LISTENING TO GOD'S WORD | Resources + Podcasts

 

I don’t know about you, but my days can get pretty busy. It seems as if I have a birthday party to go to every weekend, or an event, or Bible Study (which I’m not mad at). So some days I’m like, how can I get God’s Word in me? Since I love to plan, at the beginning of each week I can get a feel for whether or not my week is going to be busy or not. Those extra busy weeks are the weeks I need to be extra intentional. 

One of my favorite ways to store God’s Word in my heart while I’m on the go is to listen to it. Some awesome times to listen to God’s Word is when you are: cleaning, driving, showering, getting ready, grocery shopping, cooking, or working! It’s all about being intentional and making time for what’s important.
THE BENEFITS OF LISTENING TO THE WORDWhen you listen to God's Word, details you may not have noticed while reading may jump out at you like never before. This has happened to me multiple times. Whether it’s from me reading too fast, or not paying attention to detail, I can skip over certain things or they may not seem that important to me at the time. But when I’m listening to The Word, I’ll rewind it and replay a certain part of the text over and over again!
LISTENING TO GOD’S WORD ON THE GOYouVersion - YouVersion is one of my favorite apps! It’s one of the most well known Bible apps that almost everyone has on their phone. In the mornings you receive a notification with the verse of the day with a graphic to go along with it. You can add friends on there, which is a way to have them hold you accountable. You can make highlights, notes, and bookmarks. When you get on the app they will have a streak of how many days you have been on back to back, which is encouraging. There are a lot of reading plans/devotions, and with the latest update, you can now do them with friends! But for the sake of this article, the feature I’m going to focus on is the audio Bible. This feature is incredible because you are not limited to listening to one translation, there are lots of options. You can even set a timer for how long you want to listen to the Bible! I think that adds accountability and discipline. And you can listen to any book in the Bible! You can’t get any better than this.
Streetlights Bible - Streetlights Bible is an app and it’s available on YouTube and Apple Music. I love listening to Streetlights Bible because of the music they add in the background. It really gives an extra “umph” to the Word! I will seriously jam out to Streetlights Bible in my car. It is read in the New Living Translation (NLT), which is a downfall for people who do not read from the NLT. However, since it is a thought for thought translation it’s easy to follow along with while you are listening. Another downfall is not every book of the Bible is available. But I do love to listen to it when I get ready in the mornings. 
PODCASTSAnother one of my favorite ways to listen to God's Word is podcasts! I have done a post about some of my favorites on my Instagram, so I'll try and keep this short. *I will add the links to their websites, their Instagram names, and a short description.
The She Proves Faithful Podcast | @sheprovesfaithful - The She Proves Faithful Podcast is hosted by Lauren Hlushak! Oh, this is probably one of my absolute favorite podcasts. At the beginning of each episode, Lauren is either giving a life hack or yummy recipe! Afterwards, she dives into the Word. Her messages are so encouraging and convicting. Her love for the Word spills over into every episode because women are pointed directly to the Truth. I enjoy listening to this podcast while I’m cleaning the house each week, or when I’m driving around town for a while. If you aren’t listening to She Proves Faithful, then what are you doing?   
The Biblically Sound Woman | @thebiblicallysoundwoman - The Biblically Sound Woman is hosted by Ayanna Thomas! This podcast is Gospel-driven and Scripture-focused. Throughout each episode, Ayanna unravels the truth about Scripture. Since each episode is a bit longer, I enjoy listening to them when I have time to rest so I can take notes! There are a few episodes up, but you can check out The Biblically Sound Woman’s website, social media accounts, and YouTube for more! As Ayanna says, “by Scripture we live, by Scripture we die.” 
Uniquely Woman Podcast | @uniquelywoman - Uniquely Woman Podcast is hosted by Lisa Hensley and Phylicia Masonheimer. They are two sweet friends, who talk about all things related to faith and womanhood. I have learned a lot from their podcasts! They have changed the format of the episodes, so they post a new one each week based off of a topic and they’re shorter. I enjoy listening to their podcast in the morning and while I’m cleaning!
Flower Mound Women’s Bible Study | @jenwilkin - Flower Mound Women’s Bible Study is a Bible Study group led by Jen Wilkin. She writes and teaches each of the studies they complete. The episodes are recordings from when she teaches each week! You can find some of the studies for free on her website, or on the shelves at LifeWay. I truly enjoy listening to these episodes because Jen Wilkin is one of my favorites! She rightly divides the Word of Truth and encourages and equips women to do the same. 
Women’s Hope Podcast | @womenshopeproject - Ah, I love love love this podcast! Women’s Hope Podcast is hosted by Kim and Kimberly! These episodes are a bit longer, so I’m warning you. But they are worth listening to. Each week, relevant topics related to faith are discussed. Their most recent series on the fruit of the Spirit was one of my favorites. If you haven’t listened to it yet, then you need to stop reading this and go listen, now!!
Setapartgirl | @setapartgirl - Setapartgirl is a podcast hosted by Leslie Ludy! Two of my favorite things about her episodes is the fact that they are Christ-centered and the length! If I’m looking for a podcast to listen to while I’m getting ready or taking a quick drive to the store, I’ll turn one of her episodes on in a heartbeat! Each episode is about 15 minutes long, so it’s easy to listen while you’re out running errands. 
The Next Right Thing | @emilypfreeman - The Next Right Thing is a podcast hosted by Emily Freeman. I recently discovered this podcast and because of the length of each episode, I started binge listening. The podcast is still fairly new, so there aren’t that many episodes, but that’s ok! I’m enjoying the ones that are available. The growth of this podcast is incredible as well! I think she said in four months there were over 400,000 downloads! I was amazed at that number! Glory to God. This podcast is another one of my go to’s because of the length. They are around 15 minutes, which isn’t bad at all!
The Bible Project | @thebibleproject - The Bible Project is a podcast that my sweet husband has playing 24/7 if he isn’t listening to sermons from Elevation Church or Renovation Church. If we’re around the house or in the car and he’s driving, he more than likely has this podcast playing and I enjoy listening to them! They are focused on the Word, and pretty much nothing but the Word. If you’re looking for an in-depth podcast, then this is the one for you!
Renovation Church | @renovationatl - Renovation Church is a church based out of Atlanta, GA. Their lead pastor is Leonce Crump! He really tears it up. I enjoy his style of teaching because he literally breaks down the Word verse by verse and gives the context of the text. I think this is extremely beneficial for new believers, and seasoned believers, because not only will they be encouraged by his message, but they will truly learn about God’s Word. I highly recommend listening to this podcast! You won’t regret it.
I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119:11, ESV)
What are some ways you like to listen to God’s Word? If you listen to a podcast or have a resource that I didn’t list, please feel free to do so in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.
This post was originally published on December 25, 2017.