5 Creative Ways to Saturate Yourself in God’s Word

You hear it in Christian circles all the time: the need for us to “saturate” ourselves in God’s Word. But, what exactly does it mean to saturate yourself with the Word of God? And how do we accomplish that? By adopting some creative Bible study techniques, we can go beyond just reading, to truly understand and apply God’s Word in our lives.

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God’s Word is just SO AWESOME, y’all!

But, I didn’t always feel that way. For quite a few years after becoming a Christian, I barely picked up my Bible at all. It felt like an obligation, rather than something I truly wanted to do. And I just couldn’t get past the intimidation of such a huge book. Where to even start?

Through a series of events, starting with purchasing an NIV Life Application Bible, committing to reading it start-to-finish, and then later when I started Bible journaling, I have developed a great love and thirst for God’s Word. And I can tell you, the benefits of studying the Word of God are many!

Take for example, today I’m feeling particularly tired and a bit discombobulated. I didn’t get as much sleep as usual last night (I had to get up early for an appointment), and for a person with narcolepsy such as myself, that hour of sleep lost can have an even bigger impact. So after lunch, I opened my Bible looking for a pick-me-up.

First, I read the Beautitudes (Matthew 5:3-11). And then, I flipped two pages over, and my eyes landed on Matthew 11:28-30…

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon me and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Y’all, this is definitely one of my favorite verses! Any time I’m feeling inadequate, pulled in a million different directions, like I’m falling short of who I think God wants me to be, I remember to simply rest in Jesus. To learn from him, to trust him, and to follow his example.

I wish I could say that I’m always in my Bible, saturating myself in God’s Word, feeding my soul with life-giving Scriptures like this. But quite often, that’s not the case.

I want it to be, though! There is so much good truth, wisdom, and guidance to be found in God’s word…and I want more of it!

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12 (NIV)

What is the best way to study the Bible?

I know the Bible can be intimating though. It’s such a HUGE book, which so much historical content, symbolism, and difficult-to-understand passages. BUT, it’s also a book that is full of TRUTH, WISDOM, and God’s GREAT LOVE for you! In other words, it’s absolutely worth making the effort to saturate yourself with the Word of God.

That being said, if you’re new to the Bible, just start with the basics. Read Genesis (which tells the story of God’s Creation of the world, and the fall of man). Then read one or all of the four gospels which tell the story of Jesus, why He came into the world, and His life, death and resurrection. Luke is my favorite gospel writer, for his detailed retelling of Christ’s birth story. But Matthew, Mark, and John all have unique angles too, so just pick one and dive in.

For advanced Bible study tips, I recommend that you figure out what your learning style is, and try to incorporate that into your study habits. There is no right or wrong way for how to study the word of God. Read it from cover-to-cover, jump around to different books, or search for Scriptures on specific topics…. Just do it!

But still…what if you’re struggling to comprehend what you’re reading in the Bible? Well, how to understand the Word of God is sort of like decoding a treasure map. Let’s say you bought a piece of property, and it came with a map. Someone told you there is treasure buried all around the property, and all you need to do is find it! So, you spend the rest of your life unearthing treasure after treasure. Every day, you find more than enough treasure to provide for your financial needs for that day.

The Bible is a lot like that! To unearth the treasure of wisdom and truth, and find the comfort, joy, instruction, not to mention growing closer to God, and finding His purpose for your life, you have to study His Word. And every day, you’ll find more and more gems!

Saturate Yourself With The Word of God

Do you long to fill yourself with more of this wonderful truth and treasure found in God’s Word? The more we study Scripture, the more we can get to know God, experience the joy and peace of His love, and be better equipped to do His good work in the world (just to name a few!).

But sometimes, it’s just not enough to simply “read” God’s word…sometimes, we need to dive deeper. Here are five creative ways to really saturate yourself with the Word of God, and get even more benefit from it.

1) Journal the Word

If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know how much I love Bible journaling! If you have any creative bones in your body, or especially if you’re a visual learner, journaling is such a great way to go deeper in your study of Scripture. And if you want to know how to meditate on the Word of God, journaling is an excellent way to do that. And the great thing is, you can journal in whatever way suits you. Buy a journaling Bible, a coloring Bible, or just grab a notebook or sketch pad and journal there. It doesn’t matter as much how you do it, just that you’re spending time in God’s Word. 🙂

Want a Bible journaling study plan to help you get started? I created this awesome e-book just for you. It contains a weekly Bible study plan, with journaling prompts to spur your creativity! Just follow the plan, and develop a habit of studying God’s Word through journaling.

2) Verse Mapping

This is a very cool technique, which I covered in-depth in this post. Take a verse that you want to understand better. Write it out, and identify the key words in the passage that stand out to you. Look up definitions of those words, check different Bible translations, and record everything you find. Then step back, pray, and see what deeper insights your research reveals!

3) Pray the scriptures a.k.a. “lectio divina”

It’s relatively simple…just pray as you read! Whether you pray before, as in “Lord help me grow in my knowledge of you”, or after, like “Heavenly Father, I’m not sure I understand this passage. Will you help me see what you want me to know about it?”, just pray. Remember “walkie-talkies”? I’ve heard it said that the Bible is our instruction manual for life, and prayer is our walkie-talkie connection with God. If we don’t understand what the manual says, then we should radio God and ask for clarification.

4) Memorize Bible Verses

One of the best ways to truly saturate yourself with the Word of God, is to memorize key verses. The more Scriptures you have committed to memory, the more you’ll be able to draw on the comfort, wisdom, and guidance of God’s Word, no matter where you are. If you’re in the middle of the situation where you’re not able to just pick up a Bible (or the Bible app on your smart phone), it sure does come in handy to already have it literally inside yourself.

But yes, I know it’s not always easy to memorize verses. I’ve found that the best way for me to memorize a Bible verse, is to write it out. Try writing it over and over in a notebook, put it on sticky notes on your bathroom mirror AND in your car, or snap a photo and set it as the background for your desktop or smart phone. Put the verse you want to commit to memory everywhere, and you’ll memorize it naturally over a few days or weeks!

5) Listen via Audio Book

If for some reason reading is difficult for you, or you just want a different way of experiencing God’s word, try listening instead! You can do this easily with YouVersion’s Bible app, or via Amazon’s Audible service. You can even listen and follow along in your actual Bible at the same time, for maximum benefit.

So, there you have it—five creative ways to saturate yourself with the Word of God! I hope this given you some great ideas for how to study the Word of God effectively. May you be ever in awe of the majesty of our Lord Jesus Christ, and continually falling in love with His Word every day. 🙂

Barbara Austin

Hi! Thank you so much for visiting Divine Creative Love. I’m a Jesus-lovin’ girl, lettering artist, designer, and general creative-at-heart. And, I have narcolepsy. I blog about faith in God, overcoming challenges, and creative topics such as Bible journaling. If you’re new here, be sure and subscribe to my list so you won’t miss anything!