My Bible Reading Plan
If you find yourself wanting to read through the Bible, but somehow unable to accomplish the goal, you might enjoy the plan I've been using. I have read through the Bible in my life, but never, ever have I succeeded in sticking to one of those "one-year Bible reading plans." So, instead, I've been using the "Read Through The Bible Plan for Shirkers and Slackers."
That doesn't sound very spiritual, does it? Well, before you assume that I condone shirking and slacking, read the article that convinced me to try this plan, Margie Reads Through the Bible in a Year: A Composite History by Margie Haack.
I started this in August, 2004, and I'm about halfway through the Bible. Better yet, I'm enjoying this way of doing it. Rather than reading the Bible from front cover to back cover, I'm reading from a different section each day. Margie points out one advantage of this system: ...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, gone is the guilt caused by the great sin of "skipping a day" and the snowballing guilt caused by "getting off schedule." :) His Word is precious, not a burden.
That doesn't sound very spiritual, does it? Well, before you assume that I condone shirking and slacking, read the article that convinced me to try this plan, Margie Reads Through the Bible in a Year: A Composite History by Margie Haack.
I started this in August, 2004, and I'm about halfway through the Bible. Better yet, I'm enjoying this way of doing it. Rather than reading the Bible from front cover to back cover, I'm reading from a different section each day. Margie points out one advantage of this system: ...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, gone is the guilt caused by the great sin of "skipping a day" and the snowballing guilt caused by "getting off schedule." :) His Word is precious, not a burden.
posted by HowGreatADebtor @ 10:41 AM
2 Comments:
At 7:50 AM,
HowGreatADebtor said…
"For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure," Philippians 2:13. Keep drinking up His grace. :)
At 5:49 AM,
HowGreatADebtor said…
Something I've found as I've been using this plan: I tend to read the Bible more often on certain days than on others. E.g., I read more on Mon-Thurs than on weekends. So, the books scheduled for weekends were getting slighted.
What I've done the last few months is this: I read whatever's next on the schedule, regardless of what day of the week I'm reading. Today, Saturday, I'll be reading in the Psalms because yesterday I finished one of the readings in 1 Timothy.
I also don't always read as many chapters as "assigned." Thursday this week, I only took time for one chapter in 1 Timothy. Yesterday, I read the next two chapters and checked off the little box.
Be flexible! Let the Word of God be a pleasure, not a chore. I don't believe guilt is a good motivator for doing anything, let alone spending time with the Lover of our souls.
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