What is your Bible-reading plan for 2018? We may have good intentions about doing things in life, but if we are not intentional about our intentions our actions are not likely to fulfill our intentions.
I’ve been reading the Bible since early 1966 and I can tell you that there is no doubt in my heart or mind whatsoever that following Jesus in His Word requires intentionality. Just think about the relationship of the words “disciple” and “discipline” - disciples are those who are taught within a discipline, who live within that discipline - and in the case of a Christian it means we follow Jesus and are taught by Him and have lives disciplined into His image. As I’ve often said, if you don’t have a target you’ll hit what you are aiming at.
May I gently say that a verse a day is not enough - the Bible wasn’t written piecemeal and it isn’t intended to be read and experienced piecemeal. I’m not saying that the Holy Spirit can’t (or doesn’t) use a verse here or there to speak to us in a special way, but I am saying that our experience with the Bible is to be holistic - our total person is to be engaged with the total Bible. After all, we are talking about a relationship with God in Christ and a relationship with God can be one of ongoing communication; of speaking, listening, reading, sharing with others, experiencing life in God on a daily basis.
If you don’t have a plan, if you aren’t sure where to start, I recommend a chapter a day in the Gospel of John and also a Psalm a day; start with the first chapter in each book and begin...just begin. If you miss a day don’t freak out, just pick it back up. But a word of caution, the more days you miss the less likely you’ll travel down the road - we do need to be intentionally intentional to fulfill our intentions.
Use a Bible version you can read, you can always learn about different versions later, but for now, if you are not reading the Bible daily, find a version you can easily read so you can get started. It’s kind of like learning to drive - just drive; later you can get picky about what you drive.
Here is a website that has different Bible-reading plans:
Imagine owning a mansion but only living in the foyer, never exploring the rooms, the hallways. Imagine that this mansion is filled with art and music and treasures - but because you never leave the foyer you never know the joy of the treasures and art. This is how Christians live when they don’t explore the Bible, when the Bible is not ingrained in their lives - for the Bible presents us with a tapestry of relationship with the True and Living God - and it is anything but paper and ink to those in relationship with Jesus. In my own life, and in the lives of countless others, I came to know Jesus primarily through reading the Bible - especially the Gospels.
If you have questions about Bible reading that I can help you with please contact me and I’ll do my best to help!
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