People often ask me how I find time to read. It changes in every season, but right now, one way that I’m getting consistent reading in almost every single day is by starting my day with time in God’s Word and a little time in a good book.
I usually get up at least 30 minutes to an hour before the rest of the family and this early morning time is a sacred, soul-filling oasis for me.
I light a candle, make a cup of coffee, write in my Gratitude Journal, spend time reading and journaling as part of the She Reads Truth study, pray over my day/for people & situations in my life, and read at least 5-10 pages of an encouraging book.
All of this usually only takes me 25-35 minutes, but it starts my day in such a calming, quieting, refreshing way. It also guarantees that — even if I have a very full rest of the day — I’ve gotten in a little reading. And those 5-10 pages of reading every day add up to at least one finished book every month!
I just finished Finding Spiritual Whitespace yesterday (it was SO, SO good — just what I needed for this season) and am excited to start Roots & Sky today!
(It’s Day #15 of the Go to Bed Early Challenge and I’m happy to report that I was in bed by 10 pm last night and got the best night’s sleep I’ve gotten all week long — yay!!)
How do YOU fit in reading? What are YOU reading right now?
Are you joining me for the Go to Bed Early Challenge? If so, leave a comment on this post to let me know how you did with your go-to-bed goal last night.
We’re in this together… And if you didn’t hit your goal, that’s okay! Give yourself grace, don’t beat yourself up, and know that you can try again tomorrow!
P.S. Read more about the Go to Bed Early Challenge here. Need some help and inspiration to go to bed early so you can get up and use your mornings well? Download Day 1 of Make Over Your Mornings for free (scroll to the bottom of this page to sign up for it!)
I find it very difficult to find time to read. I used to be an avid reader and miss those days. One of my goals this year has been to read at least one book a month but so far this month, I haven’t even gotten started on my book.
I’m doing better at sleeping by 10 and up by 6.
I try to read for 15 minutes at the beginning of my kids’ naptime each day. Sometimes it turns in to longer, but I know I will feel more “fulfilled” if I’ve read for at least a bit of time.
Besides that, my best tip is to have a good book to read!! Though I know there are lots of free Kindle books available, I find that actual edited-by-a-publishing-house, in-print books tend to be more “high-quality” (generally speaking) than some of the ones available free electronically. So, I try to always have some good books on hold at the library, then have that book accessible around the house.
There are lots of good book recommendations available online… I had a friend who recently gave me her list of books that her book club has read for the past several years, so I printed it out and have been making my way through the list!
Lately, I’m trying to avoid turning on the computer until the evening, which helps too. i don’t have a smart phone, so that helps me suck up my “reading” time on the internet. Like someone else commented. I do read a lot – but it’s facebook, Pinterest, blogs, etc.! Obviously, there’s nothing wrong with those things (especially since I love reading blogs like this one), but I do find it more fulfilling to read a “real” book.
I fit my Bible Reading in in the morning, but I fear if I started a book-I’d never stop reading. So, I usually read on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, when we are home. These days I usually read at least 2 chapters. I also sometimes read in the evening after the kids go to bed, if I don’t have computer work to do. I want to get more consistent with reading almost daily, though, because there are so many books I want to read.
I have been doing pretty well with the “go to bed early challenge” this week. Sometimes I have been a few minutes latter than I want to be, but it’s going good for the most part. The other day when we had church, we left as soon as my husband finished his ushering duties and actually got home around 9:35. That left plenty of time for me to wind down before my 10:30 bedtime. Yipee!
I love that you are having these quiet times in the morning. 🙂 How wonderful for you! I know how much you need it, and I’m glad you have made it a priority.
I am a bathtub reader, its the one time that i usually, not always but usually get time for me and i like to read books during those times.
I read all the time…on Facebook and Pinterest. Yikes! I do get my morning bible time in, but not as much book reading as I’d like. I’ve got to work on staying off the social media so I can spend more time filling my head with good things.
I like read from anywhere I am whenever I have a free couple of minutes. I get some time at night to read but with a wife and 2 kids and tons of work to do, there never seems to be enough reading time.
So I grab a bunch of books from Kindle Unlimited (just $10 a month) and read on my iPhone, whenever I can throughout the day – a few minutes here and there.
There’s no longer any reason to be frustrated when waiting on someone or something – you can just whip out your phone and open Kindle and be learning or get transported to a new place!
I love the iPhone Kindle app! I use it at the gym and when I’m waiting for a train (we have a ridiculous amount of trains in our town). Although I prefer reading on my Kindle, using the app is easier than lugging my Kindle around with me.
We’ve got a post going up this afternoon more about the Kindle App — because I love it so much, too!
I’m not currently reading anything, but when I do I read right before bed! It’s the perfect wind-down for me.
I ride the city bus to work and it’s about a 20-25 minute commute both ways, so I always have a book with me to read. My husband and I don’t have cell-phones, so a good book is always close at hand instead of a cell-phone.
It’s a real challenge to find time to read! But the two best tips I can offer are
1. Keep your book in your purse so if you get caught waiting to pick up the kids, you have something fun to do, and
2. Keep the book in the bathroom! You know you’ll be going there and you may as well have something constructive to do!
I’m currently re-reading Crystal’s The Money Saving Mom’s Budget to implement more of her budgeting tips!
Great tips!!