6 Years from Now

Want to Love Reading Scripture Again? Start even when you don’t feel like it

Here’s a little secret for you about my daily scripture study. 

My daily scripture study started out as a discipline.

You read that right; it's a discipline.

While that might seem like a callous approach to scripture study, it has served me for 6 years to this very day where I haven't missed a day of reading God's word.

This habit initially didn’t come out of a strong, daily desire of wanting to do it.

In full honesty, my desires each day shift. They always have and I'm starting to realize they always will.

Even though I have loved Jesus deeply throughout my life, the wanting to read His word sometimes gets pushed to the side.

I’m imperfect and for a long time, I felt terrible for having these “natural man” moments of observing my focus shift from the Savior towards things of the world. 

However, the discipline of reading my scriptures daily for six years has not only deepened my love for Jesus but also taught me that the feelings of guilt and shame that arise when my desire to come to Him isn’t “perfect” never come from God.

Reading scripture daily allows you to become acquainted regularly with God’s character and as you come to know Him, you learn that God actually understands what we are going through. He gets it when you don’t feel a desire to read your scriptures or pray.

Of course, He always desires for you to want to read and to pray to Him, but he doesn’t feel spiteful when life gets in your way.

God desires you to come to Him of your own choice and is completely loving and patient as you find your way back to Him over and over again throughout your life.

I’ve come to realize that guilt and shame are tools of the adversary and his goal is to make us confuse his voice with God’s. If he can convince you that God is the source of those feelings for not being “perfect,” he can also convince you to pull away from the very Father who loves you most.

Since the day I decided to make this habit a discipline 6 years ago, I have read the scriptures every single day. In those 6 years I have learned that Satan will continue to try to make me feel guilt and shame for my imperfections.

However, in those 6 years, I have also learned that God’s power is mightier than what the adversary tries to throw at me. That God knows me, He knows my name, He knows what I have been through and will see me through whatever I have yet to go through.

I have learned through scripture to differentiate Satan’s voice from my Heavenly Father’s and that God’s Word is an ultimate power and resource for refuge and strength.

I have seen blessings in the form of miracles for my family, days that seem to go smoothly, an increase in peace and joy, a love for the present moment, a deeper knowledge and appreciation of my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, a firm love of Prophets and their counsel, and so much more.

I have read my scriptures daily for 6 years not as a sign of perfection, but as an act of faith that, even in my imperfection, I can grow into who I’m meant to be.