A Prayer When You’re in a Bible-Reading Funk
By Peyton Garland
Bible Reading:
“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.” Psalm 1:1-3 (NIV)
Listen or Read Below:
I’ll be honest. I’m in a Bible-reading funk so often in my life. I’m great at getting eager about a particular book study or reading challenge, but the steam runs out. My stamina and perseverance in reading the Scriptures are in tandem with my (thin) patience in the face of whatever challenges I face that day. So, as you can imagine, I’m certainly not a biblical scholar.
I’m sure this unhealthy habit is a conglomeration of things: this season of motherhood (chasing a toddler while cradling a newborn), the way the church I grew up in manipulated Scripture, creating an anxiety around the Word, and my flesh. But if I truly love Christ, reading the Bible is a must. It’s the best way that I can know His heart and find discernment and guidance for my life.
Besides, if faith relied on feelings rather than a commitment to its disciplines, we would never experience true faith, a belief that remains when nothing in us feels able to endure. It would be nothing more than a hype, not an anchor for the soul.
So how do I combat the funk when reading the Bible can feel intimidating, scary, boring, too time-consuming, and any other unjust adjective that my sinful nature can create? What do I do in those seasons when I don’t feel like reading the Bible or God seems so far away?
I read the Bible aloud, and I’m very intentional with whom and for whom I practice this act of spiritual perseverance.
What keeps a mother accountable to reading her Bible? Telling her two-year-old son that they will begin reading a Psalm a day together. Just knowing that I must set an example of Bible reading for my children has held me accountable to reading the Word better than anything.
Granted, my two-year-old rarely sits still through the entire reading. He usually ends up running off with his breakfast in hand or yelling that he wants to read something else. Or, the newborn is being bounced and shushed in my right arm while I keep the toddler from tearing the thin pages with my left.
It’s chaos, but it’s a level of accountability that has kept me tethered to the Bible. I’ve found new personal intrigue, deeper love for its literary beauty, and pure joy when my toddler randomly picks up my Bible and screams with delight because he knows the book’s name. Some days, when we are finished reading, he even chants, “Again!”
Restore your love and commitment to Bible reading by finding someone whose spiritual well-being is of utmost importance to you, and commit to reading the Bible to or with them once a day.
It doesn’t have to be a long passage. It doesn’t have to be strictly from the Old or New Testament. But making a specific, measurable, realistic goal is key.
Stay committed, not because it feels good, but because goodness is only found when we are anchored in the truth and love of God’s Word. Stay faithful, not because it’s easy, but because the hard things are the only ones that are truly worth pursuing and treasuring. Stay the course because Jesus is running it with you.
Let’s Pray
Lord, in our sinful flesh, it’s so easy to shrug off your Word, to dismiss its beauty, power, and freedom. Whether it’s a busy season, a challenging circumstance, or the enemy’s distractions, we too easily place Bible reading on the back burner. So please grant us the discernment to find someone we can read your truth with, and may this commitment to Scripture revive our hearts and awaken a new desire to stay tethered to who you are through the pages of the Bible.
In your holy name we pray, Father, Amen.
Discuss today’s devotional with others in the Your Daily Prayer thread on the Crosswalk Forum.
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What battle are you carrying today?
Maybe it is an unanswered prayer, a painful loss, a strained relationship, a health concern, or a circumstance that feels far beyond your control. When life feels overwhelming, we can become so consumed by our emotions—or so busy trying to fix everything ourselves—that prayer is often one of the first things we neglect.
This week on The Love Offering Podcast, my friend Rachel Wojo joins me to talk about her new 90-day devotional, Praying Through Life’s Battles. Drawing from her experience of loving and losing her daughter, Taylor, Rachel shares how prayer has sustained her through unimaginable grief and reminded her that she never faces life’s battles alone.
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