How to Get Back to Reading the Bible After a Long Break 

Can I be honest with you for a second?

A few months went by and my Bible barely moved. Life got full with work, family, responsibilities, and the many little things that fill up a day. Before I even realized it, my quiet time had quietly disappeared. No dramatic falling away. No crisis of faith. Just a busy life that slowly crowded out something I genuinely loved.

Then someone at church asked me a simple question: “How’s your time with God been lately?”

I didn’t have an answer. And that silence told me everything.

If you’re reading this, maybe you’re in a similar place. Maybe it’s been a few weeks. Maybe a few months. Maybe you’ve lost count and you’d rather not think about it. Either way, I want you to know something before we go any further:

You are not behind. You are not disqualified. And God has not left you.

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First, let’s talk about the guilt, because it’s probably the real reason you haven’t started back yet

Here’s something nobody tells you: for a lot of Christians, it’s not actually time that keeps them from coming back to the Bible. It’s guilt.

The longer the break, the heavier the guilt. And the heavier the guilt, the easier it is to avoid opening your Bible at all, because opening it means facing the gap. So the days stretch into weeks, and the weeks stretch into months, and suddenly you’re someone who used to read their Bible regularly and you’re not sure how to be that person again.

Sound familiar?

Here’s the truth, friend: God is not standing at the door of His Word with a checklist of how many days you missed. He’s just waiting for you to come back. The parable of the prodigal son isn’t just a story about a wayward child. It’s a picture of a Father who runs toward you the moment He sees you coming home. You don’t have to clean yourself up first. You just have to come.

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Why it happens to almost every Christian (and why it’s not a faith failure)

Let me normalize this for you: taking a break from Bible reading is one of the most common experiences in the Christian life. Not because people stop loving God, but because life is relentless and habits are fragile.

Busy seasons happen. New jobs, new babies, grief, illness, transitions. Your Bible reading slips, and then the guilt kicks in, and then the avoidance kicks in, and before long you’ve built a wall between yourself and the very thing that would help you the most.

This is not a character flaw. It is not evidence that your faith isn’t real. It is what happens when we are human beings trying to maintain a spiritual practice in the middle of an ordinary, complicated life. Give yourself grace, the same grace you would give a friend sitting across from you telling you this exact story.

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What NOT to do when you’re ready to come back

Before I tell you what works, let me tell you what doesn’t, because these are the traps that send people right back into avoidance.

Don’t start with a read-the-whole-Bible-in-a-year plan. I know it sounds motivating. It isn’t. It’s overwhelming. And when you miss day three, you quit.

Don’t try to make up for lost time. Reading five chapters a day to “catch up” is not how this works. There is nothing to catch up on. God’s Word was waiting for you and it will still be there tomorrow.

Don’t wait until you feel ready. This one is sneaky. Waiting to feel spiritually motivated before you open your Bible is like waiting to feel hungry before you decide to eat. The feeling usually comes after you start, not before.

Don’t make it complicated. You don’t need a perfectly organized study system, color-coded highlighters, or a new journal before you begin. You just need to open the Bible.

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How to actually start — small, gentle, and real

Getting back to reading the Bible after a long break starts with one simple routine: open it today, read one Psalm, write down one thing, and pray one sentence.

Why a Psalm specifically? Because the Psalms are already written in the language of someone finding their way back to God. They're honest, they're short, and you don't need any background to feel them. Just open and read.

To make this as easy as possible I've created a free Fresh Start worksheet — one printable page for each day of the week that tells you exactly what to read, what to write, and what to pray. No decisions, no pressure, no system to figure out. You can grab it at my shop and print it out before tomorrow morning.

Here's what the worksheet walks you through each day:

Step one, just show up. Your Psalm is already chosen for you; zero decision fatigue. Read it slowly, like you're reading a letter from someone who knows you better than you know yourself. Because you are. Don't study it. Don't analyze it. Just let it land.

One word, one sentence. Write down one word or phrase that stood out. Then one sentence about why. That's your whole study. Five minutes. That's it.

One sentence prayer. Close with one honest sentence to God. Something as simple as "Thank You for being here even when I wasn't" is a real prayer. It counts.

Do this for seven days before you add anything else.

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What to do when you miss a day (because you will, and that’s okay)

Here’s something I want you to hear: missing a day is not failing. Missing a day is just a day missed.

We are human. Life interrupts. The goal is not a perfect streak; the goal is a sustainable rhythm. So when you miss a day, here’s the only rule: don’t miss two in a row. That’s it. One missed day is a pause. Two missed days is the beginning of a new gap. Just come back the next day.

And if you do fall into another gap? Come back then too. And the time after that. Every single time. Because the God who welcomed you back this time will welcome you back every time. Not with disappointment, but with the same running-toward-you love He always has.

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The question that changed everything for me

I don't think about that moment every day. But I'm thinking about it right now because it's the reason I'm writing this for you.

You might be that person for someone else one day. But today, let me be that person for you.

How’s your time with God been lately?

If that question stings a little — good. Not because you should feel guilty, but because that sting means you care. And caring is exactly where coming back begins.

Your Bible is waiting. God is waiting. And you don’t have to have it all together to open it today.

Start with one psalm. Write down one word. Pray one sentence.

That’s enough. You are enough. And He is more than enough for whatever comes next.