An Awesome Way to be Fueled by the Bible in Busy Life
(Inside: A free Bible reading plan you will love. Be inspired every day by hearing God’s word.)
“I need to hear God’s word.”
This thought slipped out of my mouth unexpectedly. And took me off guard. My life boasted no crisis. Or drama. Nothing burdened my heart. No life event sent me to my knees.
In between dropping boys off at soccer practice, scheduling dentist appointments, and teaching my high school students, I longed for a voice that’d lately felt quiet.
Jesus’s voice.
It’s like when I haven’t talked to my mom or sister or grandma in a while. A moment washes over me when I need to pick up the phone and simply hear their voices. I need to hear their inflections. And tones. The people I love’s words.
I needed to hear Jesus in the same way. I longed to hear the stories that nourished my childhood. I ached for the words that change people’s lives for the better. I wished for words that reminded me that all of our lives are a part of a much bigger story.
The Bible stories that fuel us
But, I didn’t just crave any Bible stories, I specifically longed to hear the words Jesus spoke and the life he lived. I longed to hear…
- A story that reminds us that God would leave his 99 sheep behind to go find the one sheep who’d wandered off. (Swoon.) Matthew 18:12
- How God sees our hearts. Matthew 5:3-11
- Our actions matters. Matthew 5:17-48 – Matthew 6:1-18
- How Jesus’ joy became his relationship with God, not a big home, great job and a good pizza. Matthew 6:19-34
- An amazing way to live. Matthew 7:12
- God is a miracle worker and can do far more than we can imagine. Matthew 8:1 – 9:8
I longed to hear who Jesus is, how he lived, and what he did for us. I needed to feel Jesus living in me, walking near me, and going before me.
Related article: Forgive as You Are Forgiven: A Story of Mercy
How do I hear Jesus’ voice when busy life is running me ragged?
When we’re busy, we work with the life we have to accomplish our heart’s longings.
Now, my life is taxiing kids to activities, helping with homework, teaching high school, and keeping the fires burning at home. If I’m going to fit in reading the Bible regularly in this season, I need to regularly make it work with where my focus is – connecting with my family.
So, I created a free Bible reading plan I’ve been reading through with my family, and oh how I love it…
A free Bible reading plan you’ll love
Here’s the skinny… Our focus is on reading about Jesus’ ministry and hearing the words he spoke.
- We read a bite-size, digestible section a night.
- We then ask three great questions that have sparked great conversation.
- And we end with journaling (optional) about we want to remember and three things we’re grateful for.
- It’s all messy and imperfect and that’s normal.
Get the free Bible reading plan here
I’d love to share this Bible reading plan with you. So, I put together lovely printable outlining reading the book of Matthew four days a week. I included discussion questions and journal prompts.
So, onto your turn…
What or who keeps you the busiest right now? How could you realistically include the nourishing words of Jesus in your life? Here are some ideas:
- Find a coworker friend and talk about this a few times a week over your lunch break.
- Make this dinner-time discussion with your spouse/significant other.
- Invite your grandbabies (and their parents over) once a week and chip away at the Bible reading and discussion.
- Make this the right-before-bed discussion about 4 times a week with your children. (This is what we do!)
- Use this at your quiet time.
- Moms with babies – leave your Bible out on your kitchen counter and read it as your baby throws her spaghetti lunch on the ground. (Also, take deep breaths – you’re a rock-star-momma and this too shall pass quicker than you’d actually like!)
- Read these short, digestible passages before you get out of bed in the morning.
However, you choose to input Jesus’ words, remember there’s no right or wrong way to do this. Jesus meets you where you are and nourishes you in ways you can’t even fully imagine until you simply dive in and listen to him speak to you.
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Hi there! We're Cheryl, Lori & Mendie, co-owners and writers of Extravagant Hope. We are moms (and a grandma), daughters, wives, teachers, and friends. We are ordinary women, just like you, who have experienced hard stuff in life, just like you. But we are also women who have incredible joy because Jesus has given us hope - and continues to give us hope - in the midst of even our toughest realities. We are three women who have a dream of sharing that hope of Jesus with you. Join our Extravagant Hope Community and 10+ hope-filled freebies (prayer journal, memory verse cards, printable art and more) will be emailed straight to your inbox. Thanks for being here. :)