Why do so many Christians give up on the Psalms?
Reading the Psalms can be wonderful. But it can also be deeply frustrating.
Many Christians start with great faith and enthusiasm. Then they give up. Why? Because they make simple mistakes that derail the whole experience. These are not character flaws — they are method flaws.
The good news is that every one of these mistakes has a solution. You do not have to repeat what others have already learned the hard way. In this article, we will show the 7 most common mistakes when reading the Psalms — and, more importantly, how to fix each one.
As we explored in How to Read the Psalms, the key is correct practice. Mistakes get in the way. Let us fix them.
Before we dive into each mistake, however, there is a consideration many people overlook: fixing reading mistakes is not just about avoiding what hinders — it is about cultivating what transforms. There is a fundamental difference between reading the Psalms about God and reading them with God. That distinction, subtle as it seems, separates religious reading from living reading. If you have not yet explored the foundation behind that difference, understanding what it means to read the Psalms with a prepared heart is the step that precedes any correction of habits.
Mistake 1: Reading too fast
Intentional repetition produces depth. Slowness is not weakness — it is wisdom. See also Psalms for Every Moment of the Day to incorporate slow, deliberate reading into your daily rhythm.
Slowness opens doors that rushing keeps closed. But beyond pace, there is another equally treacherous obstacle: what we do when the text makes us uncomfortable. Many readers, when they encounter a passage that disturbs them, choose the path of avoidance. And that is where the second mistake begins.
Mistake 2: Skipping the difficult parts
The Psalms of lament have much to teach about processing difficult emotions with God. Avoiding them means losing half the treasure.
Skipping difficult parts and seeking only comfort are two sides of the same coin. One protects from the pain of the text; the other protects from the pain of growth. Both, in the end, keep the reader small. The Psalms were made to expand the soul — not to preserve its comfort.
Mistake 3: Only seeking comfort
A psalmist once wrote: "Before I was afflicted I went astray." The difficulty came. He learned. So can you. Just as building a daily prayer habit requires openness to change, reading the Psalms requires openness to being changed.
Comfort and confrontation are two instruments in the same orchestra. But to hear them both clearly, you need to know the setting in which the music was composed — and that is where many people make the next mistake, perhaps the quietest of all: ignoring the historical soil from which each Psalm grew.
Mistake 4: Ignoring the historical context
Each type of Psalm has its own context. Understanding the 6 types of Psalms prevents shallow readings and opens the path to readings that change lives.
Knowing historical context is the map. But the map is not the journey — and that is where many readers stop. They read the Psalm, understand the context, and then close the Bible without changing anything in their life. There is an ancient philosophical question hiding in that tension between knowledge and transformation: what is the point of knowing, if knowing does not lead to changing? The contemplative traditions understood that sacred reading is not an intellectual exercise — it is an encounter. And true encounters always leave a mark. If you want to understand why some readers of the Psalms leave transformed while others leave merely informed, the natural next step is to deepen the way of reading, not just the content of what is read. That invitation lives in How to Read the Psalms: A Practical Guide to Transform Your Soul.
Mistake 5: Not applying it to your life
Application begins when you turn the Psalm into personal prayer. It is the most important step between reading and transformation.
Applying the Psalm to personal life is an individual act. But the Psalms were written for communities — and ignoring that communal dimension is also a common mistake, especially today, when devotion has become increasingly private and isolated.
Mistake 6: Always reading alone
Faith grows in the sharing. This connects with what we explored in Bible Verses of Gratitude — gratitude spoken aloud transforms more than gratitude kept in silence.
Reading in community solves the problem of isolation. But even the most dedicated readers sometimes face a purely practical obstacle: Psalms that seem too long to finish. And that is where the final mistake comes in — perhaps the most conquerable of all.
Mistake 7: Giving up on long Psalms
A good routine prevents abandonment. Small daily steps conquer any Psalm. Also use our Verse Generator to find the right Psalm for each moment of your day.
Quick reference: the 7 mistakes and their solutions
Use this as a reference before opening the Psalms:
| Mistake | Solution |
|---|---|
| Reading too fast | Read one Psalm per week |
| Skipping difficult parts | Ask what God wants to teach |
| Only seeking comfort | Accept confrontation too |
| Ignoring historical context | Find out who, when, and why |
| Not applying to life | Ask: "What should I do?" |
| Always reading alone | Share with others |
| Giving up on long Psalms | Break them into small sections |
A prayer asking for help reading the Psalms well
Before you can fix a mistake, you need to want to fix it. And that desire begins with an honest prayer. Read it aloud if you can.
If you want to deepen your prayer life using the Psalms, use our Prayer Generator. It transforms any Psalm into a personalized prayer for your moment.
Prayer changes the reader before it changes the reading. When you pray asking for help to read the Psalms better, something happens that no method alone can produce: the heart becomes willing to receive. It is this interior disposition that the ancients called lectio divina — sacred reading that listens more than it decodes. Understanding how that disposition is cultivated is, ultimately, what makes any reading of the Psalms truly transformative. A path toward cultivating it lives in How to Read the Psalms: A Practical Guide to Transform Your Soul — not as a formula, but as an invitation to a deeper encounter with the Word.
How to know if you are reading the Psalms correctly
You have addressed the mistakes. But how do you know if your reading is going well? These are the signs of a healthy reading practice:
- You are not in a rush when you read
- You do not skip parts that make you uncomfortable
- You pray with what you read
- You apply something from it during the week
- You share it with someone
- You return to the same Psalm months later and discover something new
If this is happening, you are on the right path. If not, choose one mistake from the list above. Fix it one at a time. No guilt. No rush. Psalm 23 is perfect for practicing these corrections — it is short, deep, and transformative.
To find the right Psalm for each moment of your day, see our complete guide: Psalms for Every Moment of the Day.
Quick summary
- Mistake 1: Reading too fast → Fix: read slowly, one Psalm per week
- Mistake 2: Skipping difficult parts → Fix: ask what God is teaching
- Mistake 3: Only seeking comfort → Fix: accept confrontation too
- Mistake 4: Ignoring context → Fix: find out who wrote it and why
- Mistake 5: Not applying → Fix: ask "what should I do?"
- Mistake 6: Always reading alone → Fix: share with others
- Mistake 7: Giving up on long Psalms → Fix: divide into sections
Conclusion
You do not need to be perfect to read the Psalms. Everyone makes mistakes. David made mistakes. Asaph made mistakes. You will too. The difference lies in correcting them.
Choose one mistake today. Apply the solution for one week. You will notice a difference. Reading the Psalms will shift from frustration to transformation.
The mistakes you have learned to avoid here make far more sense when anchored in a positive method of reading. To consolidate what you have learned and build that solid foundation, return to the main article: How to Read the Psalms. There you will find the groundwork that turns the correction of mistakes into lasting growth.
God does not grow tired of you trying. He only asks that you keep going. Read slowly. Pray always. Apply everything. The Psalms will change your soul.
✦ What you learned in this article
- ⏩Mistake 1: Reading too fast — read one Psalm per week, let the poetry breathe
- 🙈Mistake 2: Skipping difficult parts — David brought his anger to God, so can you
- 🛋️Mistake 3: Only seeking comfort — confrontation is also grace
- 📜Mistake 4: Ignoring historical context — who wrote it, when, and why changes everything
- 🔄Mistake 5: Not applying — turn the Psalm into prayer and action today
- 👥Mistake 6: Always reading alone — share it, faith grows in community
- 📖Mistake 7: Giving up on long Psalms — 8 verses a day conquers Psalm 119 in 22 days