Just “DO IT”
by Claudia Goodman
No matter what question the teacher asks in a church class, we generally give the same answers.
How do we get to the celestial kingdom?
How can I gain a testimony?
What can I do to feel close to Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father?
What things help us stay morally pure?
How do I learn what God expects of me?
How do I develop faith?
The list goes on and on, but we all know the answers by heart: pray, keep the commandments, and study the scriptures. If studying the scriptures is really that important, why do so few of us actually do it? Out of the thirty students in my daughter’s seminary class, only three read their scriptures daily. Of forty young women in a ward, only four have read the Book of Mormon even once. Sadly, adult percentages may be even less. How can we actually make ourselves do what we know we need to do? Several years ago our oldest daughter Melissa had an experience that helped her put her belief into action:
Two weeks before my senior year of high school, most of my family caught Hepatitis A. I was in the hospital for several days and was extremely weak. I didn’t have energy for anything; it was hard just to get up the stairs. School has always been important to me, but I was unable to attend my classes. This dragged on for about 2 months. I just couldn’t get better, no matter what I tried. Meanwhile, I was slipping farther and farther behind in school, until finally my school counselor suggested putting off my graduation another year. I was devastated.
My mom and I had tried everything we knew to help me get well-medicines, good food, extra rest-but nothing seemed to help. Finally, after a good talk, we decided to each pray separately for inspiration, because we didn’t know anything else to do. We both went to different rooms to ask Heavenly Father what I needed to do. Interestingly, we both got the same answer, a very simple answer: I needed to put the Lord first in my life. The thing that came to me was to read my scriptures daily-without fail. It would be tough with all the make-up work I had to do, but I promised my Heavenly Father I would read every day, and I started in on it immediately. Well, to make a long story short, I was back in school full-time by the end of the week, and my teachers said if I worked hard I could be up to a “D” grade (passing) by the end of the semester. However, by then I was not only caught up in all my classes, including the AP classes, but I had straight A’s! At the end of the year I was named valedictorian of the school and Outstanding Female Student. The Lord had done His part as I did mine.
The impact of this experience on our family was so powerful that my younger brothers and sisters followed my example of reading the scriptures every day. I remember a time on a car trip when we got to the motel at 2:30 in the morning. I could hardly walk across the room, because my brothers and sisters were sprawled out everywhere, reading their scriptures before they went to bed. Another time, when we were flying home from Rome, my two youngest sisters (ages 8 and 10) decided they were going to read the whole book of Alma, which is 63 chapters, by the time we got home-and they did it!
As I have continued to read the scriptures every day, I have found Pres. Ezra Taft Benson’s statement to be true. He said, “When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives.” My daily reading of the scriptures coupled with striving to obey the commandments, has blessed me in my schoolwork, social life, and marriage, and has given me strength during the times of great testing in my life. I always know I can go to them to find peace and strength and comfort.
That experience happened thirteen years ago, and Melissa has not missed a single day of reading her scriptures since then. How can someone make a commitment so strong that it becomes a habit for life, never to be broken?
Put first things first
The most important step is to catch the vision of how important daily personal scripture study is. When it comes right down to it, it’s really a question of what you put first in your life-God or something else. The Savior admonished us, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matt. 6:33) In other words, as Pres. Benson pointed out, if you do the most important things, everything else that is important will be taken care of. A few things may drop out of your life, but if they are the least important, it won’t matter.
Do we really believe that promise? Or would we rather try to do everything else ourselves-without His help? Do we recall the covenant we made at baptism and renew each time we partake of the sacrament-to always remember Him? How can we truly come to know Him if we never think about Him? As King Benjamin pointed out, “For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?” (Mos. 5:13)
Melissa’s husband Slate commented: “Daily prayer and scripture reading are literally the ways we put on the full armor of God and fill our lamps with oil. The way Melissa and I have been able to succeed is that we have made promises to each other and to our Heavenly Father we intend to keep. We just decided it was the path we were going to follow and we have stuck to it. It is the same way in reading to our children.”
Be an example.
Slate’s comment pinpoints another important principle in daily scripture study: setting the example. If parents read the scriptures, it greatly increases the likelihood that their children will do likewise. I remember asking our three-year-old granddaughter Lucy what she wanted for Christmas. Without hesitation she replied, “A Book of Mormon.” That was all she wanted. We gave her a missionary one, and she was thrilled! She had her very own scriptures. Now at age six she can read the Book of Mormon all by herself. She has been practicing for three years. It comes perfectly natural for her to love and read the scriptures. She has watched her parents do so ever since she can remember.
Set a definite time.
Most of us are committed to the concept of reading scriptures every day, but often the biggest roadblock comes when we fail to schedule a specific time. Our study time gets pushed aside by all the other demands in our busy day. Before we know it bedtime comes, and we are too tired to stay awake and read. Another day passes without opening our scriptures.
One thing to consider is whether you are a morning or night person. It’s best to read when you are wide awake! If it takes you an hour to get your eyes open in the morning, you might not get much out of your study, as the words slip in and out of focus. If you wind down early at night, just before bedtime might find you dreaming about your scriptures instead of understanding them.
Another very important factor is finding a time when you are consistently free. First thing in the morning is a time when there are fewer scheduling conflicts for most people. It also helps to study right before something you always do. For example, if you always eat breakfast, you might read them right before you eat. For me, putting on my make-up is very important, so I read my scriptures before I allow myself to apply it. Then I am sure to get my studying done. Everyone goes to bed, so right before bedtime is also a consistent time-as long as you can stay awake.
The third consideration is to read at a time when you do not feel pressured or rushed. Skimming the scriptures is tedious and unfulfilling. It’s not always how much you read, but that you have time to really feast and ponder on what the spirit is telling you.
We just received a letter from our daughter Marilee who was married right after Christmas. She said: “Matt and I have tried so many things since we got married, and nothing was working where we could find a good regular time. However, I think that is a key: find a time when you can read every day. Matt and I have found a time at 4:45 in the afternoon. Kind of random, but that is the time. We have been doing it this past week, and it feels so good and right. We are so much happier and really able to study the gospel instead of slopping through it. It’s so wonderful.” As Marilee said, the key is finding a definite time that works for you.
Start Small.
If you have never read the scriptures consistently before, reading a half-hour a day might be overwhelming. Start with just one chapter from the Book of Mormon, or if necessary, just five verses. It’s better to start with something realistic that you know you can do. Success is built upon success. As one level becomes easy, you can work up to more-five minutes, then ten, twenty, a half-hour or whatever you feel in your heart is right for you.
Remember that there are times and seasons in our lives. Missionaries have the privilege of really immersing themselves in the gospel, feasting on the scriptures for perhaps one to three hours a day. I remember a time-probably only one or two semesters at BYU-when I was able to read the scriptures for an hour or two every day. My testimony and closeness to the Lord grew by leaps and bounds during that precious window of time, and I often felt tears roll down my cheeks as the scriptures came alive for me.
But the seasons shift. When a mother has a nursing baby that is up several times a night and several other small children to care for, when a father has a highly demanding job as well as a time-consuming church calling, when a student has an especially heavy load at school-perhaps these are not times when they can spend an hour or two a day on the scriptures. They are becoming close to the Lord in other ways.
I smiled as I watched Melissa last time I visited her home. Now she has three small children. She fed her children breakfast, then let them watch Barney for twenty minutes while she read her scriptures at the breakfast table while eating-a little different than when she was a senior in high school or on her mission. But she has found a consistent time that works for her. It’s a lot shorter than it used to be, but she still does it every day.
The purpose of this article is not to discuss all the various methods of effective scripture study. There are as many ways as there are people. Whether you read chronologically or by topics; whether you use a scripture journal, colored pencils, or cross-referencing; whether you begin or end with prayer, the main thing is to find what works for you and JUST “DO IT”!
Never miss a day.
When my husband was studying violin with Dr. Shinichi Suzuki in Japan, Dr. Suzuki told him, “You don’t have to practice the violin every day-only on the days you eat!” Scripture study should be the same way. You don’t have to do it every day-only on the days you eat-and even more on the days you fast!
Slate said: “Personally, I haven’t missed a day of reading some form of scripture in just over eight years. Granted, in many of these instances I merely go through the motions. However, often during those times when I begrudgingly read the scriptures, my heart is softened and the Lord is able to commune with me those things I need to feel and understand.”
If you are just beginning a scripture-reading program, give it at least three weeks to catch on. To start with, like Slate, you will probably just be going through the motions. It takes a while to build the momentum. Like learning to play the violin or walk or read, it may be some time before you really enjoy the process. Give it time to bear fruit in your life. Meanwhile, you can definitely enjoy the journey and the daily inspiration that comes as you consistently read.
It’s amazing what even a small amount of time devoted to daily scripture study can yield. I asked our daughter Andrea, who is twenty-one, how many times she has read each of the standard works. She has read the Book of Mormon 24 times or more, the Bible (including the entire Old Testament) 4 times, and the Doctrine & Covenants and Pearl of Great Price at least 6 times. She added that now she reads them slower and gets a lot more out of them. Of course the object is not to see how many times you can read them, but what a depth of gospel understanding has come to her with consistent reading over the years.
Think of reading the scriptures in the same light as praying. No matter how much pressure there is, you never miss a day. Some prayers may be hurried and short, but you still pray. In the same way, some days there may only be time for a few verses, but make the commitment to always read-no matter what. And be sure that most of the time you read in depth.
Renew your commitment often.
Pres. Spencer W. Kimball said, “The cultivation of Christlike qualities is a demanding and relentless task-it is not for the seasonal worker or for those who will not stretch themselves, again and again.”
None of us lives the gospel perfectly from the moment we are baptized. That’s why we have the opportunity to renew our covenants each week as we partake of the sacrament. The commitment to read the scriptures daily and effectively must be evaluated and renewed often. We all stumble at times, and there are always things we can do better.
Our son Paul said, “I don’t know that there really is anything that makes personal scripture study work-it’s just something that you have to make a priority in life. Although I’m doing fine with it right now, I’ve struggled with it, too.” We all have our moments of weakness. The main thing is to get up and try again. Instead of thinking or talking about it, we just need to “Do It.”
Enjoy the feast
As we consistently immerse ourselves in the scriptures daily, we will enjoy a spiritual feast beyond description. All of our children have noticed that without fail their day goes better if they have read their scriptures. However, the long-term benefits are even greater.
After years of scripture reading, our son Mark wrote from the mission field a few months ago: “I guess you can tell I’m happy. The other night I couldn’t sleep because I was just so happy, and so grateful to the Lord for his blessings. Our Heavenly Father is so amazing! The more I learn about the plan of salvation, the more I learn about Him, and the more I learn to use the atonement in my life and apply it to everything, the more I want to praise Him. I have really realized lately the truth of what King Benjamin said about our relationship with God. We can never give Him back enough. We will always be in debt. There really is no sacrifice. The only thing that is ours to give him is our will, and if we give him that, we receive everything.” The joy Mark felt because of his increased understanding of the gospel was beyond words.
Our daughter Andrea received her endowment from the Manti Temple the day before her marriage. That night she lay awake in bed for hours. Finally she whispered to me, “Mom, I just can’t sleep.”
“No wonder,” I thought. “You’re getting married in the morning. That’s enough to keep anybody awake!”
But to my surprise she continued, “The words to the endowment keep running through my mind. I learned so much. I can’t wait to go and hear them again!” I was amazed. Never had I seen anyone comprehend so much in a first temple session. Her years of dedicated scripture study had served her well. During the sealing ceremony the next morning she sobbed openly, so thrilled that she could not speak. I remembered the description of Ammon, who “.was swallowed up in the joy of his God, even to the exhausting of his strength;.Now was not this exceeding joy?” (Alma 27:17-18)
The blessings we gain through daily scripture study are beyond comprehension. May we have the faith and determination to put the Lord first in our lives and just “Do It”!
2002Meridian Magazine. All Rights Reserved.
