What Does the Bible Say About . . . ?

In college, I was looking for a Bible study to complete and a friend allowed me to copy the “Read the Bible in One Year” pages from the back of his Bible. Five years later, I finally completed the reading plan. I didn’t call my friend and celebrate because I felt like a complete failure for not completing the reading in one year.

This journal/Bible study came about because life happened while I was busy making plans and doing work. I found myself too busy to dig deeper into my Bible on a regular basis.

I would start a Bible devotional reading or just a Bible reading plan and do well for about a week. Then life happened. A project was due to work, a friend needed to talk, the ants invaded my kitchen, and my Bible time went out the window. I spent multiple hours feeling guilty because I wasn’t caught up with where I was “supposed to be” according to the plan. I would either read a lot to catch up (and remember very little) or just say forget it and skip over to where I should have been. It didn’t matter what devotional it was, I just couldn’t keep on track.

One day, I sat down and thought about studying the Bible on my own. I picked a word out of the concordance in the back of my Bible and started looking up the verses. Eventually, I grabbed a piece of paper, a dictionary, and a thesaurus. I looked up the definitions and synonyms for the word and started thinking about writing about what they meant to me. I thought about the book of wisdom, Proverbs, and started looking for verses there. Then I took at least two days to look everything up and take notes. Later, I returned to the page thought about what I had researched. I wrote my thoughts and reflections on the verses and prayed about what I could do in my life at that time. As I was writing and praying, situations at work or just life in general would come to mind relating to my study.

Even though it usually took multiple days to complete a word study, I felt a sense of accomplishment because I finished a task. I didn’t have any expectations of when the study needed to be completed, how long I needed to take on each word, or even how much reflection I should write about.

I admit, there were times where one page just wasn’t enough. Once I started putting my thoughts on paper it got easier. I didn’t have to write about deep thoughts every day. I could research words when I felt like it and come back later to journal on them. It was comforting to have a pattern to study with but also freeing to know that I could fill it out on my own time, at my own pace, and as many times as I needed.

The words I have chosen are from various parts of the Bible concordance, devotional readings, sermon topics, life circumstances, or wherever I found inspiration. The words are in a standard alphabetical order. There are blank sections in the back of the book for readers to complete their own studies. Feel free to pick a topic, like The Fruit of the Spirit, and write the definitions, other places to find each word, and what it means in your life right now.

I have picked up this study and put it down again many times over the years. But, it isn’t only about my journey, it’s about your journey as well. I hope that you also find it to be a familiar, helpful tool as you seek to learn more about God’s Word.