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I took a little trip with the in-laws and our kids a few weekends ago. As I was packing I made sure to bring my Bible, The Message translation, along with me because I had a strong sense I would need it. I in fact did. I arrived late Friday night and shortly after went to bed. It was the next day when we were getting ready to go to a lake with everyone; as I sat running through a mental check list of all we would need I felt an intense sense of dread overcome me. This is a sense of doom, as if death itself approaches. Sometime this feeling can throw me into a panic which is not what I want. God calls the man of a family to be a strong and confident leader and that is nearly impossible when irrational panic has overtaken you mind. So I did what I was taught by my Father to do; call on Him. I entered my bedroom and prayed. I was immediately instructed to open my Bible and begin reading the first words I saw.

Bless our God, O peoples!

Give Him a thunderous welcome!

Didn’t he set us on the road to life?

Didn’t he keep us out of the ditch?

He trained us first,

passed us like silver through refining fires,

Brought us into hardscrabble country,

pushed us to our very limit,

Road-tested us inside and out,

took us to hell and back;

Finally He brought us

to this well-watered place.

– Psalms 66:8-12 (MSG)

After reading this passage I felt an immediate sense of relief. This is not the first time this has happened to me but is the most recent. Prayers do not have to be only abstract or long term needs but can be used to help you in immediate distress. God is good! Use His blessings!

Reading the Bible is a rather simple thing. You open a book and read it. But lets be honest you tried that and it was boring. Some chapters seem to drag on and on about lineage or specifications of something to be built. This can be very discouraging and turn what should be a divine experience into a slog. So I’m going to share some wisdom of reading with you.

Firstly PRAY!

Second find multiple translations you like. I have a rather extensive collection of Bible translations ranging in years from present day to the 1600s. From interlinear to more verbose explanations. Fortunately many can be found free online so you wont need a home library. Having multiple translations can help when the phrasing is difficult to understand. It can be more pleasing and poetic to read. See choosing a translation for more info.

Start by just reading small excerpts. Jumping in and trying to read too much at once can be over whelming. So can trying to start from the beginning and reading straight through. Not many people do this at all. In fact, the Bible isn’t structured in chronological order anyway so it would most likely confuse you more.

Pray for more guidance.

Read the new testament first. (see reading list) I would recommend everyone start with Genesis but after that I would go to the new testament. Ill elaborate more here, but i wouldn’t even read that straight through to start because Matthew, Mark and Luke are essentially the same thing from three perspectives. So reading them back to back can be a slog for new comers.

As you read make note of things you wish to understand more.(ex: verifying the prophecies) You might notice little letters around parts you read. These lead to footnotes that reference other books and chapters. This is a sort of prophecy citation to aid you in easy verification. Its good to explore these because you gain a deeper understanding of God’s promises and His master story telling

Find an audio book version you like.

Read in short amounts and listen for a long time.

Pray about what you don’t understand.

As you go throughout the day, meditate on what you read.

Don’t get too hung up on devotionals. It is a common pitfall I see amongst many new readers; they feel a person has to explain the Bible to them. They don’t. If swapping translations isn’t clearing it up, just ask God! I have had times where i just could not understand what He was trying to tell me so I prayed and then went about my day. Since i was meditating on these ideas i would seek mainly Christian entertainment. I found myself listening to Catholic radio a lot. I lost count of how many times i would turn the radio on and they would be discussing the very things i was struggling with. Truly amazing.

Praise to the MOST HIGH!

Prayer is our most effective tool.

When you sin.

Forgive Me Father Jesus.