“If you declare with your mouth, ‘”Jesus is Lord,”‘ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9
reading journey
Bible reading in 2013
It seems that each new year brings a new adventure in Bible reading for me. But to be honest that hasn’t always been the story. Growing up I knew the value of reading my Bible daily, yet I never developed the discipline of studying God’s word on a daily basis. In high school I was convicted how important regular Bible reading was, but I was still quite irregular in my commitment. My first year of college I read through the Old Testament in the Fall and the New Testament in the Spring, both for Bible survey classes. But my personal time of reading was still somewhat inconsistent. It wasn’t until Christmas of 2008 that my Bible reading habits changed.
On Christmas day that year my grandpa passed away, it was quite the shock, but thankfully he had been a Christian for many years. So although it was hard to have him gone, it was a blessing to know that he knew and loved the Lord and that he would be with him for all eternity. While at my grandparent’s church, the pastor challenged the congregation read one chapter of Proverbs everyday. I don’t know why but the challenge stuck and a habit was formed. Everyday (well almost) of 2008 I read one of the 31 chapters of Proverbs. In 2009 I read through the New Testament and in 2010 I attempted to read through the Old Testament, but I got slowed down and only made it through 2 Chronicles. Last our youth pastor challenged the students to read through the Bible in a year. Reading God’s Story – A Chronological Daily Bible This was a great new way to read the Bible, I really enjoyed the chronological approach to Bible reading. If you have never read the Bible chronologically before please check out the link above, it’s not to start, January is an easy read!
So, what does 2013 have in store for my Bible reading journey? My goal is to read a new book of the Bible every month. If it’s a short book I will read the book multiple times throughout the month. The idea is to become more familiar with multiple books, rather than just having an overview of the whole Bible or a few favorite verses from each book. I’m also hoping to read one Psalm per day. Both of these ideas came from listening to Christian radio.
If your journey looks anything like mine I challenge you, make this new year the year to get into God’s word!
I would love to hear about your Bible reading adventure!
Trust for the Journey 