Today on Primarily Scripture, we are talking about time. When is the very best time to study and what tools are available to help you? I'm Cindy Young. Thanks for being here with me today. The two big time questions with scripture study are, how long should this take and when should I actually study? So let's break it down. Let's talk about how much time it's going to take and just like last week and the week before, this is really going to depend on you and your goals. But there is a formula that you can use. Now this formula has a lot of wiggle room in it, but at least it's a starting point for you. How flexible your goal is is going to determine how flexible your time spent is. First, look at your academic goal. The one that can be measured and tracked, and see if there's a set number of pages that you need to read every day. We talked about that last week. You might need to do a little bit of math to figure that out. Once you've figured that out, then you'll need to have at least that much time to complete those number of pages. Otherwise, you'll probably have more flexibility in your time. But you want to be sure to leave room for your spiritual goal when you set aside time. If it takes you 10 minutes to read the number of pages that you're planning on reading, then don't say you're gonna study for 10 minutes, because that's not studying, that's just reading, and there is a difference, right? So we gotta consider how much time it'll take to actually read the content and add that to how long you're going to spend pondering. Now, how long you spend pondering is really, really flexible. There's such a huge range there. It could be just a little bit of pondering, or you could dive super deep and ponder one verse for a whole hour. If you've never studied the scriptures before, then probably like a two hour study session is not gonna work. That's a lot and it's going to feel really overwhelming. So start small. If you're a youth, then maybe something like 10 or 15 minutes. If you are a super busy adult, then somewhere between 15 to 30 minutes. If you have a good amount of time, then perhaps you can get a full hour in, and that would be fantastic, but it depends a lot on that goal. And this season, we'll talk about all the different ways that you can search and ponder and find different things. But it's nice to have a starting point too, isn't it? Especially when you're trying to fit it into your schedule. So how much time will it take? You're gonna need to have both of those goals in mind as you decide. But that's the basic formula that we're going to start with to figure out how much time you need to read your scriptures. Okay, so now let's talk about finding the time. When is the very best time to study? Howard W. Hunter was the prophet in the nineties for a very short time, but he was an apostle before that for 35 years, and he had this to say about scripture study. He gave a really, really great talk called "Reading the Scriptures," and he said, "Many find that the best time to study is in the morning after a night's rest has cleared the mind of the many cares that interrupt thought. Others prefer to study in the quiet hours after the work and the worries of the day are over and brushed aside. Thus ending the day with a peace and tranquility that comes by communion with the scriptures. Perhaps what is more important than the hour of the day is that a regular time be set aside for study." Did you catch all that? He said some people like mornings, some people like the end of the day. Those things are flexible. He said the more important part is that it's a regular time to be set aside. Now I know some people who study the scriptures whenever they have time, and they just do it whenever it fits. But you'll have much more success if you can find a time and stick to it. You know that before breakfast you're gonna study your scriptures or you know that right after you brush your teeth, you're gonna read your scriptures and then hop into bed. Something like that will help you stay consistent. It builds that routine. So as you're looking at your schedule and you're trying to decide what's better morning or evening or in the middle of the day, there are a couple of things that you need to determine. I want you to ask yourself these five questions. Okay? Ready?

When do you have that amount of time? We already talked about figuring out about how much time you need. Are you about 15 minutes? Are you about 45 minutes? What's your rough estimate of time that you need to study the scriptures? When do you have it? You might find that your mornings are so rushed and crazy that there's no way you'll ever fit it in. You might have more time in the evening, or maybe your evenings are so full of this and that, that you would much rather find the time in the morning. Okay, so when do you have that amount of time? Number two is When can you focus? Are you a morning person? Or are you an evening person? I am a morning person and I absolutely love getting up and studying the scriptures first thing in the morning. Love it. My kids on the other hand can barely focus at all when we try to study in the morning. Finding a time that's suitable for your personality is very important. Don't try to force yourself to do it if you know that you're gonna be falling asleep, if you can't focus in the morning, then find a different time. That's super important. Number three. When will you be able to remember to do it? There was a time when I tried to do scripture study on my lunch break, but I had so much going on beforehand that by the time my lunch break hit, I had completely forgotten about it, and it was not on my mind at all. It was really hard for me to stay consistent because I kept forgetting. It was just not a good time for me to try to remember, so I had to find a different time. Question number four, which time is less likely to be rushed? If you're trying to focus really quick and get it all in and then run off to the next thing, your brain won't be able to settle enough to be able to focus on it. So these questions kind of go hand in hand. Can you focus? Can you remember? Are you gonna be rushed? Do you have that amount of time? Consider all these things as you are finding the right time for you and your schedule. Now the most important question to ask yourself though, is, Is there something I need to give up in order to have time to study? Our prophet right now is President Dallan H Oaks, but he was an apostle for a super long time. And many years ago, he gave one of my very favorite talks. One of my all time favorite talks is called "Good, Better, Best." And he talks about making choices with our time.

"We have to forego," which means give up... "We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our families." When we're thinking about things that are going to bless our lives, is scripture study good or is it better, or is it best? I would put it in that best category. It's one of the things that we are commanded to do and there are so many blessings attached to it. So why would we give up our scripture study time in order for something that is just good? If you remember in last week's episode, I read to you a quote from Elder Gary E. Stevenson. I'll read it again to help you remember. He said, "Many... people spend an average of seven hours a day looking at tv, computer, and smartphone screens. With this in mind, would you make a small change? Will you replace some of that daily screen time- particularly that devoted to social media, the internet, gaming or television-" replace it "with reading the Book of Mormon?" or any scripture. It's such an important choice to make of where you're going to spend your time, and if you don't think you have enough time, then I would challenge you to pray about it and ask the Lord to help you find the time. Because like Nephi, I know that the Lord doesn't give any commandments to us, unless he has a way for us to follow that commandment. Since we've all been commanded to read scriptures, there is a way, there is a time that will work for you! You just have to put in a little effort to find that right time. Okay? Now let's talk about the tools that are out there that can help you be successful. Some of these are tools you already have, some you mean may need to set up and implement, and others. You will need to invent on your own. I'll explain. Ready? When you're looking for a tool to help you accomplish something, I want you to think about what are your weaknesses? We wouldn't need these tools to help us if we could do it perfectly on our own. By identifying your weakness, we can then look and identify the tools that will help with that specific weakness. For instance, if you are forgetful, then perhaps you need an alarm. Maybe you need a sign on your mirror. Maybe you need a rock in your shoe, and I know some of you're going, what do you mean a rock in your shoe? How would that help me study the scriptures? At night when you take off your shoes, you could put a rock inside your shoe, and then the next morning when you go to put'em on, you have to take that rock out. And that rock is something you can hold that reminds you, oh, yes, I need to study the scriptures before I leave. And you set the rock down and pick up your scriptures and read, and then you could finish tying your shoes and go out the door. Do you see how even a rock can be a tool to help you if you're forgetful? What if your weakness is that you fall asleep when you're reading? Then I would recommend that you change where you study. Don't study in bed. Don't study right before bed. Find a different time, find a different space where you are not going to fall asleep. If you get distracted easily, then maybe you need to switch to paper scriptures or find a quiet place. You could even enlist the help of your family members to help establish an environment where you have less distractions when you study. These are all tools that can help you. But also important is identifying your strengths. And thinking of ways that you can use those strengths to help you in your scripture study, for instance, if you're super creative, then use paper scriptures and colored pencils so that you can do marking and highlighting and coloring. I've even seen people who will get the study edition of the scriptures, and so they have much wider margins on the sides, and they will illustrate their scriptures. They'll draw pictures on the sides. If you're creative, use that. On the other hand, if you're super analytical, then maybe you could track certain things that you're reading about; you could keep detailed notes. If you're very musical, you could write a song to help you memorize a scripture. What are your strengths and how can you use those in your scripture study? The other tools that are out there that people often forget about are the motivators. So you need to think about what motivates you. Do you love checklists? Because I actually do, when I have a checklist, I'm much more productive. A calendar might do the same thing. Does screen time motivate you? You want screen time? Then you could set a goal for yourself that you're not going to get on a certain app until your scripture study is over. Do you want food? Maybe you could give yourself a favorite snack every time you finish a scripture study session. Or get a favorite chair or a favorite blanket, and you always get to sit there during scripture study. Find what motivates you and what will help you to have a happy and positive experience and use that! This isn't just a chore to check off. This should be an important part of your life. So plan accordingly and put effort into making it a fun and successful time. Now, last week we talked about how the Gospel Library app has a study plan feature, and you can go in and you can track your study plans. The gospel living app also has a goals feature. You just have to go in and enter it yourself. You can break it down into smaller steps and you can put in dates and reminders and all sorts of things. So I would definitely encourage you to use those apps that the church has put out, because they do have some really great features to help you stay on track. So there is so much to consider when you're thinking about the time involved in studying. how much time are you gonna spend? When are you gonna study? Where are you gonna do it? What can help you stay on track? When Russell M. Nelson was an apostle, he gave a talk called Living by Scriptural Guidance, and he gave this fantastic advice. Ready? He said, "I suggest that you shape the style of your study to fit you." And then he gave a couple of different options of how you can study the scriptures. But an apostle of the Lord Russell M. Nelson said that you can shape your scripture study in whatever way works for you. And that absolutely applies when you're thinking about the time commitment. How much time does work for you, and how can you stay on track is gonna be different for each of us. And I think that's by design. The very best time to study is going to be very personal. But this is one way that we get to be really intentional about living the gospel and following the advice of prophets and apostles and the commandments from God. That wonderful talk, Howard W Hunter, I'm gonna go back to it real quick. He says this, okay. Ready? He says "It would be ideal if an hour could be spent each day; but if that much cannot be had a half hour on a regular basis, would result in substantial accomplishment." Substantial accomplishment!. A quarter of an hour is little time. But it is surprising how much enlightenment and knowledge can be acquired in a subject so meaningful. The important thing..." The important thing, are you listening? Most important here... "is to allow nothing else to ever interfere with our study." If you want to be successful in studying your scriptures, the very best way to do it is to commit to it and to be all in. Find a time and stick to it. These questions that I've gone over can help you find that time. When are you going to be most awake? When do you have the most time? When can you focus? Are you a morning person or a night person? And what motivates you? What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses? What good thing can you give up in order to have the best blessings from studying the scriptures? It's up to you to decide, but the Lord will help you if you pray about it, okay? I'm super excited to get into all the nitty gritty of how we study the scriptures, but these topics that we're covering this month are setting us up for success. In the meantime, as you're getting set up, don't forget to be actually studying your scriptures. Go read. Go do something. Read a couple of verses and think about them. If you need a little extra help, you can always go to my website, primarily scripture.com, and you can find free study worksheets there that will give you some ideas to kickstart your study. Thank you so much for being here with me, and I hope you'll take the time to ponder and find a good time to study and make that commitment. It really will make a difference and it will set you up for success in your scripture study. I'm Cindy Young, thanks for being here with me on Primarily Scripture. Thanks for tuning into primarily Scripture with Cindy Young. Don't forget you can subscribe to the newsletter and download free worksheets on the website, primarily scripture.com. And if you like the channel, be sure to subscribe, like, share, and leave a review. See you next time.