Spiritual Growth: Reading God's Word Daily

Read-Through-the-Bible-Program

For Shirkers and Slackers

Maybe you’re one of those people who opens their Bible at Genesis on January 1, and by December 31—right on schedule—you’re finishing up for the year in Revelation.

If that doesn’t sound like you, welcome to the club! Most of us aren’t as left-brained linear as that, or as disciplined. And really, why should we read the Bible straight through, from page 1 to page 879?

Today, I’d like to present a plan that makes more sense. And I’m going to give it a try myself. Here’s the skinny from Margie Haack at Ransom Fellowship who sold me on this unique concept. Listen to Margie's story...

Weekly Reading Cycle

"…When Denis discovered a read-through-the-Bible-plan which he called 'Reading for Biblical Literacy,' I was cautious about it. After all, I was a veteran who’d tried everything. It first came to his attention through Douglas Kelly’s book Why Pray? The basic plan dates from the time of the Puritans. It was given to him by Venus Brooks, a pastor from the Lumbee Indian tribe. Dr. Kelly writes, 'Its special value is that it gives you a varied diet by exposing you to different parts of Scripture each day while providing continuity... It is sheer grace, by causing you to return to the same section on the same day of the week all through the year.'

So throughout the year you read . . .

Sunday: The books of poetry.
Monday: The Pentateuch.
Tuesday: O.T. history.
Wednesday: O.T. history. (There is a lot of it.)
Thursday: O.T. prophets.
Friday: N.T. history.
Saturday: N.T. epistles.

So while having a fit of resolutions on a January 1st some years ago, I pulled it out, cut down the margins, folded it in half so it would fit in my Bible, and began.

The big difference between this plan and any other I had tried was that it was not tied to any particular date. On any day of the week, say it was Friday, I read the assigned portion and happily checked it off. Fridays were good days and it is true I finished all of them before I finished the Saturdays, but then I simply read wherever I was behind.

I was not tempted to cheat, because there were no unsightly gaps. I knew it was going to take me longer than a year. And, after all, what is so inspired about doing it in a year? Nothing. I also liked not having to look up five different references in one day, you could just settle in and read an entire assignment which came from one book. It also had the advantage of giving more context because you read a whole chunk at a time rather than a few verses here and there.

The big difference between this plan and any other I had tried was that it was not tied to any particular date. On any day of the week, say it was Friday, I read the assigned portion and happily checked it off.

Clearly another advantage in the arrangement was that it helped me see the remarkable unity and interconnections that run through the entire Scripture. On Monday I would be reading about the covenant God made with Abraham and on Saturday Paul would be talking about the very same thing in Romans.

And I figured out at least one thing about Numbers.
If God cared enough about all those tribes and clans to count the people and to name them so we could look at them... [today], then it is a certain kind of evidence that God is mindful of every one of his people no matter how anonymous or insignificant we think we are. But the best thing by far was simply checking off a day’s portion not a DATE. I got through the whole Bible. It only took me a year and six months."

Printable Reading Plan

The full Bible reading plan is available in the online publication, Notes From Toad Hall. Scroll down to pages 5 and 6 here: Bible Reading Program For Shirkers and Slackers

Related

1. Discipleship Journal Bible Reading Journal

You can start at any time during the year in any portion of Scripture. There are two readings listed for each day. The first reading alternates OT and NT books. The second reading takes you through a chapter or so of the wisdom books or Isaiah. Record your thoughts in the space provided.

Includes brief excerpts and quotes from 25 years of Discipleship Journal from Navpress.

2. "Working God’s Word Into Your Life"

Tips for Bible reading and indepth study for busy Moms from Radiant Magazine.

Bloggity Goodness

• Rahab's Thread is the new kid on the blog. Co-hosted by Jules (formerly of Everyday Mommy) this group weblog promises to be a valuable resource for avid students of the Word.

• Iris at Sting My Heart is offering a leather-bound ESV Bible as part of Shannon’s Bloggy Giveaways Carnival, Winter '08 edition.

• The next edition of Sunny's bi-weekly Carnival of Christian Women will be held on January 30, 2008.

Up Next—Bible Study in Genesis 3:1-24
(Adam Wimps Out & Eve Makes a Power Play)


Care to join me in this program?

Photo: Rae Whitlock (Flickr)

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