By Nancy Duarte | Founder, Life on Earth Ministries/Bible Teacher
We live in a digital age where we’re constantly bombarded by new electronic devices and AI, and technology changes so quickly that keeping up with the latest developments can feel overwhelming.
Before we’ve figured out one gadget, another takes its place.
Learning how to use all the current technical gear leaves many of us feeling intimidated and confused.
And that’s exactly how many people—even Christians—feel about the Bible.
They own one. But they don’t understand how to use it or interpret it.
Finding it big and confusing, they don’t know where to begin reading or how doing so will affect their troubles, if at all.
The result?
Such people simply don’t bother with Scripture.
It just doesn’t seem worth the effort.
The Problem: We Don’t Understand What We Have
Here’s the truth: How you and I handle something depends on its value to us.
And many people simply don’t realize the absolute treasure God has given us in His Word.
Consider this:
If I gave you an old shoebox, you’d wonder: “What am I going to do with this?”
But if there were $100,000 inside, you’d cherish that box for what it contained.
You’d make sure of every dollar. You’d protect it. You’d guard it.
Likewise, nothing you or I own is more precious than the Bible.
Yet millions of people—including Christians—let their Bibles collect dust on shelves while they struggle through life without the wisdom, clarity, and power contained inside.
The Cost of Ignoring Scripture
People who ignore Scripture suffer as a result—in ALL areas of their life.
1. They Go Through Hardships Without Understanding the Lessons
God uses every trial, every setback, every painful season to teach you something.
But if you’re not in the Word, you miss the lesson.
You go through the pain, but you don’t get the growth.
You survive—but you don’t THRIVE.
The Bible says:
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” – Hosea 4:6
You’re going through the fire anyway. Why not let God use it to REFINE you instead of just BURN you?
2. They Never Understand the Wisdom God Wants to Give Them About PEOPLE
Your Bible will teach you:
✅ How to identify toxic people (2 Timothy 3:1-5 describes them perfectly)
✅ How to set boundaries (Proverbs 25:28: “A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls”)
✅ How to discern who’s safe and who’s not (Matthew 7:16: “By their fruit you will recognize them”)
✅ How to handle betrayal (Psalm 55, Psalm 41:9)
✅ How to love people WITHOUT losing yourself (Mark 12:31: “Love your neighbor as yourself”)
Without Scripture, you keep making the same mistakes with the same types of people.
You keep:
- Trusting people who shouldn’t be trusted
- Giving to people who only take
- Staying in relationships that are destroying you
- Wondering why you keep getting hurt
With Scripture, you gain DISCERNMENT.
You learn to see people clearly. You learn to protect yourself wisely. You learn to love WITHOUT being destroyed.
3. They Never Discover Their PURPOSE
Your Bible contains the blueprint for your life.
Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Ephesians 2:10: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
God didn’t create you randomly. You’re not an accident.
You have a PURPOSE. And it’s written in His Word.
But if you never open your Bible, you’ll spend your whole life wandering, wondering:
- “Why am I here?”
- “What am I supposed to be doing?”
- “Does my life even matter?”
The answers are in the Book.
4. They Make Poor Decisions About Their CAREER and MONEY
The Bible is FULL of wisdom about work and finances.
Proverbs 13:11: “Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.”
Proverbs 21:5: “The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.”
Proverbs 22:7: “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.”
Luke 16:10: “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Without Scripture, people:
- Stay in jobs that drain them because they don’t know their worth
- Make impulsive financial decisions that destroy them
- Chase money instead of purpose
- Never build wealth because they don’t understand stewardship
With Scripture, you gain WISDOM about money, work, and provision.
You learn:
- How to steward what you have
- How to make decisions that lead to prosperity
- How to trust God’s provision instead of living in fear
- How to use money as a TOOL instead of making it your GOD
5. They Struggle in Their RELATIONSHIPS and MARRIAGES
The Bible is the ultimate relationship manual.
Ephesians 5:21-33 – How to love in marriage
1 Corinthians 13:4-8 – What real love looks like
Proverbs 27:17 – How to sharpen each other
James 1:19 – “Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to become angry.”
Ephesians 4:26 – “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry.”
Without Scripture, people:
- Repeat toxic relationship patterns
- Don’t know how to communicate
- Don’t understand what healthy love looks like
- Stay in marriages that are dying because they don’t know how to heal them
With Scripture, you learn how to LOVE well, SET BOUNDARIES, and BUILD healthy relationships.
6. They Live in FEAR, ANXIETY, and STRESS
Your Bible is filled with over 365 verses about fear—one for EVERY DAY of the year.
Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Isaiah 41:10: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Psalm 23:4: “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”
Without Scripture, you:
- Carry burdens you were never meant to carry
- Live in constant anxiety
- Feel alone in your struggles
- Have no peace
With Scripture, you find PEACE that surpasses understanding.
7. They Don’t Know How to PRAY or HEAR from GOD
Prayer isn’t just talking AT God. It’s a conversation.
But how do you hear from God?
Through His Word.
Psalm 119:105: “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
Without Scripture, you:
- Don’t know if what you’re hearing is God or just your own thoughts
- Pray vague prayers with no power
- Feel disconnected from God
With Scripture, you learn how to PRAY with power and HEAR God’s voice clearly.
8. They Have No HOPE in Hard Times
Life is HARD. You WILL face:
- Loss
- Betrayal
- Disappointment
- Pain
- Suffering
Without Scripture, you have no anchor. No hope. No perspective.
With Scripture, you have HOPE even in the darkest seasons.
Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you…”
2 Corinthians 4:17-18: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
The Bible reminds you: This is not the end of your story.
The Bible: The Most Purchased—and Most IGNORED—Book in History
Here are the facts:
📊 Bible Sales Statistics:
✅ The Bible is the best-selling book of ALL TIME
- Over 5 BILLION copies sold
- Translated into over 3,000 languages
- 100 million copies sold annually worldwide
✅ In the United States:
- 88% of American households own at least ONE Bible
- The average household owns 4.7 Bibles
But here’s the problem:
❌ Only 11% of Americans read the Bible daily
❌ Over 50% read it once a year or LESS
❌ Americans are more likely to read ANYTHING ELSE than their Bible
We OWN it. But we don’t OPEN it.
The Awakening: Young People Are Turning to God Like Never Before
But here’s the GOOD NEWS:
Something is shifting.
📈 Recent Statistics Show:
✅ Gen Z (ages 18-25) is experiencing a SPIRITUAL AWAKENING
- 41% of Gen Z say they pray daily (higher than Millennials at 39%)
- College students are turning to God in record numbers post-pandemic
✅ Bible app downloads have SKYROCKETED
- The YouVersion Bible App has been downloaded over 600 MILLION times
- Daily active users: Millions reading Scripture every day
✅ Why the shift?
Young people are realizing:
1. Mental health is a crisis
- Anxiety and depression rates are at an all-time high
- Therapy helps—but it’s not enough
- They need something BIGGER than themselves
2. Social media is toxic
- Constant comparison
- Fake relationships
- Empty validation
- They’re searching for a REAL connection
3. The world offers no answers
- Political division
- Economic uncertainty
- Global chaos
- They need HOPE and TRUTH
4. They’re tired of pretending
- Cancel culture
- Performance
- Masks
- They want AUTHENTICITY
And they’re finding all of it in the Bible.
What You’re Missing If You Don’t Open Your Bible
If you haven’t picked up your Bible today—or this week, or this month—here’s what you’re missing:
You’re Missing:
❌ Wisdom for your decisions
❌ Clarity about people in your life
❌ Direction for your purpose
❌ Peace in your chaos
❌ Hope in your pain
❌ Strength for your battles
❌ Comfort in your grief
❌ Truth in a world of lies
❌ Freedom from your past
❌ Power for your future
The Bible is NOT Just a Book—It’s THE Book of Life
Your Bible is:
✅ Your instruction manual for life
✅ Your GPS when you’re lost
✅ Your weapon in spiritual battles
✅ Your comfort in grief
✅ Your hope in despair
✅ Your truth in confusion
✅ Your strength in weakness
✅ Your light in darkness
2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
It’s not just ink on paper. It’s ALIVE.
Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword…”
If You Haven’t Picked Up Your Bible Today, Don’t Leave It for Another Day
Because you don’t know what you’re missing.
You don’t know:
- What verse do you NEED to read today
- What wisdom does God want to speak to you
- What breakthrough is waiting in those pages
- What freedom are you one chapter away from
Every day you ignore your Bible is a day you miss out on:
- Peace, you could have
- Wisdom you could gain
- Clarit,y you could receive
- Strengths you could access
- Hope you could hold onto
How to Start (If You’ve Been Intimidated)
“But Nancy, I don’t know where to start. It’s so BIG and CONFUSING.”
I get it. Here’s how to begin:
Step 1: Start with the Gospels
- Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John
- Learn about JESUS first
- Everything else makes sense when you know Him
Step 2: Read Psalms When You’re Hurting
- David was REAL—he cried, raged, doubted, hoped
- Find a Psalm that matches your emotion
Step 3: Read Proverbs for Wisdom
- There are 31 chapters—one for each day of the month
- Practical wisdom for daily life
Step 4: Use a Bible App
- YouVersion Bible App (FREE)
- Reading plans
- Audio Bible
- Devotionals
Step 5: Join a Bible Study
- Don’t do it alone
- Community helps
- Join Bible Chicks: www.duarte.coach/bc
The Treasure in the Box
Remember the shoebox analogy?
If I gave you a shoebox with $100,000 inside, you’d guard it with your LIFE.
Your Bible is worth MORE than $100,000.
It contains:
- Wisdom worth MILLIONS
- Peace, you CAN’T buy
- Purpose money can’t give you
- Hope the world can’t provide
- Truth that sets you FREE
And yet, it sits on your shelf.
Unopened. Unread. Ignored.
My Challenge to You
Don’t leave your Bible for another day.
Not because I said so.
Not because you “should.”
But because you DON’T KNOW what you’re missing.
You don’t know:
- What God wants to tell you TODAY
- What breakthrough is waiting in that CHAPTER
- What freedom is on that PAGE
- What hope is in that VERSE
Pick it up. Open it. Read it.
Even if it’s just ONE verse.
Even if it’s just FIVE minutes.
Start TODAY.
Because the Bible is not just a book.
It’s THE Book of Life.
It’s your instruction manual.
And you need it more than you know.
Final Thought: The Word is ALIVE
Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
Your Bible is not dead ink on dead paper.
It’s ALIVE.
And when you open it, God SPEAKS.
He speaks:
- Comfort to your pain
- Wisdom to your confusion
- Directions to your wandering
- Hope to your despair
- Truth to your lies
But you have to OPEN it.
So here’s my question:
When was the last time you opened your Bible?
If it’s been a while—today is the day.
Don’t wait.
Don’t put it off.
Don’t tell yourself you’ll do it tomorrow.
Open it TODAY.
Because you don’t know what you’re missing.
And your life depends on it.
Nancy Duarte
Founder, Life on Earth Ministries
Bible Teacher | Life Coach | Toxic Relationship Specialist
📖 Join Bible Chicks: www.duarte.coach/bc (Saturdays 8am)
P.S. If you don’t own a Bible yet—GET ONE TODAY. If you own one but haven’t opened it—OPEN IT TODAY. Your future self will thank you. 💛📖
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