I haven’t checked my archives, but I’m sure I’ve done a post like this before. But I know it wasn’t this year, so it bears repeating:
If you haven’t tried a quick read of the entire Bible (3 months or less), I encourage you to do it.
I just finished this week. It’s crazy to think I’ve been reading this way almost every year—and sometimes twice a year!—for over 25 years now. And honestly? It’s addictive!
There is something about reading God’s story from start to finish—not stopping to take notes or think deeply or research, just reading it like a cohesive book. Because it is. And sometimes we miss that.
We listen to sermons on a passage or a book.
We study a topic or a book.
We read a passage or maybe a few chapters in one sitting.
And while those are good things—things I do the other nine months of the year (except for sermons; I listen to those weekly!)—it’s the quick read through the entire Bible that helps me make connections not readily seen. Reading the whole Bible over a short period allows me to hold each book in relation to the others. It helps me remember that God doesn’t change. That from the beginning He has been loving, faithful, merciful, compassionate. He has used flawed humans to display His glory. He has reserved His kingdom for the righteous. He has rendered judgment on the unrighteous. The Old Testament and New. The different gospels. The prophecies. So much of it points back or forward to something else in the pages of the Bible, giving us a more complete picture of the eternal, unchanging God.
I know, you’re wondering how in the world reading the whole Bible in three months is even possible.
The first time I did it, I simply committed to read it like I would any other book—and to read it before I read any other book each day. That didn’t necessarily mean I read in the mornings, but it did mean I picked it up first when I sat down to read for the day. That time, I didn’t mean to read the whole thing so quickly. It just happened. And in the process, I fell in love with God’s word and God Himself in a whole new way.
Now I do this at least once a year. My current method is to read for 45-60 minutes each day—seven days a week. Another option is to take the number of pages in your particular Bible and divide it by 90, thus assigning yourself a number of pages per day. I’ve found two things helpful in this process: reading from a Bible where there are no notes (handwritten or included as footnotes), which often means after a few years I have to start with a new Bible or use an electronic one. Also, I try to stop my daily reading at the end of a chapter at the top of a page. That way I always know I begin the next session with the first chapter on the marked page.
Occasionally I miss a day or don’t hit that target time, but I’ve found that if that is the goal, I usually get close. Sometimes I’ll read a little in the morning and then a chunk later in the afternoon or evening. Sometimes I read it all in one sitting. The key is to complete that reading before I pick up any other book that day. For me, that is a huge motivator! And it changes my outlook when I view reading my Bible as reading a book containing its own story.
Of course, if you need more direction, my friend Mary DeMuth wrote a great book called 90-Day Bible Reading Challenge. (As of the time I’m writing this, the Kindle version is only $1.99!) Not only does Mary break down what to read each day to keep you on track, but she also includes some thoughts on that section of Scripture. Jeff used Mary’s book to give him the structure he needed to complete his first quick read. He loved it, too.
Whether or not you’ve ever read the entire Bible or read it many times, I hope you’ll give this a try at least once in your life. It is, hands down, the thing that has built up my solid foundation in the Lord.
Have you ever done this? What was your experience?