Have you ever said to yourself, “I really need to read my bible more?”. When this conviction happens, you may grab your bible and get your mind ready for this great time you’re going to have getting to know God better. Perhaps you find a nice cup of coffee or tea and grab your favorite blanket and chair in the peace and quiet of your favorite room. As you get more excited and ready for this time, maybe you decide to read from a book you’re not really familiar with so, you open to Hosea, and you begin to read. After taking about one minute to read the first chapter, you close your bible in bewilderment. After spending all this time preparing to enjoy the Word of God, you find yourself overwhelmed by the information presented and defeated, you set your bible down. Of course, you mean to get back to it tomorrow, but that last reading was a little weird, so you don’t pick it up again for another month or so.

The bible is sometimes a strange document and sometimes it overwhelms us. There is so much information contained within that can lead us to believe that we will never understand it or that we will never be qualified to understand it. That it is often easier to rely on feelings, someone else’s opinion, and our faith than it is to try to decipher the scriptures. If you have ever felt this way, I hope you know you are not alone, and I would like to present some information that may help when the Word overwhelms us.

1 - It’s ok to read and not understand. Like anything else, understanding comes with time invested. Never stop reading with the proper spirit and eventually, understanding will be revealed. -1 Corinthians 2:6-16

2 - There are things we will never understand. God wouldn’t be God if we could decipher how and why He does the things that He does with 100% accuracy. We do well to remember our place and have peace with what is in His care. -Proverbs 30:18-19

3 - When overwhelmed by a confusing text, call your minister or elder. Don’t let the lack of understanding defeat you, study with those who have been put in place to help you grow in your understanding. This will ‘qualify’ you to be a help for someone else with what you have learned. -Titus 1:9

Again, the bible is a document with so much information that a person may find themselves overwhelmed at what they are reading. This can cause a person to lose their interest or become discouraged in learning God’s will for them. I urge you to never stop reading, keep a godly spirit about you, and to take advantage of the resources that God has put around you. I challenge you to seize the opportunities to grow in your daily bible reading, and perhaps your understanding, this week.