56. Staying consistent being in the Bible every day

Even when you're busy, unmotivated, overwhelmed, or just don't feel like it...

In this episode, Whitney discusses the common struggle of maintaining consistency in Bible reading among Christian women.

Whitney encourages taking actionable steps towards building a consistent Bible study habit, offers practical strategies to help, and invites you to join a supportive community for accountability.

If you have been asking questions like:

• How do I stay consistent in reading the Bible?
• What can I do to make the Bible a priority even if I'm really busy?
• Why does reading the Bible even matter?
• What routine can I start doing to stay consistent?
• How do I prioritize the Bible when I have so much to do?
• How do I set realistic goals for Bible study that I can actually stick to?
• Where can I find accountability to stay consistent?

Then this episode is for you!

What next step are you taking on your Bible study journey?!

1. Bible Study Made Just for You is a 6-week 1:1 coaching program with Whitney where you stop just reading the Bible and start living it out, so you become transformed.

2. The Bible Study Made Simple community is where you learn about the Bible and stay consistent in it, so your faith grows as a Christian woman.

3. The Bible Study Made Simple guide is where you learn what to do every time you read the Bible, so you actually understand it.

4. These are the best Bible study tools on Amazon that will help you start reading the Bible with confidence for free.

5. Follow Whitney on TikTok or Instagram @stepintoboldfaith for simple Bible study tips, encouragement, and practical help to grow in your faith.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Have you ever been like, I'm gonna start reading my Bible every day and then you don't? Or this is the week I'm gonna finally stay consistent and really do all the things in my Bible study and then you don't. Or you're like, okay, tomorrow I'll get back into the word and then you don't. And this can feel really frustrating because you always feel like you're starting over again, right? And you're definitely not alone. I really wanted to do this episode today because I have been talking to a ton of people on social media, really trying to figure out what are people's goals with Bible study, what are their pain points, what are their desires, what are they really trying to do with it? And honestly, the biggest struggle I keep hearing again and again and again is that people aren't consistent with it. So by the end of this episode today, I'm gonna be sharing five ways, mindset shifts, habits that have really helped me stay consistent in God's word and that I think are gonna really help you do the same. Because this is something that I personally am very good at, is I'm extremely consistent in my Bible reading and I have been since the beginning, since I started really diving into the word, once I really dedicated my life to following Christ and wanted to be an actual Christian. Like once I made that decision and had that mindset of I am gonna be a great Christian, I am gonna learn everything I can learn, I am gonna read the Bible consistently, I'm gonna do what I need to do. Once I was at that point, I have only missed a few days out of months and months of reading, and I'm extremely consistent with it. So I'm really excited to share what I think about and what keeps me motivated and consistent in the word. And again, hopefully that helps you do the same. So welcome to Step Into Bold Faith. This is the podcast for Christian women who want to learn how to make Bible study feel simple so it transforms their lives and grows their faith. And I'm your host, Whitney. I am a fellow Jesus lover, wife, mama, and your Bible study bestie. And I'm so happy that God brought you here today. And I'm so excited to be doing this episode. So, first, I usually will go over like a story or something that connects to this, but I mean, honestly, I feel like the biggest thing is just like I used to not be consistent in it at all. Like, but that was before I dedicated my life to following Christ. And I was just like interested in reading the Bible, but it wasn't a part of my life, and I wasn't doing all the things the same way as I'm doing them now. And so I really want to go off of the way that I'm doing it now and what's been really helpful for me. So before I get into the actual teaching, I like you to pull out like your tools or make sure that you're aware of the tools that you'll need. So whenever I go to study my Bible, and a huge part of me being consistent every day is loving the tools that I'm using, loving the Bible that I'm using, loving my highlighters, loving my different resource books that I've used in the past that really help me to understand it. Because when you do truly understand it and you feel like it's making an impact on your life, you want to stay more consistent with it. And this is just like a bonus tip right here. This isn't even my actual like five ways I'm gonna be talking about today, but the tools really matter. So make sure to head to the link in the show notes under the Bible study tools you need to buy from Amazon and make sure that you're using all the right tools. Make sure that you're using a Bible that you feel connected to, that you're Bible highlighting, that you're Bible journaling, that you're really trying to dig deep into the word and making sure that you're getting something from it so you do end up staying consistent over time. So make sure to go check out those resources and make sure to be using the tools that you need. So now let's get into the actual five ways. So, way number one to make sure that you stay consistent no matter what is to make your Bible time smaller than you think that it needs to be. One of the biggest mistakes is that people think that they need to be doing Bible study for 30 minutes an hour or multiple chapters or deep study every day. But really, in reality, consistency in certain seasons can look like five minutes a day, one chapter a day, one section a day, one page a day. Just have a goal of a bare minimum for yourself. For me, it's like one section, like when it's like 23 to 24 or 24 to 25. Sometimes I just get through one tiny section a day, but I am happy with that. And I'm like, well, I did it. I opened up my Bible, I read my Bible, I did what I needed to do today, right? And sometimes it's like 30 minutes, an hour. I'm deep in the word. I'm like highlighting, I'm doing my questions, I'm doing all the things that I'm really enjoying at that time and that I'm getting a lot from. Some books of the Bible are so difficult and rough to get through that I just focus on like just read it and just get through one section. And then some are so beautiful and so informative and so deep and so transformative that I want to sit there for so long and do it. And sometimes it's not even up to me what I want to do and when I feel motivated about it. Sometimes it's with the kids' schedules in the morning because I do my Bible time first thing in the morning. I get my hot lemon water, I sit and I open my Bible, and that is the first thing that I do. And so, anyways, I'm gonna get to that in a minute. But again, sometimes consistency can look like just one tiny piece and making sure that you are having that as like a part of the routine is just focus on showing up, right? Don't focus on how much you're reading in a day or how much you're studying, but just focus on being like, I showed up, I did it, I did the thing, I opened my Bible, I did what I needed to do today. So, way number two is to remember why Bible study matters so much. So on the days where I'm like five minutes, I don't even want to do five minutes right now. I want to not, I want to skip straight to my journaling, I want to skip straight to the books that I'm reading. And I'm like, no, I need to remember why Bible study matters so much and why this is so important. So a lot of times it's hard to stay consistent when we forget how valuable it is. It's not just another task that we need to complete. It's one of the primary ways that God speaks to us. It's one of the primary ways that our faith is grown, that we can understand God's character, that we can gain wisdom, that we can make better disk better decisions, that we can navigate challenges better, that we can become more like Jesus, right? And so it's this perspective shift of just being like, I understand how important this is to not just know the information, but be transformed by the information. And that doesn't happen unless we show up even for five minutes a day. And over time, that five minutes will add up, right? Or that one section will add up, and it will amaze you over time if you're consistent, how much you can really get through reading whole books of the Bible. And that's a big thing of what I focus on. I don't jump around, I focus on entire books of the Bible at a time. So right now I'm almost done with Deuteronomy, and then I'll be in Joshua. So we just have to stay consistent with it. So that was way number two is remember why Bible study matters so much. And as you become consistent in it, that's when it begins to transform your life, when you begin to feel like it actually is making an impact, but it takes time and consistency in order for it to do that. So way number three is to make it a non-negotiable. So consistency becomes easier when the decision is already made for us. People are out here asking themselves, should I read my Bible today? Or like, when am I gonna read my Bible today? Or like, do I really have to read my Bible today? But if it's a non-negotiable for you and you know I'm reading my Bible today, like this is how I am in the morning. It's I get my hot lemon water, I get my Bible, and I'm like, I know I want to do other things first a lot of the times, especially when books are painful and boring and are like I'm struggling to get through it. But if I'm like, okay, I can get through five minutes, I can stay consistent, I can do this, I just need to go through one section, right? And I have that as a non-negotiable, like I am reading my Bible today, then you'll read your Bible, right? It's a lot of times when it's not, it's not something that you've decided that you're doing, right? Just like brushing your teeth, going to work, picking up your kids from school, doing your household tours, right? We have to do it. It's not always like maybe it's when do when am I gonna do it today, but it's not if I'm gonna do it today. It's when I'm gonna do it today, right? And so making sure to really have that consistency adds a non-negotiable instead of it being something that could waver and you could be like, well, I don't know if I'm gonna get to it today. Okay, so way number four is to schedule it in your calendar and create a routine around it. So I kind of talked about this already, but like when I get my hot lemon water in the morning and I get my Bible and I sit and I read it, it's part of my routine. I expect every day, this is when I'm gonna read my Bible. It's first thing in the morning before I do anything else for the day. Because number one, I want to get it done. I want to feel good, I want to prioritize God's word. It is the most important use of my time in my day, even if it is five minutes. So that is why I prioritize it over study books, over my journaling, over other fun books that I'm reading about Christianity or becoming a better Christian. It's because it's the most important thing and it cannot be replaced. So that is why it's first thing in the morning for me and it's a part of my routine. I wake up, I do my Bible reading, I get my lemon water, and I sit and I do it, and then I can move on with the rest of my day. So maybe for you that doesn't work. Maybe I don't know. I don't know your schedule, I don't know your life, but you maybe making it a non-negotiable for yourself where it is a part of your schedule or your routine, maybe before you go to work while you're drinking your coffee, maybe it's during your lunch, maybe it's before bed, maybe it's in the school drop-off parking lot, right? The specific time doesn't matter, but what gets scheduled in your calendar or creating a routine, you will stick to it more because again, it's kind of part of that non-negotiable. If it's in your schedule, if it's in your calendar and you know when you're gonna do it and you're already creating a routine around it, it's gonna be so much more helpful for you. Okay, so the last way, why number five, is to prioritize it over lower value activities. So most women, this is a shocker, right? We don't lack time, we lack intentionality with our time. We choose to replace our Bible time with scrolling on our phones, with another TV episode, with watching other videos, with work, with the kids, with doing other things, right? And not saying that those things you can't do them, but how much are we prioritizing those other things? Like you have five minutes a day, I know you do, to read your Bible. You have enough time to get through one section of the Bible every day. I know you do. It's you choosing those other activities and you prioritizing them over what actually matters most, right? So look and figure out honestly where your time is going in the day. Take an inventory of it and be like, okay, what can I actually swap out this week or today? Like, what do I do every day where I'm like, that's a waste of time. How can I swap out that waste of time with my five minutes or my one section of my Bible reading time? And then this is a bonus tip at the end, but just stop feeling like you're starting over every time you miss a day, right? Like a lot of times people are like, well, I was on a really great, great streak and then I missed a day and now I want to quit fully, right? Missing a day doesn't mean that you've failed. Just like keep going. Like this is a long, long, long race, right? Race. Kind of like we're we're running in a race, but we're actually walking very slowly in this race. And it's the the race forever because we're gonna be reading our Bibles forever. It's never gonna end, and there's always gonna be something that we learn from it, and we're always gonna be getting new things from the word. So don't think of it as like you're stopping and you're starting the race, right? We're just walking slowly in the race. Maybe like stop for a little pit stop and you got a like snack bar and a water, right? But you're gonna keep walking in the race. So don't think like, oh, I quit the race. You're in the you're in the race. You just need to keep walking in the race. So again, to recap, number one, keep Bible study small and realistic. Number two, remember why it matters. Number three, make it a non-negotiable. Number four, schedule it into your day. Number five, prioritize it over less important activities. And bonus number six was don't quit when you miss a day. So now our action step at the end of this episode today is gonna be to pick one of these things and start doing it every day consistently for this week. So say you're like, you're like ready to really stay consistent with your Bible reading time. Okay, pick one of these things. So like schedule it into your calendar, like when you're gonna do it. Number, like another one would be like, I'm gonna swap out my five minutes of scrolling before bed for five minutes of my Bible reading time, or being like, tomorrow I'm gonna write down five reasons why it actually matters and put a sticky note on my Bible so I can actually remember why this is so important to me and what I'm really trying to get from it, right? So I hope that this helped you feel encouraged, helped you keep things realistic and exciting for you around reading your Bible, and that hopefully it really makes you feel better about wanting to stay consistent and doing these things. And if you are really ready to stay consistent in the Bible, if you are ready to be surrounded by great accountability, support, guidance, myself to really help you on this Bible study journey, this lifelong Bible study journey, I want you to join the Bible study made simple community. This is a community for Christian women who are ready to learn about the Bible and actually stay consistent in it so their faith can grow. And inside the Bible study made simple community, you'll understand the Bible better and feel more confident opening it. You'll stay more consistent in reading the Bible through monthly challenges and accountability. You'll have a clear monthly Bible study plan so you always know what to focus on. You'll dig deeper with guided questions that help you better understand what you're reading in the Bible. You'll get support through question threads so you're never figuring out things alone, and you can actually get help and support with things you're struggling with. And you'll grow your faith alongside other Christian women who are also on the same journey. So again, I highly encourage you and we would love for you to join the Bible study made simple community. So head to the link in the show notes to join us. And now let's end in our prayer. God, thank you so much for each and every woman listening to this episode right now, and that she feels excited and motivated and has a new mindset and new habits and beliefs that she's gonna form around staying consistent in the Bible, Lord. Help her to stay consistent and motivated and inspired and get what she needs from it every time she opens it. So she does want to stay inside of it and so she can be transformed and for her faith to be able to grow, Lord. Help her change and do what she needs so then she can just get so much from it, and it can really make such a great impact on her life, Lord, and just know and have her heart be touched from me, Lord, that she can just read the Bible and get so much from it and can stay consistent in it and that everything that she needs is within the word, Lord, and help her just to get everything that she wants and needs from it. In Jesus' name, amen. So until next time, thank you so much for coming along the journey with me and let's keep stepping into bold faith together. Okay, bye.