Do This Spiritual Discipline Daily if You Want to Grow Closer to God

Hey Friend!

One of the questions I often get asked is ‘How do I grow closer to God? How do I hear from God?’ There are so many methods that I now use to grow closer to God and build my faith. But I believe that there is one core practice and spiritual discipline that we can actually apply and lean on. This one practice allows us to become more foundational in seeking after him and getting to know him at a deeper level. And I think this is one of the disciplines that most people neglect, because it’s tough.

This one core spiritual discipline is to read the Bible. It is that simple.

When we read his word, we get to know more about Him and His plan for us. As Christians, so many of us neglect this discipline. I know that sometimes I feel tired and it is hard to get up and open my Bible and figure out what I am going to read. So, we rarely spend time in the word. We rely on podcasts or our one weekly church service to fuel us and fill us. And when we do this, we are not actually getting into the word and discerning the messages that God has specifically for us.

While not minimising the other ways we connect with God, I believe that this particular discipline helps us to grow. It’s like taking care of a plant. You need to water the plant, put it out in the sun, provide it with the nutrients to grow. We want to be that beautiful plant that blossoms and flourishes and where we go to get our water and soil and nutrients is in scripture. 

Overcome the Roadblocks to Building Your Faith With This Spiritual Discipline

I am aware that there are roadblocks for all of us to actually reading scripture every day. These five practical tips can help us overcome these roadblocks so we can get started and can really experience the nurturing and growth that comes from His word.

No 1: Build Your Faith With the Right Version of the Bible for You

One of the things that dissuaded me from getting into the word was the fact that I didn’t really understand it when I got started. I highly recommend getting a version of the Bible that you will not only read but one that you will understand and one that is a fit for you.

You can Google ‘Bible translation map’. It  will show you the most literal translations such as the King James Version. You might find that when you try to read a Bible like this, it is hard to understand. It is hard to digest. But the map will take you from these versions all the way to The Message or the Passion.

I prefer those in the middle. I don’t want to lose the original contextual meaning of the more literal versions but I also need to be able to understand it. I need to be able to personally feel something when I am reading in order for it to come to life for me. I love the NIV version or the New Living Translation as well as the Christian Standard. I also love Bibles that I can journal in, taking notes, highlighting and colour coding!  

So, choose what is right for you.

No 2:  Plan Your Bible Reading Time to Establish Your Spiritual Discipline

We are all so busy. In this world of distraction and busyness, we are hyper distracted and are up against the algorithms, the busyness and all the things that come with living in the world we live in today.

We can’t continue to minimise the importance of setting time aside to be with God. Work out what time is going to work best for you to sit down and read the Bible. Is it first thing in the morning? During your lunch break? Is it before you go to bed? Look at your schedule and fit it in. If you can only manage ten minutes a day, that’s great. That is where I started. I spent 10 to 15 minutes with Him in the morning and it was transformational.

Now I have worked my way up to about an hour of reading the Bible, devotional time and prayer time. I actually walk you through my morning routine in Episode 616 which outlines it further and which you can listen to when you are ready. But for now, pick the time and dedicate yourself to getting through one week of that.

Rather than setting a big audacious goal that you can’t meet, start with ten minutes. Get that pretty new Bible out. If you have one already that works for you, get that one out. Get some new highlighters that help you to be excited about doing this. And then set a commitment that you are going to do this for one week for x amount of time each day.

No 3: Start Small to See Your Faith Flourish

My third tip is to start small. I think that most of us believe that when we get into the Bible, we have to start with page one. We think we have to start at the beginning of the Old Testament and read in order. But I think that this is a little overwhelming.

I highly recommend that you start with the New Testament. This allows you to have an introduction to the characters and the teachings of the Bible. You get to meet Jesus Christ and the teachings are relevant to where we are living today in this post Christ world. It lands a bit better and is more relational.

Start by reading one chapter or even a few verses from the New Testament. It’s not essential how much you are reading of the Bible. What is essential is that you are reading it every day. Small steps lead to big outcomes. Sometimes one verse is all I need because that one verse is so full and so rich. There are so many different things inside one simple sentence. Sometimes we can take one verse and journal over that one thing and get so much out of it.

So, start small in the New Testament and then focus on doing the daily practice, not over-consuming. You are going to get more of the nutrients out of it if you do this rather than taking in too much and being bogged down.

No 4: Meditate on the Word to Deepen Your Spiritual Discipline

After you have read the Bible, take some time to sit with what you have just read. It is not just about the reading. It’s not about the legalism of having to ‘read scripture’. The aim is to implant the words in your heart. As Joshua 1:8 says ‘Keep this book of the law always on your lips. Meditate on it day and night so you may be careful to do everything written in it’. The second part of the verse says ‘Then you will be prosperous and successful’.

That is what we are trying to do. We want to keep this book of the law on our lips, in our minds and in our hearts. And that is what happens when we sit with it and we really ask ourselves what we learnt and how it can apply to our lives today. We can ask God what He wants us to do with it.

I recommend journaling for this step. I like to journal because it helps my brain to process what I have read after I have read it or even while I am reading. I ask God to speak to me and show me insights, revelation and thoughts that come out of His word. I always close with a prayer that helps to seal everything I have learnt so that I can remember it much better.

No 5: Stay Accountable as You Nurture and Grow Your Faith

As with anything in your life, when you start out you are probably going to be excited about it. For example, when you start working out, you buy new workout clothes and you hit it hard. And after about a week, motivation starts to decline! But when you share it with someone else, it helps you stay motivated. You feel more committed to seeing out that promise that you made not just to yourself but to someone else as well.

Ask around for anyone else who might want to start reading the Bible. You are welcome to come into my group and ask if anyone wants to be your Bible buddy! The community is at stefgasscommunity.com. Find somebody there who also wants to read the Bible every day and text each other when you have done your reading. This very simple level of accountability is going to help you to stick to your plan and to create a deeper spiritual discipline.

There are also apps that you can download that will help you. The Bible app is great. We have one that we use in our family called Glorify which keeps you on track with a daily Bible plan and gives you checkmarks and other things that go along with your daily reading.

There are lots of free options for accountability so pick one and get going!

Practice This Discipline to Take Your Spiritual Life to the Next Level

Reading the Bible, in my opinion, is one of the most critical spiritual disciplines that we as Christians need to embrace. It is not good enough to hear second and third hand information about the word of God. We need to go back to this place of seeking truth, of connecting with Him at the most authentic source which is His word.

Take your spiritual life to the next level by being serious about it.  We have got to take that action and make that commitment to grow anything in our lives. And I think that the most important thing that we should be growing as Christians in this online space is our connection and our communication, our friendship and our closeness with God.

Finding the perfect plan or waiting until you have the time to pick up the Bible is not necessary and it is not helping you. You just need to decide that today is the day that you are going to make this a priority. When we do that, it opens our eyes to other places that we may be idolizing in place of God’s Word. Then all you need is the willpower and the discipline to commit to just 10 minutes a day to start.

I have recommitted and I have to say the past week or so that I’ve been fully recommitted has proven the benefits to me, as it does every single time I’m in God’s word. My day is different. My mind is different. The outcomes of my decisions are different. My parenting is more patient. Everything in my life completely falls in line when I’m putting God first and His word in my mind and my heart intentionally. It’s a game changer.

I pray this blesses you!

Xo,

Stef

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