Podcast Summary: "How to Read and Deeper Understand the Bible"

Stay True with Madison Prewett Troutt
Guests: Amanda Bible Williams and Rachel Myers (She Reads Truth)
Release Date: January 19, 2026

Episode Overview

Madison Prewett Troutt welcomes Amanda Bible Williams and Rachel Myers, the co-founders of She Reads Truth, for a rich conversation on practical Bible reading. They explore the heartbeat behind their ministry, share their personal journeys, and offer actionable wisdom for women (and all listeners) who want to dive deeper into the Bible. The trio dissects the challenges of connecting with scripture today, discerns pitfalls of secondhand revelation, and shares enthusiastic, encouraging advice for all—from nervous beginners to seasoned readers.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin & Mission of She Reads Truth

• How it started: Rachel and Amanda recount beginning She Reads Truth in 2012 as young moms, needing accountability and a personal return to the Bible.
  • Rachel Myers (05:47): “Nobody was trying to do anything except meet with Jesus in his word, praise God, that's what we were trying to do... it was just really the Lord moving, specifically in our homes, but also just in the hearts of actual hundreds of thousands of women around the world.”
• Community first: What started as mutual encouragement among strangers online blossomed into a global daily Bible reading movement.
• Enduring mission statement: “Women in the Word of God every day” is still their guiding principle.
  • Rachel Myers (08:29): “Our mission statement... is women in the Word of God every day... When we said Word of God, we meant scripture and just as much we meant Jesus because he is the Word of God.”

2. Why Read the Bible Daily?

• Relational, not ritual: Bible reading is about knowing God, not checking a box.
  • Amanda Bible Williams (13:51): “The end goal... is not to check that box... it’s to know God.”
• Role modeling: The lifelong habit of reading the Bible openly impacts children and future generations.
  • Rachel Myers (17:00): Shares how her son, now in college, was shaped by seeing her in the Word daily.
• Invitation of Scripture: The unique accessibility and relational invitation of the Bible was emphasized.
  • Amanda Bible Williams (16:09): “We serve a God who wants to be known... He has given us Scripture, His Word as a way for us to know Him.”

3. Overcoming Barriers to Reading

• For the overwhelmed and overstimulated:
  • The world creates distraction; physical and online resources can anchor people in regular Bible reading.
  • Madison (12:00): “The world we live in today is very overstimulating. It's overwhelming... we even can look at the Bible and be like, I don't know where to start.”
• Don’t settle for secondhand faith: The dangers of outsourcing your spiritual nutrition—emphasizing the necessity of firsthand revelation.
  • Madison (21:09): “It’s become so easy in today’s world to just take in all of this content and to rely on other people’s revelation... rather than cultivate that yourself.”

4. Practical Tips for Bible Engagement

• Where to start:
  • Follow curated reading plans (like She Reads Truth).
  • Read whole books, not just verses; pair Old and New Testament passages.
  • Rachel Myers (22:31): “We let scripture interpret scripture... If you read with She Reads Truth for a year, you will have read whole swaths of the Bible.”
• Accountability & Community:
  • Reading with others brings encouragement and correction.
  • Amanda Bible Williams (26:27): “The community piece, it is so crucial... we also need accountability on how we’re interpreting and processing, because it’s an old book... we need tools to dig deep—and one of those tools is the community of believers.”
• It’s okay not to be a natural reader:
  • Audio Bibles are valid and historical!
  • Rachel Myers (35:27): “Nobody had 3.5 Bibles per household. How were they interacting with the Word? They were listening to it... the early church primarily learned the scriptures and knew them [by listening].”
• Build the habit—don’t expect instant delight:
  • Treat Bible reading and memorization as building a muscle.

5. Cultivating Reverence for Scripture

• Contemporary disregard:
  • Many treat the Bible casually; the US has Bible abundance but spiritual famine.
  • Rachel Myers (32:21): “Don’t starve yourself. Don’t fast scripture when you are invited to feast.”
• A range of faithful options:
  • There is freedom in how you approach the Bible—read whole letters in one go, or meditate deeply on a few verses.
  • Rachel Myers (43:23): “You can spend 15 minutes reading Galatians. You can spend 15 minutes reading those two verses... Both are meaningful and delightful.”

6. The Goal: Knowing God, Not Just Knowing Facts

• It’s not about mastery:
  • Even experts don’t exhaust the riches of scripture. The primary task is relational, not informational.
  • Amanda Bible Williams (50:47): “Perhaps exhausting the knowledge of Scripture isn’t the point. Because the point is knowing God.”
• Checking yourself:
  • Regularly ask: Is the Bible shaping me—or am I trying to shape it to fit my life?
  • Rachel Myers (56:46): “Often we feel tempted to sort of conform scripture to us rather than reform us by His Word.”

7. Navigating a Sea of Voices & Information (AI, Internet, “Almost Right”)

• Discernment in the digital age:
  • There’s more “almost right” content than ever; discernment is crucial.
  • Rachel Myers (64:55): “Discernment isn’t knowing the difference between right and wrong. Discernment is knowing the difference between right and almost right.”
• AI and Bible reading:
  • Use AI as a tool, not a substitute for spiritual engagement.
  • Madison (65:53): “You can’t chat GPT your way to intimacy with Jesus... don’t use it as a replacement or a substitution for the true source of truth.”
• Personal engagement is essential:
  • Amanda Bible Williams (67:32): “My caution would be... don’t write [the Bible] off as not true before you have encountered the Bible and the God of the Bible and the story of Jesus...”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Opening wisdom:
  • “Discernment isn’t knowing the difference between right and wrong. Discernment is knowing the difference between right and almost right.”
    — Rachel Myers, 00:50
• True Bible reading purpose:
  • “The end goal of being women in the Word of God every day is not to check that box. It’s to know God.”
    — Amanda Bible Williams, 01:01 / 13:51
• On secondhand revelation:
  • “You can’t chat GPT your way to intimacy with Jesus.”
    — Madison Prewett Troutt, 18:18 / 65:53
• Relational, not rule-following:
  • “When we start to forget the person of Jesus in and before and behind what we are reading, then... that becomes a problem.”
    — Amanda Bible Williams, 49:32
• The Bible is for you:
  • “Don’t starve yourself. Don’t fast scripture when you are invited to feast... There is an actual Bible famine, there is Bible poverty in the world, and we have a feast before us.”
    — Rachel Myers, 32:21
• Regular realignment:
  • “If I can’t think of a time in the last week where scripture redirected me a little bit or outright rebuked me... maybe I need to read a little bit more.”
    — Rachel Myers, 45:03

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:50 — The nature of discernment in Christian life (Rachel)
• 05:47–09:27 — She Reads Truth origin story & its mission
• 12:00 — Overstimulation and practical overwhelm in Bible reading today
• 13:51 — The ultimate purpose of reading isn’t legalism but knowing God
• 17:00 — Impact on children & generational faith from Bible habits
• 21:09 — The trap of secondhand revelation versus firsthand engagement
• 22:31 — How to start reading your Bible and use curated plans
• 26:27 — The necessity of community and accountability
• 35:27 — Audio Bibles and how early Christians engaged with Scripture
• 43:23 — “Range of faithful options”—freedom in Bible engagement
• 49:32 — Re-centering on the person of Jesus in Bible reading
• 50:47 — The inexhaustibility of Scripture’s riches
• 56:46 — Importance of aligning ourselves to Scripture (not vice versa)
• 64:55 — “Almost right,” discernment, and the dangers of digital shortcuts

Resources Mentioned

• The Bible is For You (She Reads Truth’s latest resource)
• SheReadsTruth.com – for reading plans, devotionals, and community
• She Reads Truth Podcast and mobile app
• Memorization and communal reading (Acts, Psalms for Lent, etc.)

Final Encouragement

The episode closes with a heartfelt challenge and invitation: whatever your stage or comfort level, “The Bible is for you.” Try engaging directly, seek out others for mutual growth, and trust that in pursuing scripture, you’re ultimately pursuing relationship with a God who deeply desires to be known.

“The quickest way for me to forget myself is to look at him.”
— Amanda Bible Williams (57:30)

“You can’t chat GPT your way to intimacy with Jesus.”
— Madison Prewett Troutt (65:53)

Find more:

• SheReadsTruth.com
• She Reads Truth App
• Follow on Instagram: @shereadstruth

(Summary reflects content up to the 73:50 mark, excluding advertisements and outro.)