It's easy to pick up the Bible and say you intend to read it through in hopes of strengthening your Christian faith. It's easy to tell yourself to finish through four to six chapters a day until you're done reading from Genesis all the way to Revelation. But the question is, did you understand what you just read, which is the Word of God?

Understanding the Bible is no easy task. It requires a great deal of effort and concentration to be able to absorb the best Bible verses the way they were meant to be understood.

In this regard, here are 3 things you must do before you try and study the best verses in the Bible:

1. Familiarize yourself with the basics of Christianity

First and foremost, you want to spend some time to study and get to know the fundamentals of the Christian faith.

Do you know what it means to believe in the suffering of Jesus Christ? Believing in common misconceptions about the faith will only slow down your spiritual growth especially while reading the Bible.

2. Choose the right Bible translation for you

Everyone has different tastes and preferences when it comes to choosing their version of the Bible.

For starters, you should have at least more than one Bible at one. The first one is the same version your pastor uses so it's easier for you to follow along with the sermon. The second is your own personal version, be it KJV, NASB, NIV, ESV, NKJV, etc. Choose whichever is easiest for you to read and comprehend.

3. Learn to study the Bible properly

Reading the Bible and learning God's Word doesn't mean you should speed through the Bible chapters as fast as possible. You won't learn anything that way. Or worse, you might take things out of context.

A rule of the thumb is to read just four to six chapters of the Bible daily, and then stop and pick up the Bible again tomorrow. This should give you ample time to reflect on what you just read while still getting a considerable amount of reading done.

You can't go wrong in your efforts to read the Bible and study God's Word if you follow these three simple Bible-reading tips.