Mamas in Faith

As a child it was engrained to me that a Bible was of high importance, there was nothing that was supposed to be put on top of it, it was a special book to have in our home, it was to be cared for. I have a distinct memory of my first Bible. I recieved it after being baptized in our small hometown church, it was a faux maroon leather with Jesus’ words in red. I loved that Bible so much, as a child I do not think I ever fully understood the importance of actually reading it. One thing I did know was that I loved being able to hold words that Jesus had said. In particular I had a favorite page, it was a page in the book of Matthew that had all red letters, meaning that the whole page was the words Jesus had said… I loved that page so much I tore out the page…. much to my parents dismay.

I would say my understanding of the Word of God has come a lot way since that day. And while I spent many years with having a Bible as a mere bookshelf accessory, it was in college that I got my first study Bible. Which of course was a KJV, because in my limited knowledge I thought that was the only acceptable one to read, maybe more on that a different time. Buying a study Bible though did not automatically mean it was easier to read or to understand so it became something I did not spend time with. I still have that Bible but it now stays in a special place for emergencies (a hurricane prep bag to be exact). A few years went by and a lot of life happened, I got married (my parents gifted us a family Bible that now resides in our living room), had a couple kids and for my birthday one year I recieved my first Bible that was not a KJV but a CSB. I would read at the Bible but still was not consistent, if we attended a church service I would take it with me. A lot more life happened and then we had our fourth baby, I clung to that Bible a read from Hebrews almost everyday of his two month NICU stay. There is part of me that does not fully understand why Hebrews felt so important during that time but I know it became a standing place for me. A couple more years went by and I got yet antoher Bible, this time as part of a giveaway from a group of Christian women on instagram, sounds silly I know.

I was still not reading my Bible consistently, I followed a Bible in 40 days reading plan, mostly that I listened to via the YouVersion app but as soon as it was over I was only reading my Bible as a check list item for my ministry degree courses. During that time I saw the mother of one of my daughters friends post about some kind of Bible journal. I was intrigued because it was beautiful, did not have a timeline and looked well organized. Little did I know I had also met and spent sometime with the woman who had designed the journal. It was at that point I knew I had to get my hands on one. It was an investment piece to me. Something I have heard some women say is that the cost of piece of clothing should be calculated in cost per wear. So if you know you are going to wear it frequently then something that might cost more upfront it will realistically have a lower cost per wear because you wear it more frequently than something that you only kind of enjoy wearing but spend less on. So I knew that this journal was going to have a small cost per use, like less than a quarter a day, less than one fancy coffee a month.

Since January of this year 2025 I have been the most consistent I have ever been in reading the Bible. Yes I use that Bible from the giveaway, yes I finished my minsitry degree, yes I have time being a stay at home mom, but I also have a greater desire to know God. With each time I read I get more excited about reading again. Have I read and journaled everyday? No , but I have been more consistent having a framework of what to read, a place to jot down some thoughts, a place to write out a quick prayer and how to apply what I have read. Am I saying that getting a journal will change your life, no, but what I am saying is that having tool that can help you be more consistently in the Word of God could have the potential for the Holy Spirit to be more easily heard. Which can in turn be life changing.

Today I am happy to partner with sharing in get the message of these journals out in hopes of encouraging other women to be more consistently in their Bibles. Even if you do not have a physical Bible yet I would still encourage you to get in the Word daily.