Do you yearn for life-giving, intimate communion with God? The Abide Bible is designed to help you experience the peace, hope, and growth that comes from encountering the voice and presence of God in Scripture. Every feature in Abide is designed to teach and develop Scripture-engagement habits that help you know the power and spiritual nourishment of abiding in Christ.

One of the Scripture Engagement techniques walks you through how to journal while reading Scripture. Take this prompt in the Abide Bible from Luke 3:7-14 to engage with Scripture through journaling.

Luke 3:7-14

So John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Therefore produce fruit that proves your repentance, and don’t begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones! Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

So the crowds were asking him, “What then should we do?” John answered them, “The person who has two tunics must share with the person who has none, and the person who has food must do likewise.” Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?”  He told them, “Collect no more than you are required to.” Then some soldiers also asked him, “And as for us—what should we do?” He told them, “Take money from no one by violence or by false accusation, and be content with your pay.”

Prepare Your Heart

Open yourself to God’s presence. Ask God to speak to you and to reveal Himself through His Word. Then read the passage.

Reflect and Write

• What did John call the multitudes in verse 7? Why were people coming to John to be baptized?
• How do you know the people were serious about repenting (see v. 10)? How did John instruct them (see vv. 11, 13-14)?
• What are the attitudes, thoughts, and actions that show a person’s true repentance? Think about the last time you truly repented of sin in your life. Thank God for His forgiveness and His power to bring about change in your life!

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Content taken from the NET Abide Bible.

Created in partnership with Bible Gateway and the Taylor University Center for Scripture Engagement, The Abide Bible’s features include book introductions and practical Scripture-engagement prompts based on five ways of interacting deeply with the Bible:

• Praying Scripture: Pattern your prayers after biblical texts, personalizing the prayers and gaining language for the thoughts and emotions you want to express.
• Picture It: Place yourself in a biblical narrative as a bystander or participant in important events.
• Journaling: Focus and reflect on Scripture and its meaning for your life, opening yourself to God’s voice as you ponder.
• Engage Through Art: Consider a classic piece of art—photograph, sculpture, painting—and let it deepen your meditations on scriptural truths.
• Contemplate: Follow the church’s longstanding practice of reading, meditating on, praying, and contemplating a passage of Scripture in order to experience God’s presence through the words of the Bible.