Scripture Study with Your Spouse

Having scripture study together as husband and wife is very important for a strong relationship with each other and with God. There is no one way to do it—find the method that works best for you. The important thing is to just do it.

Aim for daily scripture study together in a quiet place for at least fifteen minutes. Begin and end with prayer. Take turns reading aloud, with the other spouse following along, and share your insights.
Study by topic or create a reading schedule to take away pressure and time in finding a passage to study. A schedule also helps you keep track of progress and work toward a goal.
When you have a question about something you read, search together for the answer. Find other scriptures, consult religious books, or search online. Make it a team effort to learn.
Listen to each other. Never criticize or make fun of anything your spouse shares during scripture study. If you disagree about something, find common ground and move on. If you think it is a major misinterpretation, seek clarification from a church leader or an authoritative religious book.
If having the “ideal” scripture study is difficult, don’t give up. Have a short but sweet morning or night devotional. Pray together, read aloud a scripture verse or passage, and briefly share your feelings or a story. Take turns every night so the responsibility is shared.
If you cannot study together due to time conflicts or distance, create a reading schedule for both of you follow. Keep a journal to write your insights and feelings and let your spouse read it and respond. For those separated by distance, write emails or blog instead.
Another idea is to leave a note, write an email, or send a text of your favorite scripture verse to each other each day. Any sort of scripture study is better than none at all.

Note: Having scripture study together is also great for unmarried couples to strengthen their relationship and to get into the habit before marriage.

Challenge: Start having scripture study with your spouse.

Comments

Unknown said…

These are great ideas, and the post was very inspired. Lately I have been thinking of ways to improve scripture study. Thanks!

September 4, 2011 at 10:52 PM

Anonymous said…

we need to do this - we have had little or no scripture study as husband and wife over 27 yrs- DAD

September 18, 2011 at 8:01 PM

Mormon Messages

ldsmediatalk.com On the Church Web site, at the bottom of the home page and on the right sidebar, are featured videos called Mormon Messages. They are short clips from General Conference talks with music, photos, and background videos added to them. My favorite is the one entitled " Prayer ." Mormon Messages is a great way to share short and uplifting stories, testimonies, and counsel with family and friends, whether they are LDS or not. Above the featured video on the Church Web site is a toolbar allowing you to post the video or link on various social networking sites, such as Facebook. Mormon Messages also has a channel on YouTube, with videos in Spanish, to which you can subscribe. Share the light! Sharing Time: Which Mormon Message is your favorite?

"Far above Rubies"

Certain TV shows and previews reminded me of a quote from Sister Margaret Nagauld : "Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity." We need to be classy women--women with manners, discipline, integrity, virtue, sincerity, and charity. Sister Nagauld isn't the only one to have said this: 1. "It is, unfortunately, all too easy to illustrate the confusion and distortion of womanhood in contemporary society. Immodest, immoral, intemperate women jam the airwaves, monopolize magazines, and slink across movie screens—all while being celebrated by the world...

Put Down the Gavel

My friend posted on her blog an article about being a single LDS woman . Both ladies made many good points I will not reiterate here. Instead, I would like to discuss the motivation behind these posts: judgment. And judgment applies to all situations, not just to being single. In fact, once one of these women gets married, the judgment won't stop. The next nosy question she will be asked is, "When are you going to have children?" Then, "When are you going to have another child?" Then either, "Why aren't you going to have more?" or "Don't you think you have enough?" Then there will be comments and questions about her parenting choices and so on. Elder Neil L. Andersen shared this example in his October 2011 general conference talk : President J. Scott Dorius of the Peru Lima West Mission told me their story. He said: “Becky and I were married for 25 years without being able to have [or adopt] children. We moved several times...

Brightening My Light

Search This Blog