pupils to encourage them to seek the treasures hidden in God’s precious Word. It is sad though, that as quickly as the song is learnt, so quickly are we to forget to sing it once we move on to the Youth Church.
We lost the fervour with which we carried our Gideon’s Bible and rushed to open to First Samuel to read the infamous story of the young prophet called at an early age, while our teacher sang the accompanying song to our hearing. Some of us never regain this fervour, as other activities take up our time and attention and we seek greater accomplishments.
Perhaps you have even gone farther from the Way of Life. Now is your chance to return. You can bow your head right now and pray the prayer of a sinner to a Saviour who eagerly awaits it. He is faithful and just to pardon you if you are sincere.
Perhaps you have not strayed, but you did not notice that there’s no way First Samuel can be found in the Gideon’s Bible, then this is evidence that you haven’t been studying your Bible well enough these days.
Remember that this is our only hope if we are to live victoriously. It is our weapon in this war! You’ll agree that a soldier on the battlefield without his weapon would be considered unfit. That is exactly how we are viewed in the spiritual realm!
A human without constant nutrition would quickly expire; a Christian without constant Bible reading and study would quickly fall back into those sins he earlier confessed and forsook. Now, this is not the desire of anyone but the tempter, the Devil. Our loving Father, and I, want you to finish strong. This is why, by His help and inspiration, I’m enumerating a few things that are sure to help you read the Word constantly.
1. GET A BIBLE: Yes, get a Bible! This may sound funny but you have to agree that it is the actual first step. No point borrowing. Buy Yours!
It’s your weapon remember? You can’t be borrowing ammunition on the battlefield. Go to the nearest Colporteur stand or Christian literature bookstore and get one. No, the Bible app won’t do. Get hardcopy, my friend!
2. INTEREST MATTERS: Now, this next point should be emphasised. Get a Bible that you’ll be excited to read. You do not have to insist on a KJV if the old English makes you nod off after five minutes. There are over 20 versions of the Bible in this dispensation. An NKJV could work, Amplified, NIV, and several more.
Believe me, reading the Word in plain English can have you reaching for your Bible unconsciously when the time comes. You may be surprised that a few sounds of laughter, a burst of strong emotion will escape you while reading because you enjoy reading.
This is not to say that the most widely-accepted as accurate and most widely-read version, KJV, is to be put aside. No one says you can’t have both the KJV and other versions, you know? Personally, I read the Bible in three versions: KJV first, NIV and Amplified. Figure out what works for you and start reading.
3. SET AN ALARM: Perhaps you have a tight schedule and hardly have time to say more than a few words of prayer every morning before dashing out, this is understandable. Sometimes it occurs once in a while, sometimes more than once, okay. On days like this, set an alarm to read the Bible.
No point buying the Bible and not reading it. No point having your fuel but not practising to fire with it. No point cooking a delicious meal and not eating it. So, set an alarm to remind you to drop all else and pick up the Book.
It is here that discipline will be necessary and important. It is easy to postpone the alarm, snooze or cancel it. Don’t! Try as much as you can to round up whatever you’re doing at that moment, if it cannot be stopped immediately, and find a corner to have a meal with your Father.
On my phone, I set a reminder for eleven o’ clock and the Bible app automatically opens, no matter what I’m doing at that moment. This way, it’s easier for me to stay tuned, especially if I’m holding my phone at that moment. Try this too. Thank me later. *winks
4. PRAYER: Not forgetting this essential part of any life endeavour, you MUST pray. Ask for grace from your Father to read His Word. Jesus has lived in the flesh, so He knows exactly what it’s like to be tempted and distracted. Due to this, He encourages us to feel free to ask God what we want in His name. Therefore, ask for help.
Relying on your wisdom and strength to do this spiritual exercise every day is self-deceit of the highest level. Don’t you know how many resolutions that have gone unfulfilled despite all your alarms, word of mouth, accountability and all? Don’t let this end up so.
It’s a new year, and the first quarter is almost coming to an end. It’s not a new year until you do something new. Read Your Bible!
The alarm thing works. Not the physical kind, the one in the Bible app kind. I remember when I was consistent with daily guides through my Bible apps and I’d forget one day to read, I get notified by the app.
I had set a particular time to read the daily guide and if that time passes and I didn’t open the app, I’m notified. I grudgingly read it or comfortably read it. Depends, but the thing is I read it.
The alarm thing works. Not the physical kind, the one in the Bible app kind. I remember when I was consistent with daily guides through my Bible apps and I’d forget one day to read, I get notified by the app.
I had set a particular time to read the daily guide and if that time passes and I didn’t open the app, I’m notified. I grudgingly read it or comfortably read it. Depends, but the thing is I read it.
Idle head
Thank you so much for the comment, Oluchi. Apologies for the late reply, but better late than never, right? 😉
I sincerely hope that you’ve grown in your spiritual life by constantly taking time to have a meal with the Father. I’ve also made progress. I read the Bible in The Message Bible more these days. I still retained the KJV and NIV but Amplifier had to kinda go. In all, I try to read my Bible daily.