Most of us come to the Bible the same way.

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We open it with good intentions. We read a few verses — maybe a chapter — and then we hit something confusing, or violent, or just strange, and we quietly close it again. Not because we don't care. Because nobody ever taught us how.

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That's not a faith problem. That's a literacy problem. And it has a solution.

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My name is Denise Haskins. I'm an ordained United Methodist pastor and a biblical educator — and I've spent my entire adult life sitting between complex things and the people who need to understand them: between ancient texts and modern congregations, between theological depth and everyday language, between what Scripture actually says and what we've always assumed it means.

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Before I was a pastor, I was a database administrator and a computer applications instructor. Which sounds like a strange detour, but it wasn't — it was the same job. Find the complexity. Build the bridge. Trust people to cross it.

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I earned my M.Div. from Wesley Theological Seminary in my forties, in the middle of a life that was already full. I've served congregations in pastoral ministry for over twelve years. I've taught Scripture in sanctuary settings, in classrooms, in living rooms, and across a kitchen table. What I've learned from all of it: people are hungry for this. They just need someone to go first.

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Wannabe Disciples exists because biblical literacy shouldn't be a privilege reserved for people with seminary degrees or perfect Sunday school attendance. The tools to read Scripture well — to understand its context, its languages, its literary forms, its ancient world — those tools belong to everyone.

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Here you'll find free biblical literacy videos, devotional content, and resources for anyone who wants to understand Scripture better. More is on the way — but everything here is designed for real people with real schedules, wherever you're starting from.

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You just have to be willing to look closer.

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I'm still a learner. I tell my congregations that regularly, and I mean it. The more I study, the more I find there is to study — and I have never once found that disappointing. The Bible keeps opening. There is always more.

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You don't have to know everything. You just have to begin.

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Welcome. I'm glad you're here.