Study the Word

I love teaching students how to study God’s Word.  Even as I write, I am teaching one of my girls this very thing.  We are going through the book of Joshua and I am showing her how to discover God’s truth on her own. I was so excited when she told me she wanted to learn how to study God’s Word for herself. There is nothing like seeing the joy on a girl’s face when she shares what she learned on her own from His Word.

The idea of studying God’s word on your own can feel a little overwhelming when you don’t know where to start or even how to do it.  Let me give you a starting point. Here is a simple way to jump in and begin discovering God’s truths on your own.   

GETTING STARTED

PICK A TIME: You need to pick a time of the day that you are going to consistently set aside to study the Bible.  Choose a time that works best with your schedule and will allow you to focus.  It won’t do you any good to get up early in the morning if you’re not a morning person. You might just find yourself falling back to sleep.

PICK A PLACE: You will want to choose a place that is distraction-free.  This is different for everyone.  If you can focus with other things going on around you, wonderful!  For me, I have to have a quiet place and if I'm outside, a place where I don’t know anyone.

GATHER YOUR MATERIALS: Bible, pens, journal, and whatever else you may need.  I like to leave all my materials in the same place every day when I am done so I don’t need to go looking for them the next day.

HOW TO STUDY

I am going to share with you a simple way to study the Bible using 3 steps.  I will explain each step and then show you how to break it down into days so it doesn’t seem so overwhelming and can easily fit into your schedule.  All you have to do is read, explore and apply.

READ
Read the passage several times.  Read it out loud once or twice.  Write down anything that stands out to you about the passage.

EXPLORE
Look for the details about that book of the Bible first and then the details about the passage.  Just use your detective skills. Ask questions like…

Who wrote it? 
Who were they writing to? 
What is being talked about? 
Any words stand out? 
Do you see a common theme?
(If you’d like a full list of questions that you can ask while studying, email me at kmministries@kristamichelle.com)

After discovering the details look at them to find the message that is being communicated.  Take the time to look at repeated words, statements, key verses, or anything that stood out to you while you were reading it. You are looking for a clear meaning, not a hidden one. Be careful to not add a meaning that really isn’t there. 

The message may be simple to find with all the things you wrote down. But it is always good to dig a little deeper to see what God’s Word says in other books of the Bible by doing what is called cross-referencing. This is where you look at Bible verses that have words or phrases like the one in the passage you are studying. Here is where a study Bible would be helpful. 

In a study Bible, there are two things that come in handy when studying. First, is the Bible verses to use for cross-referencing. They are often in the middle and look like the picture on the right. Second, are the notes at the bottom of the page that share helpful insights for certain verses. (If you do not have a study Bible, I encourage you to get one but you can also use websites like Blue Letter Bible or Bible Study Tools to look at cross-references.) 

Remember that scripture interprets scripture. You do not need additional resources with this way of studying the Bible. If you ever want to use additional resources to study a specific passage, then seek wise counsel on what to use from your youth pastor or pastor. 

Apply
Take the message of the passage and apply it to your life.  Write down very practical ways that you live out that message.  

So, how can you make the time to do all of this with your busy schedule?  It’s simple! Make each step a day and spend 15 minutes with it. I am sure you can find 15 minutes in your day to study the Word.  Some days may be shorter, some longer, and you might spend a few days exploring by looking only at one verse or word/phrase that stood out to you each day.  Just take your time to read, explore and apply.

Here are a few passages to start with…

Joshua 1:1-9
Matthew 6:25-34
Hebrews 11

Enjoy digging into God’s Word!