The American Bible Society has released its 12th annual “State of the Bible” survey, which analyzes the cultural opinions on the Word of God. In the study, researchers found an encouraging statistic: 92% of Bible-reading American citizens said that the message of the Bible has changed their life.
The researchers shared, “Ultimately, Bible use isn’t only about opening a book or an app. It’s about interacting with God. And when people connect with God in Scripture, their lives change, their attitudes change, their values change.
The poll also found that 38% of people who do not regularly read the Bible said its message was life-changing.
The researchers said of this statistic:
“Some of these people attend church occasionally and might receive the transforming message there. Others may have been transformed by the Bible in past experiences, though they apparently have discontinued their personal Bible reading. Perhaps some have a friend or family member speaking biblical truth to them. In any case, it’s remarkable that such a sizable portion of those who aren’t reading the Bible much say they’ve been transformed by it.”
Though these numbers are very encouraging, the poll also shared that the number of those who are largely disengaged with the Bible has grown from 136 million to 145 million in the last four years. 
Over that same time frame, the number of those actively engaged in scripture has decreased from 66 million to 49 million.
The survey of 2,598 adults conducted from Jan. 10-28 defines “Bible users” as those who said they interacted with the Bible at least three to four times a year.
John Farquhar Plake, the director of ministry intelligence for the American Bible Society, reacted to the findings of the survey in a statement: “While we’ve reported that there has been a sharp decline in Bible reading, nearly 60 million people who engage with the Bible less than three times per year say it has had a transformative impact on their lives. Our research shows that consistent interaction with God’s Word changes us.”
