Building a Relationship with God, not a Checklist

We are about half way through the May Scripture challenge, and all of your #lampandlight posts are such an encouragement to me each day. There is just something amazing to me about scrolling through my feed and seeing open Bible's. I see the work that God is doing among women, and how He is giving a love for His Word to so many. Now that we are about halfway through the challenge though, I want to check in and encourage you guys. It is easy to make studying scripture a "have to" and not a "desire to". I don't want this challenge to be a checklist. I don't want the challenge to be nothing more than one more thing for us to do, I want it to be life breathed into our days, and hope in the hardest times. I also don't want to see us miss a day and be discouraged and give up on the challenge. This challenge is about so much more than going through a whole month reading Scripture. It is about making habits, and strengthening our relationship with Christ to the point where we desire to be in the Word. So if you are feeling stuck, if you are feeling dry, ask God to help you. If you are feeling like your Bible Study is just one of a million things on your "to do" list, ask Him to bring His Word to life and show you how the words of Scripture apply to your daily life. If you are feeling discouraged because you have already missed a day or more on the challenge, start again. Grab your Bible and keep going. Remember that this challenge is not about completing 31 days of reading the Bible without missing one, it is about making God's Word a natural part of your day. It is about getting to the point where you realize that we need God's Word to sustain us, just like we need food to get through our days. If you are just finding the scripture challenge, it is not too late to join! Don't forget we are giving away one of Val Marie's fabulous prayer journals at the end of the challenge! Make sure to read here about how you can enter! So as a little encouragement to each other, I want to hear how it is going. Let me know in the comments here or on instagram or Facebook what book of the Bible you have been reading, and what the one thing you have felt God showing you? I can't wait to hear how God is using His Word to transform our hearts.