Have you ever wanted to develop a habit of reading the Bible consistently? I struggled with this for many years of my life. But now I can honestly say that I have developed a habit of spending time in God’s word. I read the Bible almost every single day last year, and you can do it too! Here are a few practical tips that helped me to develop my habit of reading the Bible every day.

1. Start Small

Let’s face it – it takes a very disciplined person to jump from reading a chapter a week to reading the entire Bible in six months (6-1/2 chapters a day). If you are a disciplined person, great! If not (it’s OK to admit it), it is probably best to start small. When it comes to forming habits, consistency is much more important than duration. Try starting with one chapter a day, or even one verse – just make it your goal to spend some any time in God’s word every single day. Once you have established a habit of reading the Bible consistently, it will be much easier to graduate into more intense study plans.

2. Start With Something that Interests You

It is much easier to accomplish a task if you find it interesting. Pick a reading plan that applies to your life in some way. Maybe you struggle with insecurity, or want to learn more about how God views money. Maybe you want to read what God has to say about dating 😉 There are hundreds of reading plans out there on every subject imaginable. A great place to start looking is https://www.bible.com/reading-plans.

3. Choose to Be a Habitual Bible Reader

A great way to make a habit stick is by choosing to identify yourself as someone who simply doesn’t skip out. This may seem like an oversimplification, but it really does work! Ask yourself “what kind of person reads the Bible every single day?” Then, choose to be that kind of person. A great way to help develop this identity is to pick a role model and ask them what motivates them to spend time in the Bible.

4. Don’t be Too Hard on Yourself

If you miss a day or two, don’t beat yourself up! It’s not the end of the world, and God still loves you! Acknowledge that you didn’t measure up to your new standard, and choose to do better in the future. Focusing on failure is a sure recipe for depression, which in turn causes you lose motivation, which makes you more depressed, which causes you to lose motivation, which makes… you get the picture.

5. Reward Yourself

One of the best ways to make a habit stick is by coupling an action with a reward. By rewarding yourself each time you read the Bible, you are programming your brain to expect something good even before you start. A great way to implement this is to use a sticker chart to track your progress. It’s amazing how satisfying it is to put a gold star on a calendar! You can also set periodic rewards for yourself, like going out for ice cream if you read the Bible for 30 days straight.

6. Tell Someone

Tell one of your best friends (or all of them) that it is your goal to read the Bible every day. Stand up in Church and announce to the world that you are going to spend consistent time with God. Even if you don’t specifically ask others to hold you accountable for this, just knowing that they expect you to stick to your goals is a powerful motivation tool.

7. Pray

Prayer is an incredible tool that is at the disposal of every Christian. Before reading the Bible, pray “Dear Lord, help me to focus on what you have to say to me today, and give me a hunger for your word. In Jesus’ name, Amen.” It is amazing how much power this simple prayer has!

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:23-24)

Remember: just because you have built a habit of reading the Bible daily doesn’t mean it is always easy to stick with it. But with these tips, I hope you can find a path to a much deeper relationship with your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.