5 Reasons Why Kids Won’t Read the Bible They’ve Been Given

Growing up, my twin sister and I had a bunch of Bibles. Ones we’d been given at school. Ones we’d been given at church. Ones we’d been given by godparents. Ones that belonged to our parents and had somehow made it onto our own bookshelves. There were so many Bibles in our home that when the Gideons came to our school to hand everyone a copy of the New Testament, I politely declined.

Christians love to give kids Bibles! Which is wonderful. 

But the sad truth is, many of these Bibles end up just gathering dust. 

There are many reasons why kids might not actually read the Bible they’ve been given. Here are just a few—and some thoughts on how to help!

1. They don’t realise how important it is

If a child has grown up in a Christian home or attended a Christian school, it can be easy for them to take the Bible for granted—letting it become part of the background. They never think of looking at it properly for themselves, just like they never question their parents’ carpets or curtains.

Meanwhile, for those who haven’t had much connection with Christianity, the Bible is likely to seem like an irrelevant piece of ancient history. “Christians read the Bible, and I’m not a Christian, so why would I look at it?”

Kids need to know that the Bible is the most important book they’ll ever read. That’s true even from a cultural, historical standpoint, even without any interest in God—this book has changed the world! And, as we know, it can change us too.

Things to try:

• Tell them about the difference the Bible has made in history.
• Talk about how transformative it’s been in your own life!

2. They don’t understand it

There’s always at least one kid who turns up on the camp I help lead each summer clutching a King James Bible. I have to say, it’s not the translation I’d personally turn to for a 10-year-old! But even in a modern version, there’s a lot to confuse and perplex—vocabulary, cultural differences, references to elsewhere in the Bible… And let’s not get started on all those intimidatingly unpronounceable names!

But this doesn’t necessarily mean that kids can’t read a grown-up Bible. Actually, it’s possible that their incomplete understanding is a good thing—it means they will be able to spend their whole lives getting to know this text, and the God it describes.

Things to try:

• Draw kids’ attention to parts of Scripture that are easier to read.
• Provide them with a simple list of Bible word definitions that they can refer to.
• Encourage them that it’s okay if they don’t understand everything!

3. They think they know it

Many kids think they know the Bible because they’ve heard certain stories dozens of times. Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jonah… But take them into the details and they’ll realise there’s much more to these stories than they realised. And then there are all the vast tracts of Scripture that their storybook Bible never covered at all. 

Let’s do everything we can to stop them checking out with just a basic version of Noah plus a few parables!

Things to try:

• Take them to a familiar story, but encourage them to read it in short chunks and zero in on the details.
• Suggest some stories or passages they’ll never have heard before. For example, read the whole story of David, not just the part with Goliath.
• Give them Bible reading notes that will help them go deeper.

4. They’re not sure it’s good or trustworthy

A 12-year-old girl at my church recently told me with great confidence that the Bible has changed over time: “They’ve added bits in and taken bits away.” It’s a surprisingly common belief. Add in the suspicion that science may have disproved what the Bible says, and you have a young person whose basic assumption is that the Bible is not trustworthy. 

Or perhaps they think it’s not good. “Is God really all-wise? What about all those things he did in the Old Testament? And what if I want to live my life my own way?”

Things to try:

• Invite them to air their doubts and questions.
• Encourage them to read kid-friendly apologetics books (like Chris Morphew’s The Big Questions series).
• Draw their attention to passages and verses that they’ll find helpful in their lives.

5. They don’t have a routine

One of the best pieces of advice I received in my childhood was from my dad, who instructed me that if I wanted to read the Bible for myself, I was going to need to do it at the same time every day. I needed to make it a habit.

Some families are more routine-based than others, but every family does have things they do every day—from brushing teeth to eating dinner. So it should be possible for most children to find a consistent 5 or 10 minute slot for Bible reading and prayer. If they can make this a habit in their childhood, it’s all the more likely to last a lifetime! 

Things to try:

• Encourage them to pick their own time slot and place. It could be every day or every week.
• Help them make their Bible-reading place really nice so that they want to go there!

A little something to help

It’s with all these things in mind that I wrote A Short Guide to the Bible, which is designed to help kids go from owning a Bible to reading a Bible—as well as to help those kids who are already reading it to get the most out of it.

Across 32 illustrated pages, it includes:

• Facts about how the Bible came to be and the impact it has had in history
• A simple Bible dictionary
• A list of helpful verses that connect with kids’ lives
• Several short reading plans
• Advice about forming a habit of Bible reading
• Visual timelines to help kids understand the overall structure of the Bible and its story
• FAQs covering some common doubts about the Bible and Christianity
• … and more!

My hope and prayer is that as kids read this booklet, they’ll find themselves becoming more and more excited about the most important book they’ll ever read—God’s word!