Reading the Entire Bible...
Is it actually important to read the whole Bible as a Christian? The answer is YES. I hadn't even considered this being important until I recently read a post that really called me out on it. The person asked, "How can you truly call yourself a Christian if you haven't read the entire book on which you base your life?" OH SHOOT so true... Okay, so here I am, one day into my reading plan.
I sat down and a million things vied for my attention. The first day of classes for this new quarter was here. I needed to order books, unpack my bag from spring break, go shopping for food, take care of my horse, eat some breakfast, take out the trash, and do laundry. Instead of stressing about whether or not I would finish all of my to-do's–which is usually what happens–I decided to claim the next 30 minutes for my King. This was when he laid it on my heart to start reading the whole Bible.
WAIT WHAT... Immediately at least three excuses popped into my head of why I shouldn't and couldn't do this.
1) It isn't January 1st! How can I start my reading plan on a random Monday in April?! And to this he gently whispered,
"Kate, a year of commitment can start on any day" OK got it, I admit, that was a lame excuse.
2) OKAY but aren't I doing a lot of studying already? I read the Jesus Calling devotions and verses and write about them every day, do I really need to read an extra 4 chapters on top of that?
Then the answer came, "You can never spend too much time in my Word!"
3) WELL okay then, what if I don't have time? I'm starting new classes and a new schedule and I need my sleep!
And to this he whispered, "You have every ability to create this time with me. Be disciplined and you can make it happen daily.
Well guys, it took 20 minutes...
Here is the Bible in a Year plan I am doing! The reason I like this plan is because it has about 4 chapters of reading per day which included chronological reading starting in Genesis, a chapter from one of the Gospels, and a chapter from Psalms, and then there is no reading planned for the weekends so that you can either catch up from the week, or do your own studying/dig deeper into a passage you really liked! I also challenge you to not just read it, but really take in the story of Christ and God's grace over time! I like to take notes on each chapter and write a summary in my notebook at the end. (more places to find reading plans: navigators.org and esv.org)
UPDATE: I am one week in and totally fell behind already, so Sunday night I had a lot of reading to catch up on! It's Monday morning and I am starting fresh and hoping to be more disciplined about it this week (:
UPDATE 2: Week 2 I am on-track! Finding so many amazing things in just Genesis and the Gospel of Mark...
