How is your personal scripture study going? Are you just struggling to find the time to read each day or are you taking the time to truly feast on the scriptures? Once you have established a habit of personal scripture study it is important to improve the way that you study. You can learn so much from the scriptures. Personally I find that my scripture study goes in cycles. There are times that I truly feast on the words of the scriptures. I gain insights and make connections and really learn and apply the scriptures to my life. There are also times when I do not make the same amount of effort and I find that I am just reading my minimum each day and not really applying it to my life.
I have found that when I read for a set amount of time each day, rather than a certain length that I tend to focus more on what I am reading and learning. Since I have set aside a specific amount of time each day, I do not try to rush through my scripture study so that I can more on to the next thing on my to-do list.
Another way that I can feast on the words of the scriptures is to begin and end my study time by saying a prayer. This really helps to bring the Spirit into my study. I find the insights come more consistently, and I learn much more with the simple addition of prayer.
I have found that taking notes and marking my scriptures help me to remember the things that I have learned. It is also important to take advantage of the footnotes when you have a question. I have also looked up words when I was unsure of the exact meaning. This helps me to further understand the scriptures.
I have also found answers as I have studied the scriptures by topic. The scriptures can teach the same principle in slightly different ways, as you put them all together the answers suddenly become clear. You can also use the insights found in the talks from General Conference to supplement your study.
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