5 Simple Ways to Start Bible Journaling (Without the Fear of Messing Up)

If you’ve ever opened your Bible, pen in hand, and then froze because you were afraid of “ruining” the clean white pages… you are not alone. We see these beautiful, Pinterest-perfect Bibles with elaborate color-coding systems and artistic margins, and we think, “I can’t do that. I’m going to mess it up.”

But here is the truth I want to share with you today: Your Bible is a tool, not a trophy.

A pristine Bible might look nice on a shelf, but a messy, crinkled, ink-stained Bible is evidence of a faith that is being lived in. If perfectionism has been keeping you from diving deeper into the Word, here are five simple permissions to let it go.

1. Don’t Highlight Everything When we start, we feel like every single word is equally huge. But if you highlight everything, you emphasize nothing. Take the pressure off. You don’t need to capture every theological nuance in one sitting. Just look for the one verse that speaks to you today.

2. Ditch the Complicated Systems You do not need a 12-color annotation key before you start reading. If you try to force a system too early, you’ll spend more time thinking about your highlighters than thinking about Jesus. Let your system develop naturally over time. If you want to circle a word, circle it. If you want to underline, underline. Keep it simple.

3. Embrace the “Mess” (and Erasable Pens!) The fear of making a mistake is real! But please, don’t worry about messing up your Bible. I have made a ton of mistakes in mine, and guess what? The Word of God is still powerful, even with a crossed-out note in the margin.

• Pro Tip: If the anxiety is real, grab a set of Frixion Erasable Pens (paid link). Yes, there are rumors about the ink disappearing in extreme heat, but don’t get hung up on that. If an erasable pen is what gets you into the Word today, use it.

4. You Don’t Have to Learn It All Today Bible study is a lifetime relationship, not a cram session for a final exam. You might read a passage today and miss something huge—and that is okay! You have your whole life to uncover new layers. Trust that God will show you exactly what you need for this specific season.

5. Leave Breadcrumbs for Your Future Self Why write in your Bible instead of a notebook? Because you won’t always have that notebook with you five years from now. But you will have your Bible. Writing directly on the pages leaves breadcrumbs for your future self—reminders of what God taught you and how He was faithful in the past.

Ready to see what this looks like in real life? In this week’s video, I’m flipping through my own messy, imperfect pages to show you that you don’t need to be a theologian to start—you just need to be willing to begin.