Let’s face it: We live in a culture which places a lot of emphasis on the way we feel, right? We often let our feelings drive our actions. It’s a cultural norm to do what feels good. As women, we’ve found all sorts of serums, cold plunges, saunas, and smoothies to help us feel our best.
So often, we know what we need. But we settle for what we feel.
I know I need to make healthy food choices, but after a hard day, I feel like eating a pint of ice cream.
I know I need to do laundry, but I really don’t feel like it.
I know I need to save money, but I feel like purchasing something I want.
I know I need to volunteer my time, but I don’t feel like giving up my only free Saturday.
I know I desperately need God’s Word on a daily basis, but I don’t always feel like reading it. Is that too transparent?
You’re not alone
If you’re struggling with the desire to read God’s Word, please know you aren’t alone in feeling apathetic. I love that God gave us His Word in tangible, written form. But if I’m honest, I spent several years neglecting it. When I first became a believer, I poured over Scripture in complete awe and wonder. But somewhere along the way, I became busy. God’s Word felt stale. I lost the desire to meet with the Lord among the pages of my Bible. Somehow, I lost sight of what a privilege it is to even hold it in my hands. I accepted a lie that I could survive without it, even though “… man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD” (Deut. 8:3b).
My heart aches when I think about it—of trying to spiritually survive without nourishment. We substitute good things, like church and ministry, in place of our daily bread. Church and small groups are wonderful, and I am incredibly thankful for mine, but they can’t replace digging into our own Bibles. In the end, I was spiritually starving.
We need the Word to live. We need the Word to help us walk like Jesus. We need it to know God’s character. We need it to direct and help us navigate where we stand on cultural issues. God’s Word is unchanging; it’s always relevant. And it works alongside the Holy Spirit to convict us and change us (Heb. 4:12).
What do we when we don’t feel like reading it?
1. Be Transparent.
God is comfortable with your honesty; in fact, He already knows how you feel. Ask the Lord to renew a passion for His Word. Ask Him to help you hunger for it. A wise mentor once told me to pray this when I struggle with the desire to read my Bible: “God, help me want to want You. Help me desire to desire You.” You can also pray Psalm 119:18: “Open my eyes so that I may contemplate wondrous things from your instruction.”
2. Make a Plan.
There are countless Bible reading plans and Bible studies available. Rather than aimlessly approaching God’s Word—which can be super overwhelming—it may help you to choose a study. Lifeway Women produces amazing studies! A reading plan I’ve used is The Bible in a Year by Kandi Gallaty. These options will help you stay on track and navigate rich truths in Scripture.
3. Create Space.
This is a big one. One of the main reasons we neglect God’s Word is busyness. If that’s the case for you, put time to read Scripture on your daily calendar. Really! Pick a block of time, and write it down; this will help you begin forming a habit. Set a reminder on your phone. If your time is short, use the time you do have. On some days, this may look like listening to the Bible on your drive to work or while grocery shopping or reading while you’re in the car pick-up line. Your effort will never be wasted when you make God’s Word a priority.
4. Find Accountability.
This is crucial in combating laziness. Approaching God’s Word in community with other believers holds us accountable (Prov. 27:17). We gain new insight and truth from one another. If you don’t have a Bible study group, ask a friend, a spouse, or a godly leader to hold you accountable. Be the one to initiate accountability! You can meet each week, or you can even keep it simple and do daily check-ins over text. Find other people to walk with as you seek the Lord.
Your desire for reading your Bible will waver at times. That’s why your walk with the Lord is often more of a discipline—a commitment. It’s choosing what you know over what you feel.
When Moses was on the brink of death, he reminded the Israelites of this beautiful, astounding truth:
This command that I give you today is certainly not too difficult or beyond your reach. It is not in heaven so that you have to ask, ‘Who will go up to heaven, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow it?’ And it is not across the sea so that you have to ask, ‘Who will cross the sea, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow it?’ But the message is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may follow it.
Deuteronomy 30:11-14
The very Word of God is available to us! The Creator of heaven and earth chooses to reveal Himself to us through it. Reading the Word is the reward. I need it so desperately. I need to be revived because there are days my heart and soul are just exhausted. To lead my children and detect God’s will, I need godly wisdom. I need joy in grief, in the mundane, and on days when my flesh and my heart fail me. I need endurance when the finish line feels far. To combat Satan’s lies, I need truth. I need it to model Christ, because apart from Him, I am wretched. I need the reward of intimately knowing the Father.
Here is the beautiful part: The Word is near. It’s a gift, offered to us. We just have to choose to open it.
O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need of further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire. O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made more thirsty still. Show me Thy glory, I pray Thee, so that I may know Thee indeed. Begin in mercy a new work of love within me. Say to my soul, “Rise up my love, my fair one, and come away.” Then give me grace to rise and follow Thee up from this misty lowland where I have wandered so long. In Jesus’s name. Amen.1
A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God
ABOUT ALECIA BRYANT
Alecia Bryant is the content and brand owner for The Gospel Project. She is married to Chris, the discipleship pastor in their local church. Alecia is passionate about helping other women see the value of God’s Word in their daily lives so that it impacts their homes. She believes God’s Word is an incredible gift. When she isn’t writing, you can find Alecia hunting down a bowl of queso with her family. She lives in Louisiana with her husband and their two children, Parker and Avery. You can connect with Alecia on her personal blog: wovenword.org.
Work Cited
- A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 1948), 26.