New Ideas for Bible Reading the Bible

From Familiar to Fascinating

Blame it on my creative nature or my love for spontaneity, but whatever the reason, it’s easy for me to become bored, complacent, or dissatisfied with repetitive actions in my daily life.  For example, I find myself reluctantly flipping through recipes I’ve made for years and wishing for a new dish to cook.  I face the same dilemma with my hairstyle – whatever it happens to be – as shown by scrapbooks full of pictures of me with every length and style imaginable. And unfortunately, reading God’s Word sometimes falls in a similar rut. I want to be drawn to God’s word with the passion and dependency which caused Peter to respond to Jesus, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68, ESV).  But sometimes my experience is a little “stale”.

It’s no shortcoming of the Bible, which is alive and active and packed with God’s wisdom and truth. The challenge is mine to utilize new ideas for Bible reading that continue to pierce and soften my heart for his glory.  Lately I have been applying some new approaches that have made me truly captivated by the whole story of scripture and it’s life-changing words.  Here are a few suggestions that have been especially impactful for my personal time in the Word.

1.  Read a Bible written in paragraph form without chapter / verse designations and section headings.  This is now my favorite way to read Scripture, and I’m amazed by the context I gain.  For example, Paul’s letters truly come alive as expositions on displaying the gospel with hands and feet, rather than existing as a collection of verses about Christian living do’s and don’ts.  Did you know the books of the Bible were not separated by verses until 1550?  While helpful for finding passages and memorizing scripture, removing them can enhance our understanding of the Bible’s metanarrative.  And I love how the Holy Spirit leads me to the heart of what is written rather than someone else’s suggested heading. I highly recommend this method! (Here is the version I use.)

2.  Use a translation different from what you typically read.  Doing so can shed new light on familiar passages and provide deeper Biblical understanding. As a child I read and memorized scripture from the King James or New International versions.  In recent years I’ve primarily used the Christian Standard Bible. Recently,  I immersed myself in the English Standard Version and gained fresh perspectives on passages like Malachi 3:10:

Prove me now herewith…if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. (KJV)

Put me to the test…if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. (ESV)

The KJV emphasizes the overflowing abundance of God’s blessings while the ESV emphasizes God’s provision in times of need.  Both are true!  Maybe it’s just the nerd in me, but I loved seeing this verse from a new angle.

3.  Choose a specific book or section of the Bible and stay there regardless of how many verses you read each day.  What a strange concept for some of us – not to have a plan or end date, but rather a goal of gleaning everything we can from that portion of God’s Word.   My husband once studied Romans for an entire year, and my son is currently focused on one passage in Mark, rereading and meditating on it day after day. Let the Holy Spirit guide when to move on to a new passage or book.

4.  Focus on several related books to read in their entirety over a shorter amount of time.  This involves reading a greater quantity of scripture for a big picture view.  Think of it as looking at a painting in an art gallery.  If you stand a few inches away, you’ll see a small portion well.  But if you step back several feet, you’re able to perceive the artist’s overall objective. 

Try reading an entire book in a day (without stopping to analyze verses or small sections).  I read the book of Numbers this way one day last month.  After dozens of pages of giving God’s rules, expectations, warnings, and promises, Moses reaches the end of his life and hears God say, “You’re about to die Moses, and these people are going to screw up royally.” (Shelly Snead translation 😊) I immediately thought, “Wow God!  That was harsh!  Way to make a guy feel like he accomplished absolutely nothing!”  But then I reflected on Moses’ constant intercession for and patience with these people, and it pointed me to Jesus, who knew while dying that his people had and would continue to reject him.  And what a beautiful picture of lovingly parenting and shepherding those who continue to make bad choices.  Big picture moments can be just as powerful in our growth as the short phrases and verses the Holy Spirit uses to speak to us.

5.  Listen to the word.  I’ll be honest, this isn’t my go to way of diving into the Word. My ADD can only hear so much before my mind begins to wander!  But I have read along with an audio version of of the Bible and found portions of scripture with dialogue truly come to life because they were read by alternating voices.  And I’ve read along with another version that was underscored with music and read by ethnically diverse voices that enabled me to see the text in a new light.  There are many audio options out there, but two I have used are Streetlights and Bible.Is.

I hope these approaches spark something new in your study of the scriptures!  And I’d love to hear your ideas too, so please leave a comment so we can learn from one another!