There is nothing better than reading and meditating upon God's Word.  But, admit it. You, like me, sometimes find it to be dry, hard to focus upon, and unfulfilling.

There is nothing sweeter to the soul than the Word of God. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).

I always teach the need to stay close to God on a daily basis. Frequently, a major part of this effort is to start (or end) the day with devotions. Devotions may take many forms -- just reading the Bible, using a short devotional book like Our Daily Bread, or something more elaborate. I personally just like to read the Bible.

Most years, I simply start at Genesis 1:1 and read to the end. In fact, most years, I am blessed to be able to read through the Bible twice, although the second time through I tend to jump around rather than go straight through. There is, however, no required pattern of reading or for doing devotions. The point is to spend time with God, both to meditate upon Him and to allow Him to talk to you, especially through His Word. To hear Him, you have to be reading the Bible.

On the other hand, there are times when it is a chore to pick up the Book. For one reason or another it becomes dry, boring, uninteresting. We all go through such seasons. This is one of the reasons I tend to skip around in my reading pattern, especially if it is the second time through.

One of the "tricks" I use to avoid such dryness is to change versions of the Bible. I will not change in the middle of the reading through the Scriptures, but each year I will pick a different version as my devotional reading. I do not limit myself as much when I choose a version. I have read the NKJV, the KJV, the NASB, the NIV, Holmans Christian Standard, The New English Bible, The Amplified Bible, the English Standard Version, The Living Bible, and the New Living Translation.

This year for example I am reading the NIV.  The last three times through I had read the NKJV. However, that last time I had a great deal of difficulty staying interested in reading, so I chastised myself for not following my own "rule" and switched to the NIV without completely completing my second trip through the Scriptures last year.

In my case, when I do get bogged down, I will also start to use a devotional of some type. For example, aside from the obvious ones such as the Our Daily Bread type or devotions such as His Utmost for Our Highest, there are devotional commentaries. You can probably find a devotional commentary based upon your have a favorite book of Scripture. This is an excellent method of creating a "break" in your routine.

Keeping a prayer journal or even just a journal is another method of changing your routine. Write your own devotional.

The point is that God's Word is the most important written document we possess. Enjoy it. Yes, you need to learn from it, but enjoy it first. This is more important, for if you enjoy reading the Bible, it truly will speak to you. This will help you move closer to Jesus. You will discover amazing things when you enjoy reading about Him and listening to Him and learning from Him. You will discover He truly loves you and wants to help you. Why don't you let Him do that?

This devotional thing may be the greatest blessing you can imagine.

Jim A