The importance of Research for a Visual Bible Study

A bible study  tool for a visual learner

Just this week some of my colleagues and I had a quick briefing on events and activities we are planning for youth day celebrations at our school. When we sat down, I was the only one with pen and paper! I have to write things down to help me have a clear picture in my mind and to understand the process of the follow-up activities. I then took the preliminary ideas and compiled a program of events. As we receive confirmation of speakers and activities, I add them to our preliminary program until we were satisfied.

When it comes to Bible study, I previously used to write down scripture and information; but since I started to study scripture by doodling the Word of God, I am BRAINSTORMING with the Holy Spirit! This way of studying the Bible helps me to find information through reading, analyzing, inferencing, and concluding the chapter I’m studying.

The role of the Holy spirit

If we claim that the Word of God is our true source of living, we are in the school of the Holy Spirit.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

John 14:26

The Holy Spirit is the ideal teacher Who knows how to deal with us individually. It is so amazing to know that I can be myself and that I am being supported by God’s Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us to see the hidden messages, helping us with interpreting data in line with the Word of God.

An example of making inferences in the Word of God

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning…

Luke 24:1

When I studied the resurrection of Jesus, most specifically the actions of the brave women who went to His grave, I envisioned an early morning scene. With this image in mind, I infer that :

• It must have been during the early morning watch between 6 am and 9 am.
• It means that they were already up and praying seeking God’s face, asking for strength and direction for their day.

So, I did some research on how the Jews usually started their day and their prayer habits and I came across the 8 biblical prayer watches.

While I was studying the book of Nehemiah , I was intrigued by the biblical months. I took on a special study on the biblical calendar and that gave me more insight into the angle of Nehemiah’s story.

Why is it necessary for research when doing a Bible study?

Bible study is a form of worship, by eagerly engaging with the Holy Spirit, preparing our hearts and mind to receive revelation.

• Researching keywords help me to create doodles.
• It explains the scripture and highlights and brings out the theme in the chapter.
• Using other translations brings out the context of the passage.

Here are some of my Doodle studies.

• In season verse study

• Bearing fruit doodle study

With some visual studies, I have to prepare by doing some research and this involves engaging with the Word of God in a more intense way.

I absolutely love this way of studying the Bible!I started with doodle bible study challenges with my own children and it’s amazing how they interpret the Word of God, but more about this in another post.