6 Encouragements for Bible Reading
It's the last day of January and Quitters Day is already 3 weeks in the rearview mirror.
Whether you kept up with the Bible reading plan all month, fell behind, or never got around to starting, here are six encouragements to keep going.
1. Read by Faith
The most powerful motivation to regularly read God's Word is faith in God's promises. Pick one, cling to it in faith, and then open your Bible and read no matter how you feel. Reading when you don't feel like it isn't hypocritical, it's an act of faith. Reading when you don't feel like you "got anything out of it" isn't foolish, it's faithful. If you need a promise, I recommend Psalm 1:3. That says the person who meditates daily on God's Word "is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers." If you want God to make you like fruitful, well-watered tree, read his Word and trust that he will.
2. Train, Don't Try
When we say we're "trying" to do something, it usually means we have a goal to do something but no plan. Instead of "trying" to do the Bible reading plan, train yourself for godliness (1 Tim 4:7–8) by coming up with a plan. Pick a time, a place, a Bible, a writing utensil and notebook, and get started today.
3. Something Beats Nothing
It's okay if you don't get to all four bookmarks everyday. It's okay if you don't read all of the chapters on one of the bookmarks. It's better to read something from God's Word than to read nothing at all.
4. You're Not Behind
There are so many great things about Bible reading plans, but there's one danger to avoid. The danger is thinking that you're "behind," letting that discourage and overwhelm you, and then quitting. You have two options. You can either keep plodding along at your own pace, or you can skip all the days you missed in January and start fresh in February. Both are acceptable and you should do either one without any guilt or shame.
5. It's Not Too Late
It doesn't matter if you didn't start the plan in January. Don't wait for January 1, 2026 to start. Just start reading something today. I personally don't recommend starting at the beginning (but you sure can). I recommend starting with the February readings. Knowing that you're reading along with the rest of us is more encouraging than reading on your own.
6. You’re Not Almost There
Spectators at a marathon can be a huge encouragement to tired runners, but one thing that’s not so helpful is shouting, “You’re almost there!” Unless the runner can see the finish line, it’s just not true. Besides the fact that we have 11 months to go in this Bible reading plan, the reality is that we don’t read the Bible to “finish” it. Think of it like eating. You may finish a meal, but you never finish eating. Your body will need fuel later today and then again tomorrow. When we get to the end of the Bible, our plan is to read it again and again. And that takes a lot of pressure off. It means you don’t have get everything out of every text. (You can’t anyway!) So take in what you can and relax. The plan is to revisit these pages over and over.