Need a Fresh Love Affair with the Word of God?

The last few weeks I’ve been falling in love again. It’s a wonderful feeling! Has my husband been extra romantic lately, you might be wondering? No, not really. I’m talking about my love affair with the Word of God.

The Bible has been a foundation for my life for a long, long time. I grew up in a missionary family so was taught the Word from childhood. As a kid, I memorized many scripture verses and passages. My mother read me Bible stories while I sat on her lap. We had regular devotions as a family.

But, if I am honest, I’d have to say that at times in my life, my relationship with the Word of God has grown a bit cold. Not that I didn’t still value it as truth. I did. I just wasn’t in love, not like I am today.

No Formulas

What changed? How do you fall in love with God’s Word again?

There are no formulas. I won’t pretend there are, or try to give you one. I’ll simply share my experience and a few suggestions to help.

A Place of Encounter

God; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, are revealed to us in the Word. The Bible is not only a place to gain wisdom and information. It’s to be a place of encounter, a place of fellowship with the lover of our souls. God wants us to fall in love with Him as we read, contemplate, and study the Book.

Stuck in a Rut?

With romantic relationships, when you are stuck in a rut, it kills the feeling of being in love. When you always do the same things, over and over every week, month after month, year after year, it can lose its luster. Date nights feel boring if you never do anything new or creative! (This article isn’t about marriage, but we have other blogs on that topic.)

Our relationship with God and His Word needs fresh ways of interacting from time to time.

I love the You Version app and often read the Bible on my phone. Sometimes though, I like to hold a physical Bible in my hands and read.

For the past few years, I’ve focused on reading the Word contemplatively. This involves focusing on only a few verses and letting them sink deep into my heart (more details below).

Recently, I knew I needed a change. Praying about it, my longing poured out to the Lord, “God I want to be saturated in Your Word! I want it to be on my lips, and in my thoughts, and in my mind so it flows out of me like a wet sponge.“

The Father then placed a thought in my heart. Why not read the entire Bible in two months, reading an hour a day? I did that and it was amazing! New life came from that Scripture saturation period.

I fell in love…even as I read through Old Testament books like Leviticus and Deuteronomy. New perspectives on who He is jumped out at me each day. Each day I journaled and asked myself at the end of my one-hour reading of 20 chapters…what was I learning about God?

New insights and fresh ways of seeing His character spilled off the pages. How beautiful and amazing is our Lord!

If you want to follow this plan on You Version, here is the link. Saturate yourself in the Word for a season and see how it changes you!

But that isn’t my point. As I said above, there aren’t formulas in a love relationship.

6 Ideas for Falling In Love With God in His Word

1. Read to connect with God, not to gain information.

John starts his gospel account with this verse. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” John 1:1 NIV. The Word is alive. It’s not a book to be read to increase our knowledge. It’s a book where we meet God. Do you read it that way?

Before I start my time with God in His Word, I pause to pray. “Papa, I want to meet with
You on these pages today. Reveal Yourself to me. I am listening.”

Then, as you read, allow Him to do that.

2. Keep a journal

When something I’ve read or listened to (sometimes I use the audio Bible as well), stands out, I pause to write it down. Sometimes I write the verse in my journal. Other times, I follow that up with reflections or prayers, responding back to God, or jotting down and asking Him questions that the passage raises within.

After I finish reading, I often write out a prayer, or an action step…something God is saying I must obey Him and apply. Then I thank Him for meeting with me as I’ve read or studied.

3. Read longer passages in one sitting.

If you haven’t done this for a while, or have only read short passages, let me recommend a change. Try reading a whole book of the Bible in one sitting. Or on some of the longer books, read 15 to 20 chapters at one time. This brings things to life in new ways and the big picture of what God is doing comes through. We can get lost in the details and sometimes need that aerial view.

4. Memorize stories in a dramatic voice and share them with others.

A friend of mine recently did a YWAM training called Word by Heart. In that school, they memorize long passages of scripture but not in a rote memorization style. They read it dramatically, acting it out as they commit it to memory.

Away on a retreat together last week, she told me that for part of her retreat, she recited an entire gospel book- I think it was Luke. This was part of her meditation on scripture.

This year, I’m choosing five or six key stories to memorize and learn to share with others. I hope one day to be able to memorize and say these in Thai! As I do this, again, it’s not about knowledge but about my wonderful Savior – revealed through His Word.

5. Try contemplative reading where you focus on one or two verses.

If Bible reading plans have you feeling worn out, switch over for a while to a more contemplative reading approach. I love the Psalms for this! Sometimes I’ve even spent a whole month reading and meditating on one chapter, taking one verse each day. Or on verses that are particularly speaking to me, I may even consider and deeply think about one verse for a whole week.

Don’t be stuck in a pattern of legalistic routine where you have to read those three chapters each day. Love is free and exciting. Gaze upon His beauty and feel free to sit there for a time.

6. Put yourself into the story and imagine you are there.

Another helpful tool I’ve enjoyed is putting myself into the story I’m reading. I imagine I am there as a particular character in the Biblical narrative. What would I feel? Hear? Taste? Smell?

For example, when I read the story of Moses and the Pharoah in Exodus, I might imagine I am there in the court. I’m one of Pharoah’s servants watching Moses throw down his staff. I see it turn into a serpent. I feel shocked and in awe. Could Moses who grew up in this palace truly be a holy man? I’m disappointed when Pharoah rejects him and refuses to listen. What will happen next, I wonder…

See what I mean? This can be a refreshing way to read and think about scripture.

7. Leave duty. Pursue love.

Duty-based relationships are rarely intimate. As you turn to God’s Word this week, let go of your “I should read the Bible daily.” Instead, ask Jesus to help you fall in love again. Come to His Word with a longing for that. He will meet you there. You can be sure of it!

Got anything to add to this list? Let us know in the comments, or on Missionary Life’s Facebook group.

What will you do to keep your love relationship with the Word of God growing and alive?