It’s is the time of year that many of us think about who we want to become this year. According to Katy Milkman, this makes sense. “The start of a new life chapter, no matter how small, might be able to give people the impression of a clean slate,” she writes. “These new chapters are moments when the labels we use to describe ourselves, who we are, and what we’re living through shift, compelling us to shift with them.”
The start of a New Year can be a good time to make changes to how we live.
The challenge is deciding what to change. Out of all the options, which new behaviours have the most potential to help us make significant changes in our lives?
According to one study by Lifeway Research, the answer is clear.
If you want to grow in godliness this year, the number one thing you can do is to regularly read the Bible.
The study examined a number of input behaviours. These are the things we do to try to produce change. The study then examined which of these behaviours lead to outputs, which they defined as markers of godliness. In other words, which behaviours are most correlated with signs of godliness? What are the few inputs that seem to lead to the most desirable outputs?
One behaviour rose above all the others. In his book No Silver Bullets, Daniel Im describes the most strategic action we can take if we want to grow:
When it comes to reading the Bible, hands down, this is the input goal that has a direct impact on the total score of all the output goals, or discipleship attributes …
It’s important to understand here that this question was not measuring whether or not an individual studied the Bible thoroughly or memorized Scripture. While those two were definitely important factors that predicted a higher score for the Bible Engagement output goal, this is not what we’re talking about here. We’re talking about the simple act of reading the Bible on a regular basis.
In other words, the more an individual did the input goal of reading their Bible, the higher they scored in all of the output goals.
People who regularly read the Bible scored higher on all the output goals: obeying God, denying self, serving God and others, sharing faith, seeking God, building relationships, feeling unashamed about their faith, and more.
According to another study, people who read the Bible at least four times a week experience a number of other benefits. Feeling lonely drops 30%; anger issues drop 32%; feeling spiritually stagnant drops 60%, and more.
If you want to grow in godliness this year, the number one thing you can do is to regularly read the Bible.
But here’s the problem: most Christians don’t. According to the Canadian Bible Engagement Survey, only one out of seven Canadian Christians read the Bible at least once a week. The majority of Canadians — including those who identify as Christians — read the Bible either seldom or never.
The beginning of the year is a great time to change that. Christian, determine that you will read your Bible this year. Don’t just set a New Year’s resolution. Make it a lifelong habit. Buy a good study Bible. Pick a plan that works for you. Start small. Spend seven minutes a day reading through the Bible, and you’ll be able to read it cover-to-cover in two years.
Don’t get discouraged when you get stuck or don’t understand what you’re reading. Just keep going. Don’t aim for warm feelings or emotional highs every time you read. Trust that Scripture is doing its work even when it doesn’t feel like it.
Reading the Bible is the most strategic thing you can do to grow. Take up the Bible and read it. It really will change your life.