Headings-only reading
Note: This is the third in a series on unusual routines for reading your Bible. Be sure to check out the rest in the series.
Unusual Routines For Reading Your Bible Series
Unusual Routines For Reading Your Bible (Intro)
“3 Verses From 3 Places” Reading
Headings-Only Reading
Headings-Only Reading
How to do it: Most Bibles nowadays have headings that describe the various paragraphs in the Bible. So read only the headings. For an extra bonus, read through the Bible first, and write your own headings. Then go back and read your headings.
Technically you’re not reading the Bible for this one, but you are getting the scope of the Bible. What you remember from this is from the Bible.
Tip: Works best over long distances. Try reading a book or more in one sitting. You’re not reading that much based on word count alone. But you’ll really get the lay of the land (the Bible that is) with this style of study.
Why it’s helpful: This allows you to focus on patterns and trends in the Bible rather than specific details.
Example: I read the book of Job with this routine. It took less than five minutes to do the reading. However, the synthesizing (read: trying to understand what I read) took about another five minutes. Keep that in mind when you try this.
Through the book, Job and his friends go back and forth on what they believe and how they feel. Sometimes they praise God, and other times they question Him. Job’s friends particularly swing between comforting Job and pleading for Him to give up. Toward the end, however, we glimpse into who God is. God doesn’t change or fluctuate.
What I learned: People change. God doesn’t. God should be my rock, my base of understanding and comfort because He doesn’t shift with circumstances. On the other hand, people respond to circumstances by adjusting to them. This can be difficult because we want solid and stable, something we can rely on. But it can also be beneficial because it allows us to evolve into what God wants us to be.
We shouldn’t resist the adjustment. We should try to be as adjustable in God’s hands as possible. As Job said to God:
“Remember, I pray, that you have made me like clay…” – Job 10:9
Serving Suggestions:
(1) Try it.
(2) Apply your new perspective. This is the more challenging one. Once you learn something new or see something in a new way, apply that perspective to your life. How are you going to live differently because of it?