To know God, we must know scripture!  The Holy Bible contains the information that God wanted to reveal about Himself so that we can enter into relationship with Him.  With that understanding, consider how the Bible describes itself: 

Psalm 119:11: Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.

Psalm 119:105: Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.

Psalm 1:1 – 3: How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked… ² But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. ³ He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.

Hebrews 4:12: ¹² For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Colossians 3:16: ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

2Timothy 3:16: ¹⁶ All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Jude 1:3: ³ Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.

2Timothy 2:15: ¹⁵ Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.

Isaiah 55:11: So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it

The Bible is a treasure of wisdom and guidance for our lives!  As you can see from this small sampling above, the Bible is living and active, which is a mystery, but basically means that God is speaking to us through His word and He has given us the Holy Spirit to live in us as our Resident interpreter of scripture.  If we are truly born-again, then we do have the Holy Spirit living in us to bare witness with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:15-16).  This is significant because it is by the Word of Truth (John 17:17) and the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17) that we grow our faith, grow in holiness, and grow closer to God.

The goals of Bible reading are to grow our faith, deepen our relationship with God, to be diligent to know our faith well enough to share it, and provide answers for those who ask why we are Christian, and to become more like Jesus, which is our spiritual formation.  So, what is to follow will begin with some principles and suggestions for all believers to engage the Bible in a meaningful way everyday!

Everything to follow transcends our churches and our traditions, as we are collectively the Church, Christian first and everything else second.

A.  Create Margin

Growing up spiritually requires that we make God a priority with our time.  This means that we may need to cut-out some things, and likely make some hard choices. For others, it may be easier such as reduce the number of hours watching TV or limit your time on social media.  Still others may need to overcome the sense of obligation or guilt of being at every church program, but however you spend your time, pray and see what God shines a light on in your mind.  Keep in mind that these changes may be for a season or possibly permanent.  Also, remember that God is always with each one of us, so engage Him wherever you happen to be (Psalm 139:7-10, Psalm 23:2-4; Isaiah 41:10; Hebrews 4:13; Matthew 28:20).  We are creating margin specifically for these three areas:

1. Time with God:  This devotional time is for growing our relationship with God.  This is where we grow our faith, read, pray, and practice other spiritual disciplines like solitude and silence, as a central part of Christ being formed in us.  In this time of communion, we will be transparent with God, confess our sin, seek wisdom, ask God to help us know the depths of His love, ask for His peace to rule in our hearts, pray for others, and ask God to speak to our hearts through the scriptures.  This is daily time ideally, with Bible and journal, and always best in the morning.  This can be difficult for people with young children, so give yourself some grace as pouring into children is a great ministry, so pray for grace, wisdom, patience, and ask God for energy and strength! 
2. Personal Bible Study:  This is time to study the Word of God and this can contain one of more goals.  This may be once or twice a week, however you feel led.  Suggestions range from memorizing verses such as select 5 verse on the Peace of God; or perhaps a study on a doctrine such as the Resurrection, Eternal Security, or the Deity of Jesus.  Another idea is to study the Sermon on the Mount or the Word of Jesus; one of my favorites is to look up and memorize all the verse where God tells us how He views His word.  Reading a book on discipleship, doctrine or spiritual formation is always a great choice. 
3. Community Study:  Ideally a mid-week Bible Study.  If your church doesn’t offer a mid-week Bible Study, then perhaps find a local church that does have one you can attend, or perhaps start one in your home.  Mid-week Bible Studies are becoming rare in the era of “small groups” which is not a bad thing if you have a group leader who is equipped to lead, and everyone in the group does the reading.  It can easily become social hour, so work on staying focused and save the social stuff for after the God-honoring tasks are completed.

B. A Psalm a Day

Reading a Psalm a day would have great value for all believers.  The Psalms are rich with theology and the attributes of God, so they are a wonderful way to know God better, understand His attributes, His promises, His Sovereignty and His Love.  There are 150 Psalms, so if you break up Psalm 78 to two days and Psalm 119 to 3 days, give yourself some grace when you miss a day each week, and we should be able to read the Book of Psalms twice a year with a few days to spare.

C. Bible Versions

One of the best approaches to understanding the Bible is to read multiple versions together.  This helps with understanding a passage and also learning from another angle will often show us a deeper truth.  A “version” is a translation (Word for Word) from the original languages, or a transliteration (thought for thought) from the original language.  The two best combinations that I have tried so far are The NASB – Message Parallel Bible, and the New American Standard used with the New Living Translation.  Other good versions to consider are the ESV, NIV, CSB, NRSV, and the NET which is a great treasure.

If you will do these things daily, you will begin to internalize the Bible in your heart and mind which will significantly impact your life, increase your wisdom, guide you in decision making, keep us from sinning, build you up to pour into others, become a stronger member of the church, and most important, make us more like Jesus!