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5 Tips to Study The Bible

Reading the bible can be pretty intimidating. But at the same time...

The Bible is a beautiful Love Letter from God.


The bible is a book that was written thousands of years ago. The language, text style and paraphrases are its own kind of literature.

The bible is a book inspired by the spirit of God- written by men. The approach and mindset we adopt before reading the bible will help us set up for gaining the most out of the reading time we decide to invest.

 The Old Testament takes about 1,000 years to make. It is filled with prophesy, accounts on all sorts of human dysfunction and magnificent accounts on historical events, that although not recognized by history books, leave some surprise when we learn archeologist findings that substantiate stories in the Old Testament. Fun fact: some Old testament books are written in poetry style.

The New Testament took approximately 50 yrs to complete. The first four books are accounts of the birth, life, baptism, miracles and death of Jesus.

The bible has a cohesive storyline; Humanity is created. Humanity misses the mark and we fail to fulfill the role of our original purpose and we see how God never loses faith in us because He attempts to give us several opportunities. After a few times of renewing the covenant God goes silent. A plan for redemption is formed. Prophesies are fulfilled. A Messiah comes to redeem the relationship between humans and God.


An open heart and teachable spirit are essential when you have made the choice to become a bible student.


With a lot of love and encouragement I want to tell you to not fear and be courageous (Joshua 1:9). When you begin to live your life guided by this old book you will be criticized, scorned, mocked and people will look at you as if you are from another planet. It's all good! Jesus said this would happen. Stay strong.

Here are a few avenues that will help you when beginning a journey on reading the bible:
Set time aside to read the bible. Devotional books are a good way to begin meditating on the word of God in the morning.

Preaching videos and teaching videos are available on almost every Website that belongs to a church. A lot of ministries are making sure they can broadcast live and they also have YouTube channels for the purpose of bringing the Gospel through the internet/live stream platforms.
I am a YouTube hoarder of   subscriptions to YouTube channels that belong to churches in different parts of the world. In the evenings I'm prepared with a pen and paper ready to write down verses and notes with the intention to meditate on the message and on the word of God (Joshua 1:8).

Online studies. There are ministries that are connecting with believers social media platforms. Click here to visit SacredAmbition IG webpage. Laura Gabriele is a Christian woman with a ministry that has a FaceBook page that conducts online bible studies. Social media has been misused to hurt people and destroy relationships. Social media has also become channels that facilitate cyber bullying, defamation and freedom of hurtful behavior,  BUT social media is also being infiltrated with Kingdom purpose driven individuals. If you have the ability and the influence to reach others within your social media platform with teachings on the word of God- do it!

None of the above can replace congregating in a local church. Your church will usually have bible study services and bible study groups. The apostle Paul advised the church to never stop congregating. Fellowship within the church is important and no online teaching compares to arriving at a house of worship where we can immerse ourselves with the amazing, magnificent, overwhelming presence of the Lord our God.

5 Tips to consider when studying the word of God:

  1. Pray for understanding. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you the wisdom and to speak into your heart while reading the word of God- Jesus gave us instructions the to ask these things to the Holy Spirit (John 14:26) 
  2. Be on the lookout for repetitive phrases. This is God trying to bring to our attention a principle or Him calling our attention. God knew we would struggle with fear. Phrases saying "do not fear" appear 365 times in the bible.
  3. Don't attempt to personalize the bible. As much as we want to find specific answers to our troubles and worries we are to study the bible within its own context. Understanding the bible will help us understand who we are, where we come from and where we are going...
  4. However, be on the lookout and open to hearing the whisper of God. In our most troubling times as we have communion with the Holy Spirit of God we will understand the mysteries of life, our fallen state and the beautiful story of our redemption through our Lord Jesus Christ.
  5. Take it slow and go back if you need to. Read it slowly and out loud. Didn't understand? Go into prayer, go back and read it again. Chances are if it caught your attention and you didn't really grasp it this is something or someone trying to catch your attention. God is intentional and everything He places in our heart has a purpose.
Hope this helps someone!

Please share your tips on the comment section below...

As you begin your journey on studying the Holy Scripture my payer is that you learn new ways to love God, love yourself and love your neighbor. I pray that your heart and mind explore the visions of God for your life (Isaiah 55:8)! I pray that God's love through Jesus becomes convicting. Amen. 

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