I’m a big believer in habits. We as humans have an incredible capacity do develop both good and bad habits. I used to think of habits only in the negative sense (as in, the habit of biting one’s nails). But now, I see the power of habits to have positive influences on our lives.

Scientific studies have recently shown (bizarrely enough) that we have a limited amount of willpower, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. We can only force ourselves to do so much during the day, and we all know this to be true intuitively. After a tough morning, filled with taxing activities, all we want to do is crash — even though we still have things to do. The afternoon’s activities suffer or maybe are not even completed. This is our willpower running out.

Reading the Bible daily is a willpower draining activity. It requires mental effort and planning to carve out the time to do so. If it’s not high on our priority lists (and, let’s face it, since it is not apparently urgent, it probably won’t be), then it falls to the back as we tackle the mini-crises of the day. By the time we do have time, we are so emotionally drained that we put it off until tomorrow, when the cycle begins again. I’ve been there. We all have.

So how do we bypass this cycle? We have to bypass willpower itself. One way to take willpower out of the equation is to create a habit. A habit is something we don’t have to think about. Brushing your teeth is a positive habit. I hope that by this point, you don’t have to consciously think, “I have to be sure to brush my teeth before bed, and here are the positive benefits I will receive if I do so.” Of course not! It’s a habit. We don’t have to convince ourselves of anything, and (more importantly) it’s not a drain on our willpower.

There have been tomes written on how to create and break habits, so this is by no means comprehensive. I do think that this will be a good starting point for anyone trying to get into the habit of reading the Bible daily.

1. Set a Time

And, as a sub-point, pick a good time. Remember what I said about our willpower reserve? Well, it replenishes daily. So what would be the best time of day to start a new habit? Probably the morning. Yes, I know mornings are difficult for a lot of us. They’re rushed, filled with activity, and often things fall through the cracks. Setting aside just 15 minutes in the morning, when our willpower is the strongest, could make all the difference between creating a habit and creating an occasional event.

Of course, if you really aren’t a morning person, then that may not be the best time (although I’d still recommend you give it a shot). Maybe your lunch break provides a more ready opportunity to take some time with God. Consistency is key, though. It’s hard to create a habit haphazardly.

One time I would not recommend is right before going to sleep. At that point, not only is our willpower at its lowest point, but also our mental faculties are not as sharp. Save the light reading for the end of the day, and try to pick up your Bible when you have the time and energy to meditate on the words.

2. Set a Plan

This is an important point, which is often overlooked. Have a plan for reading the Bible. It’s a big book, and the old “I’m going to open it up at random and see what God has to say to me,” can only yield meaningful results for so long. I mean, do you really want to spend your Scripture reading time trying to figure out what the prophesies in Ezekiel 29 about Egypt have to do with modern life? Remember, almost 2/3 of the Bible is comprised of the Old Testament, which contains important insights, but our faith lies primarily in the New Testament.

Furthermore, without a plan it is easy to spend all of our time, which we set aside for reading, trying to find something to read. To keep from scrambling around the Bible, spending more time skimming than reading, here are a few ideas you can try to get started.

• Read a Psalm a day. The Psalms contain some of the most powerful descriptions of God and His relationship to us in the Bible. While not theologically dense, they don’t have to be. The Psalms are among the most personal writings in the Bible. Reading through them, you will certainly find your own thoughts echoed on the pages.
• Read the words of Jesus. Take a few months and only read the Gospels. Nobody proclaimed the Good News better than Jesus, but most scholars concentrate on Paul’s writings. There is certainly nothing wrong with Paul’s letters, but the actual words of Jesus form the basis of our faith. If we are familiar with nothing else, we should be familiar with what Jesus said while he was on this earth.
• Read through the Proverbs. Second only to the words of Jesus, there is no better place to turn for practical advice than the Proverbs. Packed with wisdom on how to live our lives, the Proverbs contain some of the most applicable wisdom in the Old Testament.
• Pick a letter. That is, pick a New Testament letter and work through it systematically. Take just a few verses at a time and really dwell on the meanings of the words. A study bible can help in this kind of in-depth study. Just remember to always look at the larger context. Each letter was meant to be read as a whole, not as a collection of isolated verses.

3. Set a Goal

The best way to ingrain a habit is to set a goal, and achieve it for thirty days. That is, to continue the activity at the same time, for the same duration, for a month. In this case, it might be to read the Bible every morning, after coffee, for fifteen minutes. Doing it at the same time (after coffee) every day serves as a trigger for the habit. After you put down the coffee mug, your mind knows (after a few weeks of discipline) that it is simply time to bring out the Bible. No thinking involved. Goals are invaluable tools to get us “over the hump” before a habit is ingrained.

Finally, think about why you want to start a habit of reading the Bible daily. If you’re doing it just because some guy on the Internet said it is a good thing, you’re probably not going to get very far. Motivation can only carry us for so long without a “why” behind our actions. So take some time to consider the benefits of taking time out of your day to get closer to God through spending time in His word.

Habits are very powerful tools in our spiritual arsenal. Once our spiritual disciplines become automatic, it is much harder for the Enemy to cut into them. Remember: good habits, once made, are just as hard to break as bad ones. If we could make our spiritual disciplines habitual, then we would find ourselves with more energy with which to fight our other daily spiritual battles.