Read Your Bible Like A Pro!
Reading God’s Word is important for spiritual growth, to gain a deeper understanding and for guidance. But sometimes, don’t know about you - reading God’s Word can be a tad bit confusing.
Alrighty, so I’ve done the easy part right? Grabbed my Bible, sat down and read a verse. But nothing I’ve read has gone in and plus I don’t know what I’m meant to do with what I’ve just read.
Don’t worry. We’ve got you! There’s a dope method to use when studying God’s Word or if you’re just reading a verse or two that will make things a lot clearer and fun!
It’s called the 3 W’s.
What was it about?
What stood out to you?
What will you pick out and apply?
Yep. It really is that easy. But let’s break it down a little more so you know precisely how to work with this method.
What was it about?
Once you've read whichever passage or verse you've decided to read, summarise what it was you've read. This is where having a notebook close by will come in handy. Grab that notebook and a pen, and jot down in your own words what you just read. You can add as much or as little detail as you like. The point is coming to grips with the message of the verse or passage of scripture you just read. Writing it down gives you space to capture and reflect on what you’ve read.
If you can’t quite summarise, read over what you’ve read again and make a few bullet points summarising each line, verse or sentence.
What stood out to you?
Once you’ve summarised, now make a list of all the things that stood out to you from the verse or chapter you just read. It could be a word, write it down and search up the meaning. For example, soul. What does soul mean? What’s the Hebrew meaning for the word soul?
It could also be a theme, ie. faith. What is faith? How is faith shown in this verse or chapter?
Write them down & meditate on them. Ask yourself, why did they/this stand out to me?
What will you pick out and apply?
From the verse or chapter you read, pick out something you've noticed that you need to work on or something you really want to try out and find a practical way of applying it to your life. It could be one of the things within the verse that stood out to you or it could be an aspect that you’ve recognised you lack in. Whatever it is, write it down, ponder on it, find a practical way to apply it and then ask God to guide you as you endeavour to apply His Word to your life.
Application is very important when it comes to God’s Word. James 1:22 says, ‘Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.’ It is so important to apply the Word of God to our lives, so by using this method - application and reflection are possible.
Reading and studying God’s Word shouldn’t be difficult. So here’s our challenge, try out the 3 W’s method and tell us how it goes.
