Two Mindsets (That Changed My Life)
I’ve been reading my Bible differently then I ever have before and here are the two main differences:
I’m reading for relationship ONLY
I’m reading with NO preconceived ideas
Let me break these two things down...
First, I read for relationship only:
For the entirety of my life I read my Bible out of guilt. I knew I was supposed to, but I was terrible at consistency. I’d go a couple months without reading my Bible until the guilt mounted to a point that I could no longer ignore. This is how I handled it (let me know if you relate at all):
I’d open the YouVersion Bible app, start a reading plan (maybe two because why not), read it three days in row before forgetting about it.
I decided to make a more manageable goal by just reading “The Verse of the Day” every morning. That lasted for about a week before I forgot.
The next time the guilt hit I decided I was going to dust of my actual physical Bible (first I had to find it which proved to be no easy task). I’d read a chapter in Proverbs every day for a couple weeks if I was lucky before forgetting.
Repeat Steps 1-3 every couple months
(I’ve read the first few chapters of Proverbs more times then I can count because of this model)
Every time I did pick up my Bible though it was entirely selfish even though it was out of guilt. I was reading in hopes to find some gold nugget to improve the quality of my life.
That shifted a little over a year ago for me when I started reading strictly for relationship. A relationship made possible by the sacrifice of God’s son. I began reading to know more about God, who He was, and what He has done for me.
It’s amazing how my approach of reading the Bible broke the lifelong cycle I had been stuck in and how I began looking forward to waking up in the morning to read about my God. No longer was guilt the motivation.
Second, I read with no preconceived ideas:
This came after the revelation of reading for relationship. I had begun reading regularly and I recognized a lot of what I was reading. I had someone in my life that was farther along in their journey of faith than I was who challenged me to read without any preconceived ideas. Basically, take the lens of familiarity off and read without a message you heard once in church influence what you’re reading.
That changed everything for me.
Let me give you one example now to show you what I mean by this. Luke 6:38 is a very popular verse in the Bible that I heard nearly exclusively used in a giving moment at church growing up.
It says, "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Sounds great and all - give your money and it will be given back to you overflowing. The problem is, that’s not what the verse is about. Let me show you by including the verse directly before this famous “giving” verse…
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, an you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:37-38
This verse is actually about judging. However much you judge is how much you will be judged. A little different then money.
This is just one example, but I hope this proves the importance of my second point.
In short, these two mindsets have fundamentally changed my relationship with God and it can do the same for you. My challenge for you is to implement these mindsets and see what the Holy Spirit can do with it.