Digging vs. Plowing

Nothing has been more beneficial to me as a mother than regularly reading Scripture. There have been seasons where I have been able to read chunks of Scripture each day and others when I can only seem to fit in a chapter, or even a verse. It has often discouraged me when I can't carve out more time for "chunk reading." While prioritizing our time in the Word is needed for our growth and sanctification, the amount of Scripture that we read each day is not nearly as essential. In addition to having seasons where you set goals to get through a certain amount of the Bible, there is great benefit to reading, and really meditating on, small portions at a time.

Thinking of this reminded me of what a tour guide on a trip to Israel several years ago exhorted us to do while reading the Word - "dig, dig, dig." He warned us against treating the Word of God like a novel that we fly through in order to reach the end of each chapter, potentially missing important details on the pages in between. Essentially, he wanted us to be more intentional about setting aside times to focus more on quality than quantity. He challenged us to read a verse, or a phrase, over and over again. To pray through it, think on it, memorize it, and meditate on it throughout the day.

We sometimes hear the phrase "hang on to his every word." If we believe that the Bible is the very written Word of God, then we should most certainly be hanging on God's every word, because, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16).

If you want to give the "digging" method a go, here's a great verse to start with:

"You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound." Psalm 4:7