Welcome to the 8th interview in our Dwelling Richly series!

I have the absolute privilege of meeting other servants in church ministry. Sometimes I get to not only meet someone, but spend extra time listening and learning from their experiences.

One of these servants is Gretchen Fant. Gretchen is a pastor’s wife, mom to 5 grown children, and grandma to 8 adorable kiddos. One of the ministries Gretchen has is to host a monthly prayer meeting for area ministry wives. Although I’m not exactly local, I love making time to attend these valuable and encouraging meetups. During my brainstorming sessions for this series, I knew I wanted her to be a part because of her practical, “tell it like it is” approach. May you be edified and drawn closer to God & His Word through this interview!

I always pray first, because I think prayer is harder than Bible study. I try to remember to always pray for God to open my eyes to His truth (Ps. 119:18), and then I commit to Him that whatever He shows me I will believe and obey.

I read daily even if I don’t feel like it. If you don’t discipline yourself to read every day, it will get easier to stay away from the Word, and you will lose your desire for it.

Being in school under a lot of pressure made it very difficult for me to maintain a desire to meet with the Lord. I never could figure out how to overcome that, other than to continue to read regularly even when I didn’t want to.

Another difficult time was when I had an infant. So when I got up in the middle of the night to nurse I would try to read or meditate on Scripture.

I always have my computer open, and if a passage comes alive to me I write down everything I can learn about that passage.

Precept materials have given me a love for the Word like I have never had before. I especially love the Precept Upon Precept Bible studies and the New Inductive Study Series. I use Accordance software, which includes the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BK). BK Commentary is a huge help with difficult passages.

I like to study inductively. Before studying a passage I try to read the entire book a few times. I love to do block outlining and word studies on passages. After I have studied, then I will look at helps such as the BK commentary and others.

I would always try to get up before them. I tend to be very scheduled, so I had regular nap times for my children. If I couldn’t read in the morning, I would try during their naps. I almost never watch TV, I think too much TV tends to take away my desire to spend time in the Word.

I didn’t learn how to study the Bible for myself until my children were all older, so I was not able to teach them how to do it. If parents want to instill a love for God’s Word in their children, the best thing they can do is develop a love for the Word themselves. But they can’t keep what they are learning to themselves!

They should talk about it, relate it to the circumstances in life, etc.—just as God instructs in Deut 18:11-20. Children instinctively know what their parents value in life, and often they will adopt the same values without even realizing it.

Gretchen Fant is the wife of Dr. Marshall Fant, III, pastor of Harvest Baptist Church in Rock Hill, SC. They have five children and eight grandchildren. In her spare time Gretchen enjoys baking, home decorating, sewing and smocking. She has a Bachelor’s degree in French and a Master’s degree in Education.  Gretchen teaches ladies’ Bible studies and serves in the counseling ministry at Harvest Baptist.

Find all the Dwelling Richly interviews!