“Personalize Your Gospel Study,” New Era, April 2017
Personalize Your Gospel Study
Check out these tips for studying the gospel and finding answers to your spiritual questions.
How do you study when you’re looking for answers to a spiritual question or even just trying to better understand the scriptures? I mean you—personally. Everyone has different study habits for school, but sometimes we forget that we can individualize our gospel study too. The next time you have a spiritual or doctrinal question, try some of these tips to figure out what might work best for you.
1. Create
Make a list, a chart, or a map. (See below for an example.)
Make a study web. Write down words and ideas and then connect them with lines and bubbles to show how they’re related.
2. Write
Record thoughts and impressions you receive during your scripture study in a study journal and review those thoughts often.
Write down your thoughts and impressions after your prayers, even if the impressions aren’t directly related to the topic you’re studying. See what the Spirit is teaching you over time.
Jot down your questions in a notebook, on your phone, or on a notepad by your bed to remind you and to help you keep thinking about what you’re learning every day.
3. Listen and Discuss
Talk to a parent or trusted leader. Work it out together. It might take a while, but you’ll both grow in the process.
Teach someone else. Take turns sharing what you do know. Discuss what you learned from each other.
Listen to scriptures or other LDS stories and resources out loud.
4. Research
Search study helps in the scriptures and online (see below for a list of helpful LDS resources).
Search on LDS.org for videos and songs about what you’re studying.
Study context. Research the history or the chapters surrounding the topic or scripture you’re studying.
5. Do
Act out stories from the scriptures or other resources. How does putting yourself in that person’s shoes help you better understand what you’re studying? What would similar situations look like in your life?
Make a scripture chain that connects answers you find in the scriptures. (See right for an example.)