If you are a runner, you know those first three miles are always the hardest. Even when I am well trained, sometimes getting over that hump feels like an impasse. I think I’ve found that same three-mile mark to be true of Bible reading.
It seems okay to tell someone to keep working out and get through it, but when it comes to trying to read the Bible, we tend not to push each other to keep going. We get casual saying, “Read when you can. God can work with anything.” Yes He totally can, and He even will, but I believe there is more for you waiting beyond that three-mile mark.
Work that muscle, arrange your schedule, fight for the time, and begin again. Your love of your God will grow as you consistently meet with Him.
It’s the same as the depth in relationship to someone you talk with every day, versus the friend you run into on occasion at the grocery store. If you just run into God on occasion, you may still hear from Him, but if you want to know the voice of your God, you will find it consistently in His Word.
I noticed a switch this morning as I pulled up my Bible reading plan. Initially there were many discussions that I had with the friend I read with about how we were going to be trucking through so many chapters each day. But as I opened the plan this morning, I noticed a change in my heart.
Today there were more chapters than usual, and my gut response was “Oooooh! Look what I get to read today.” I think that’s because we have broken that three-mile mark. My heart is conditioned to stride it out, and as I read more about my God, I find I want to know more about Him.
So yes, light a candle, get a cup of coffee, settle in. But if that isn’t your phase of life, set your alarm, get up a little earlier and read about your God. He’s worth fighting to know, He’s got something to say, and you won’t want to miss it!
