The things we enjoy most about life are the things we also know the most about. My wife Nanci, an avid lover of dogs, had an app on her iPad that quizzed her on dog breeds, and out of hundreds of breeds in the world, she could name even the most obscure. The interesting thing is, the more she learned about dogs, the more she loved dogs. And the more she loved dogs, the more she learned about dogs. It's a cycle that feeds itself.
If you're not getting a lot out of your Bible study, or need a fresh approach, that’s the best argument for studying your Bible more, not less. Eventually, a breakthrough happens. We find ourselves thinking and talking about whatever we’re choosing to study and read about. So whatever makes Bible study more attractive to you, as long as you end up doing the work that needs to be done to feed your soul, the better.
To use Psalm 1 as an example, as you learn more, you can branch out to see what some of the Puritans had to say about Psalm 1, and what Spurgeon had to say in his Treasury of David. Look at great commentaries on the Psalms. Read what Calvin had to say about the Psalms. Listen to Piper or Keller preach on them. Follow some of the delightful rabbit trails you go off on using the Logos software, one of my favorite tools for writing. (I can usually find exactly what I need, but often I discover something better than what I was looking for!)
The more you learn about Scripture, the more excited and engaged you get, and the more you can't wait to get back to it. If you stay away from the Bible and minimize it, or view it as a duty to get out of the way so you can get on with the things in life that really interest you, you're going to be missing out on the joy of exploration and discovery, and the opportunity to draw closer to Jesus.
Speaking of Logos Bible software, I love it and believe in it, and have used it for years. Quality Bible study takes place far more quickly and extensively than using traditional methods. All the time once spent searching bookshelves and flipping pages—the study equivalent of panning for gold—can be used instead to contemplate what you quickly discover. The sheer number of quality resources available from Logos is staggering. I haven’t written any books in the last 25 years without using Logos to research them.
Logos used to cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars to have access to. They recently announced a major change by offering a subscription model starting at $10 a month that gives access to up to 500 books. This suddenly makes it affordable for almost anyone! Most Americans have 3-5 entertainment subscription services that average $10-$15 per month, with the premium no-adds ones sometimes even more. Consider dropping one of your streaming subscriptions and picking up Logos, and you're paying no more than before. Drop two and pick up Logos and you’ll be saving money! And if you want to, you can start buying resources to add to the ones you get with the subscription. (Once you get into Logos, you’ll be prone to do less streaming and more Bible study, not because you have to, but because you want to.)
There is great value in going to the right sources for Biblical answers. In this internet age, many people are searching on Google and looking to AI for answers about the Bible. Logos is the better source. The new version of Logos has introduced AI—but AI in Logos; not connected to the Internet—and using solid biblical sources such as commentaries, Bible dictionaries, Bibles, etc. The software is also mobile, so you can take the power of deep Bible study with you everywhere.
My longtime friend Scott Lindsey, executive director of Logos, is generously offering a 60-day free trial of Logos to readers of my blog. I can’t stress what a great opportunity this is! Go to this page to get started. (You will need to enter a credit card to get the free trial, but they provide reminders when the trial is close to ending, so you can easily cancel. Also, neither EPM nor I am receiving any financial incentive to share this offer; I simply am excited about getting more people into studying Scripture more deeply! Logos is a great means to that end.)
Logos writes, “FREE training and customer service. We will help you do better Bible study in 2025.”
If you want to hear some enthusiastic endorsements of Logos check out this page. There’s a good chance you’ll see your favorite author or Bible teacher and hear what they say.
