The other morning, during my quiet time, I found myself sitting with a question that honestly convicted me. It’s a question I’ve been asking myself lately, especially as a wife, a mother, and someone who knows how easy it is to fill every hour of the day with good things.
If we say that we want to spend eternity with Christ, how can we also convince ourselves that we don’t have five minutes to spend with Him right now?
I don’t ask that from a place of condemnation. I ask it because I think many of us have bought into the idea that Bible reading is something we do when life slows down, when the children are older, when work becomes less demanding, or when we’re finally in a season that feels manageable. Yet if we’re honest, there will always be another busy season waiting around the corner.
The reality is that we don’t need God’s Word less when life gets busy. We need it more.
Church Attendance Cannot Replace God’s Word
One thing I’ve noticed in recent years is that many Christians have become comfortable receiving all of their spiritual nourishment from church services, podcasts, devotionals, and Bible studies while rarely opening Scripture for themselves.
Now, please hear me. I love the local church. I love Bible studies. I love learning from faithful teachers. Those things have played an important role in my walk with the Lord. But none of them can replace your personal time in God’s Word.
You can attend church every Sunday and still be biblically illiterate. You can listen to sermons throughout the week and still struggle to recognize what God actually says because you’ve never taken the time to read His Word for yourself.
The Christian life was never meant to be lived on borrowed revelation.
God has given us His Word, breathed out by Him, preserved for us, and made available to us at any moment of the day. There is something incredibly personal about sitting down with Scripture, reading it for yourself, and allowing the Holy Spirit to illuminate what you’re reading.
Without that, it’s difficult to grow in discernment. It’s difficult to recognize false teaching. It’s difficult to know God’s character because you’re relying on someone else to tell you what He says instead of hearing it directly from His Word.
The Lie That Mothers Are Exempt
I think one of the greatest deceptions many Christian women have accepted is the idea that motherhood somehow gives us permission to neglect Scripture.
We’ve all heard it.
“You’re in a busy season.”
“The babies are little.”
“God understands.”
“You’ll get back to it eventually.”
While I absolutely believe God understands the demands of motherhood, I don’t believe He ever intended for motherhood to become a reason to abandon fellowship with Him.
In fact, if anyone needs the wisdom, patience, strength, and guidance found in God’s Word, it’s mothers.
Who benefits when Christian women stop reading their Bibles? Certainly not their marriages. Certainly not their children. Certainly not their own hearts. The enemy would love nothing more than to convince believers that they can survive without daily dependence on God. But we weren’t designed to function apart from Him.
Why I Keep 5 Bibles
One practical thing that has helped me tremendously is having many Bibles. The first is my primary study Bible. It’s large, has room for notes, and is the Bible I spend most of my quiet time in. I genuinely love it. The larger print makes reading easier, and the extra space allows me to write observations and prayers directly in the margins.
The second & third Bible is much smaller and travels with me everywhere. One stays in the car and the other says in the stroller.
For a season, I carried my larger Bible everywhere I went, but with four little children, diaper bags, snacks, spare clothes, and everything else that comes along with motherhood, that eventually became impractical.
The fourth is our family Bible that stays in the breakfast nook because I read to the children during every meal.
The fifth is my pocket Bible.
It stays in my pocket, I treat it like I’d treat my phone when I used to carry it around. I put it in my closet every night at the end of the day, and put it back in my pocket every morning. I find myself reaching for it in moments that would otherwise be wasted. Whether I’m waiting during an appointment, waiting for a pot of water to boil, while the children are playing cute, or arriving somewhere early, those small pockets of time become opportunities to spend time in Scripture.
My pocket Bible solved that problem.
It stays in my purse or my car, and because it’s always nearby, I find myself reaching for it in moments that would otherwise be wasted. Whether I’m waiting during an appointment, sitting at a park, or arriving somewhere early, those small pockets of time become opportunities to spend time in Scripture.
Something I’ve noticed recently is that reading a physical Bible in public feels very different from opening a Bible app on my phone. There is nothing wrong with digital Bibles, and I use them often, but physically opening God’s Word carries a certain boldness that I wasn’t expecting.
There is something beautiful about pulling out Scripture in the middle of an ordinary day and reminding yourself that God’s Word belongs everywhere, not just inside church walls.
Make Your Bible a Place You Love Returning To
I know this may sound simple, but having tools you enjoy using can make a difference.
Find highlighters that work well on Bible pages. Get pens that don’t frustrate you. Create a system that helps you engage with what you’re reading.
Over the years, my Bible has become filled with notes, underlines, highlights, and observations from different seasons of life. Looking back through those pages feels almost like reading a journal because I can remember what God was teaching me during specific moments.
Sometimes I’ll highlight a verse that stands out. Other times I’ll write observations in the margins or make note of repeated themes throughout a chapter.
The goal isn’t to make your Bible look pretty.
The goal is to pay attention.
When we slow down enough to interact with Scripture rather than simply reading words on a page, we begin noticing details we may have otherwise missed.
The Holy Spirit Is Not Silent
One question I receive often is where I go to learn what Scripture means. People ask what commentaries I use, which teachers I listen to, or what resources I recommend.While all of those things can be helpful, I think many believers forget one of the greatest gifts we’ve been given.
The Holy Spirit.
Jesus tells us that the Holy Spirit teaches us and brings to remembrance what He has said. Think about how incredible that is. The same Spirit who inspired Scripture lives within believers and helps us understand it.
That doesn’t mean we never learn from pastors or teachers. It simply means that our ultimate dependence is on God, not on human explanations. There have been passages I’ve read countless times before suddenly understanding them in a completely different way after walking through a particular trial or season of life. The words hadn’t changed. God’s truth hadn’t changed. But the Holy Spirit was teaching me something new through the same passage. That is part of what makes God’s Word so alive.
Stop Reading Without a Plan
For years, I thought randomly opening my Bible was a sign of spiritual spontaneity.
In reality, it often left me confused. Scripture tells one unified story, and context matters. If you open to the middle of a book without understanding what’s happening, who is speaking, or why they’re speaking, you’re likely going to miss much of what’s being communicated.
Having a reading plan provides direction.
One of my favorite reading experiences was going through the New Testament in ninety days. It gave me structure while helping me see the larger story unfolding across the different books.
If you’re not sure where to begin, start with the Gospels. Spend time in John. Read Galatians, Colossians, or 1 and 2 Thessalonians. If you’re working through the Old Testament, consider reading it chronologically so the timeline makes more sense.
The important thing isn’t finding the perfect plan.
The important thing is having one.
Find a Church That Teaches the Bible
One of the greatest blessings in my walk with the Lord has been sitting under pastors who faithfully teach through entire books of Scripture.
It changed the way I read my Bible.
Watching someone carefully work through a passage verse by verse taught me how much depth exists within God’s Word. Passages I once rushed through suddenly became rich with meaning because I learned how to ask better questions.
Who is speaking?
Who are they speaking to?
Why is this being said?
What is happening historically?
What problem is being addressed?
Those questions matter because context matters.
When we understand the audience, culture, and purpose behind a passage, we often discover that verses we’ve heard repeated for years carry far more significance than we originally realized. A healthy church should drive you deeper into Scripture, not replace your need for it.
A Word for the Moms
If you’re a mother reading this, I want to encourage you with something that has become increasingly important in our home.
Let your children see you reading your Bible.
Let them watch you prioritize time with the Lord.
Let them see that God’s Word is not something you occasionally squeeze into your schedule but something you build your life around.
For a while, my quiet time looked like constant interruptions. Children are climbing on me. Questions every few minutes. Little voices competing for attention. But over time, I realized that just as we teach our children countless other things, we can also teach them how to respect and value time spent with the Lord.
Now, when my children see me reading Scripture, they often come sit beside me. Sometimes they’ll bring their own Bible. Sometimes they’ll simply cuddle next to me while I read.
Those moments are precious.
Your children do not need a perfect mother.
They need a mother who knows where to run when she needs wisdom, strength, conviction, correction, and grace.
They need a mother who is being shaped by God’s Word.
Don’t Wait for a Better Season
Friend, there will always be laundry to fold, dishes to wash, errands to run, and responsibilities demanding your attention. Life is not suddenly going to become less busy. The question is whether we are willing to prioritize what matters most in the middle of the busyness. Open yourBible. Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you. Read slowly and pay attention.
Allow God’s Word to shape the way you think, parent, serve, love, and live. Because at the end of the day, there is nothing more grounding, more life-giving, or more transformative than sitting before the Lord and listening to what He has already spoken. If we’re longing for eternity with Him, then surely spending time with Him today is not a burden, but a gift.
The 5 Bibles I use daily – Video
My Big Bible is the Large Print Journaling Bible (ESV) from Hosanna Revival.
