But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Matthew 6:33 ESV

Spending time in your Bible and in prayer serves to build your relationship with Yah, and it should be a priority in your day. Here are some tips to help you develop a habit of Bible study.

Use anchor points in your day.

Use anchor points in your day. For example, I bring my Bible to the breakfast table. Connect your Bible time to something in your day that always happens. You may also find that an evening reading time would work for you.

Have a plan.

Have a plan. Don’t just let your Bible fall open and go with it. Use a reading plan instead. My children read through entire books one chapter at a time. This is an excellent way to get the big picture of Scripture. If you prefer to tackle smaller passages at a time, try my monthly verse lists. Each month I choose a theme and give you several passages to work through. I strongly recommend that you read at least several verses as you study. Don’t read just one verse. The majority of crazy doctrine out there is a result of “cherry-picking” verses. Keep the verses in context within the chapter and within the book. Look for themes across all of Scripture. Noticing the large patterns will help you to arrive at solid conclusions. Here are some more ideas to give you a plan for your Bible study time.

• Sharon from Heart of a Torah Woman has a plan to take you through Psalms and Proverbs. 
• Christine Miller has a yearly reading plan.
• You can find my monthly verse lists here.

Take advantage of these excellent tools.

Make it enjoyable.

It’s important to create a time that you look forward to. Find a Bible translation that you find readable. I actually keep several translations on a cart by my chair. Obviously, not all translations are created equal, but I find that comparing different translations can be helpful to get a consensus on the meaning. You may also find that certain word choices help the ideas to click. Here are some of the translations I have been referring to lately.

• KJV
• ESV
• TLV
• Amplified
• NKJV

Get some pretty printables to take notes on. Isn’t it so much fun to have pretty stationary or journals to write in? I grew up in the ’80s, and pretty paper is right up there with scratch and sniff stickers, am I right? If you happen to have a pretty notebook, start using it to copy verses and write down notes as you study. If you need something pretty, try some of these.

• Wildflower Bible study printable
• Pink Bible study printable
• My Time with Adonai journal
• Torah portions journal

Get yourself a nice cup of coffee, or tea, and enjoy your time with your Creator.

Journal.

Journal your Bible study finds and your prayers. I still have some of the love letters my husband wrote me before we were married. They are part of our story and our relationship. Writing down your Bible discoveries and your prayer requests and answers is a similar idea. It’s a way to see your relationship with YHVH, and how you are growing as a believer. It’s also a great way to see what YHVH has done for you in the past, as a reminder that He will keep His promises in the future. Here are some ideas of what to journal.

• word definitions
• application of the passage to your life
• prayer requests for others
• write out your own prayers
• lightbulb moments
• cross references in other parts of the Bible
• descriptions of Yah’s character

Keep an open mind.

The day you stop learning is the day you die. Don’t ever arrive at the place where you think you actually have arrived. There are always new things to learn. Test your beliefs against Scripture and be willing to change your beliefs when they don’t line up. James tells us that Scripture is a mirror. When we look at ourselves in Scripture, we need to change to match what we see, not the other way around. While we don’t want to chase after “shiny objects” when it comes to Bible study, we do need to be honest about what we are reading and make sure that our beliefs and actions line up with Scripture.

Luke Abaffy’s new book ‘The Truth’ is an excellent tool for testing why you keep Torah. You can read my review of this book here.

What has helped you develop a habit of Bible study? Tell us about it in the comments.