Lesson 11 How You Can Get the Most Out of the Bible

[Click for Transcript]|[Youths Learning to Love Gods Word]
[Text: Melaine]
Melaine: I often put it off until later. So, I come home in the evening tired, and I like to relax.
[Samuel]
Samuel: Well, very often, I was tired for many different reasons, and that is why I didn’t have the motivation even to start Bible reading in the first place.
[Celine]
Celine: I also had many phases where it was really tough to stick it out with Bible reading. Especially in the age of social media, there are many other things you can fill your day with.
[Raphaello]
Raphaello: One hobby that mainly got in the way was watching movies. I really spent a lot of time on that. This often steals precious time you could have made better use of.
Samuel: So, something that moved me was the thought that through Bible reading, you’re actually talking with Jehovah. You pray to him, and he is then answering you through the Bible. As Jehovah promised, he can give us both the power and the desire to act. I just pray to Jehovah, please, to first give me the power to read and then the desire follows.
Celine: Then I decided to simply start and stick with it. I started with reading my favorite book, and that way it was easier for me.
Samuel: Well, I started with Genesis just to get through the whole Bible.
Celine: My favorite Bible book is Esther. And because I think she was a very special person; it was especially then that I could imagine what her situation was like and what kind of a person she was, and I could see myself in the account.
Melaine: The weekly Bible reading program has been such a guideline. It’s motivating since we discuss this content at the meetings, and I could use the study aids in our workbook too. You can better relate to the brothers’ and sisters’ comments because you’ve read the material yourself, and I can comment too.
Celine: When I’m reading the Bible in the JW Library app on my phone, there is, of course, the risk that it vibrates, and I get a message. And then, of course, you have the urge to check to see who just wrote me. For me personally, then, it’s really helpful when I put my phone in airplane mode so that I can really focus on what I’m reading and nothing can distract me.
Raphaello: I like reading at home, but I also like to do it outdoors because I think that’s where you’re closest to Jehovah.
Melaine: I never just read about the events that are described in the Bible, but I ask myself questions like: ‘Why did Jehovah have this written down? What is in there for me personally?’ This helps me to stay focused and not just scratch the surface; otherwise, my mind would immediately start wandering.
Samuel: At a convention, I learned something that helps me to really take in the things I read. The point discussed was to remember to look in four different directions when meditating, so to speak. First, look upwards to find out exactly what I am learning from the text about Jehovah; then downwards to find out what it teaches me about his purpose, about what he wants for the earth; then look at myself, how I can personally benefit now; and eventually towards others, thinking about how I can help other people with this particular Bible text. In the JW Library app, there are four different colors for highlighting text, so I simply use a different color for each of the four directions and highlight them on my tablet or smartphone.
Celine: For example, one of my hobbies is drawing. I decided, one time, that I was going to draw the spiritual suit of armor, all of its different parts and their symbolic meanings. And this especially helped me to actually see the benefit of it, to see how many wonderful resources Jehovah provides us with and that he never leaves us alone.
Melaine: Another thing I like very much is the category “Bible Study Activities” where you can directly pick a topic that you personally find interesting and then read that.
Raphaello: It’s Jehovah’s Word. I love him and also want to please him, of course. That’s why it’s very important to understand his Word.
Samuel: It feels really good when you’ve understood a difficult phrase by doing it this way. It actually makes you feel like you’ve achieved something, and this brings you a lot closer to Jehovah.
Celine: It happens often that you don’t even know what you should pray about or what you could thank Jehovah for. My personal Bible reading has helped me with this a lot because now I know exactly what I want to tell Jehovah.
Raphaello: Daily Bible reading is very important to me as it gives me some sort of inner balance when I face situations that may be unfamiliar or shake me up.
Samuel: I know that no matter what the problem is, Jehovah always has the right answer prepared.
Celine: At the beginning, it is really hard. You have to fight to keep it up, and you definitely need discipline. But after a while, you truly start to enjoy it and it gets easier and easier and you’re happy that you started in the first place. I really think that when Jehovah sees how much effort you put into it, he is genuinely proud of you, and that’s the best thing that can happen to you.
[Text: ‘My son, do not forget my teaching, and may your heart observe my commandments.’ Proverbs 3:1]
(Logo: Black capital letters JW.ORG inside a white box. Copyright 2018 Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania) [Click to close]