“Of course, you can join me while I read my Bible!” Those cheery words may be what comes out of my mouth but on the inside, I feel like emitting a huffy, guttural groan. I’d barely opened my Bible before the table was swarmed by my noisy gaggle of little hooligans. “Can’t I just get one moment of quiet time?” I whine silently to myself.

“What are you reading? Can you find my Bible? But why can’t I put my Lego in your coffee? Can you read me the one about Samson? Nooooo! I want her to read the one about David! Where’s my Bible, Mama? Hey, look! I’m a plane! Varoooooooooom…” 

Cherubic voices crescendoing into low-grade anarchy are not exactly conducive to the peaceful time with the Lord I’d imagined. “Maybe tomorrow?” I think as I’m about to close the Bible altogether.

And then, mercifully, a few verses pop into my head, tugging at my heart:

These words that I command you today shall be on your heart, you shall teach them diligently to your children… (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)‍

Let the little children come to me... for such belongs the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:13-14)‍

So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to me void… (Isaiah 55:11)

With a deep sigh, these truths motivate me to get over my bratty selfishness and embrace the cheerfulness I could only just feign before. 

Moms, our fellowship with God through his Word is crucial to our spiritual health as believers, and we ought to take it very seriously. So seriously that a little noise and pausing to open fruit snacks can’t hold us back from running headlong into the presence of the Lord. 

Scripture reading isn’t a bonus add-on, like an extracurricular for Christians. It’s our wisdom. It’s our sword. It’s our life raft. It’s our legacy. It’s everything. 

Scripture reading isn’t a bonus add-on, like an extracurricular for Christians. It’s our wisdom. It’s our sword. It’s our life raft. It’s our legacy. It’s everything. 

William Tyndale knew a little something about the importance of scripture. The English scholar devoted his life to translating the Bible into the English language and, in 1536, was ultimately martyred for it, being burnt at the stake. Tyndale said it well: “Do you know who taught the eagles to find their prey? That same God teaches his hungry children to find their Father in his Word.” 

Tyndale wasn’t the only one who died bringing the Word of God into your native tongue, and there’s a reason Satan tried to thwart those efforts all throughout history. Few things probably freak the devil out more than people who read their Bibles, cherish the Word of God, commit it to memory, and apply it to their lives.

Let’s start today 

There will come a day when our children are grown and they won’t be climbing us while we’re trying to be nourished by God’s Word. Let’s refuse to accept Satan’s lie that now is not the time for scripture reading, and instead, give our children foundational memories of their mother striving desperately to commune with the Lord at all costs. For us, and for them. 

When we make our Bible reading a top priority, we are declaring the Lordship of Christ to ourselves and our children, and that’s exactly what they need. Our Bible reading can’t save our kids, but it can give them a mama rooted in truth and a home steeped in an aroma of saving grace and unmatchable hope.

Our Bible reading can’t save our kids, but it can give them a mama rooted in truth and a home steeped in an aroma of saving grace and unmatchable hope. 

Jesus himself didn’t wait for perfect moments to preach, teach or be with God. He met people in their messes, hunger, dirt, and likely noise. Jesus modeled rest throughout his ministry, but he also modeled dying to himself by giving up some opportunities for rest in order to serve people. 

If your Bible reading is reduced to what you hear from other people, or the inspirational Christian memes you scroll by on social media, you are starving yourself. We’re told that Scripture equips us for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17), and motherhood requires a lot of “good work.” Why would we settle for crumbs when God desires a feast for us?

But how?

I write to you not as a seasoned empty-nester, looking back on my mom years with rose-colored glasses. Nah, I’m here with you in the throes of the messiest years of motherhood. I love the idea of an Instagrammable devotional moment: steaming hot coffee, a tidy table, fresh flowers, and an open Bible. But with my five children being seven and younger, waiting for that peaceful moment to read isn’t really an option. Maybe you can relate. We need scripture more than we need food. Do you believe that? Start there. 

We need scripture more than we need food. Do you believe that? Start there. 

Has your attitude, like mine, held you back at times from faithfulness in this way? It’s okay to repent; there is freedom in admitting that we need God’s help to fully embrace his good gifts. Know that you’re forgiven, cry out to him, and ask for him to change your heart, igniting within it a new passion and drive to know his Word. And then? Get to reading! 

The devil would love for us moms to believe that we don’t have time to read our Bibles. And while it’s true that we are pretty busy, I assure you the time can be made. Don’t view it as just one more thing to add to your ever-growing list of chores. Instead, try viewing Bible reading as the thing. The most important part of your day. If you’re still convinced that you don’t have the time, start quitting things. Edit your life until there is room to make it happen.

If you’re still convinced that you don’t have the time, start quitting things. Edit your life until there is room to make it happen.

I’m sure you’ll need to get creative, but practically speaking, here are a few things that have helped me:

1. Confess your struggle to your husband and ask him for help. Give him the opportunity to encourage you and lead you in this way! He might have some great ideas on how to carve out the time and can pray for you and cheer you on in your new goal.
2. Listen to the Bible. Personally, I like the ESV, Dwell, or Canon Press apps for this. This enables Bible reading without missing a beat in the laundry-folding, dish-doing, baby-nursing rotation. And as a big bonus, your children can listen along with you. 
3. Put down your phone, pick up your Bible. Sometimes going digital with the Bible streamlines things, but for most of us, it just makes for more distractions. When possible, try not to read your Bible from a screen. The little eyes in your home have no idea if you’re shopping from your phone, watching a silly dog video, or feasting on God’s Word. 
4. Embrace your season. God put you in this season with these people on purpose and invites you to the table anyway. Trust the founder of the feast; he knows what he’s doing! Don’t buy the lie that the perfect moment to read is coming. Rather, learn to jump in in spite of the chores piling up or the toddler driving that matchbox car over your toes under the table. 
5. Feast with friends. If you’re feeling ambitious, grab a friend or two and commit together to a reading plan, or studying a specific book together. This can provide structure for great conversations and some built-in accountability.
6. Pray continually. The world tempts and our flesh is weak, which means that we cannot do this alone. Pray that God will sustain the joy you have for scripture. Pray that God will reveal himself to you through the reading of the greatest story ever told. Pray that your heart will be shaped by the cadence of daily submitting to his Word.
   

Now what?

While we know that all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16) that doesn’t mean that every Bible reading session is going to be a magical breakthrough.

There will be times you understand everything you read, and times where you might be a bit befuddled by it. Trust that what God says is true: that his Word truly doesn’t return void (Isaiah 55:11). He will bless your faithfulness and your time spent reading scripture will never be wasted. 

Trust that what God says is true: that his Word truly doesn’t return void (Isaiah 55:11).

Sometimes the good work he is doing in our hearts is quiet, not something we feel dramatically on a day-by-day basis. But in a few months or a few years, you’ll be able to look back on this season as one marked by his enduring provision of sweet sustenance. 

I love how JC Ryle says it: “Think of the influence of the moon upon the earth, and of the air upon the human lungs. Remember how silently the dew falls, and how imperceptibly the grass grows. There may be far more doing than you think in your soul by your Bible-reading.”