We've all done it. Whether we admit it or not. You start off January first with this mindset that “This is going to be the year! “ You're going to change, improve, be healthy, be disciplined, be flawless. Then February rolls around and you’re the same unchanged person as before, only a few pounds heavier and a few days older :/.
I think that the reason why I was never able to read through the whole Bible was mainly because I started out with an unrealistic goal. "I'm going to read the Bible every single day for 365 days and read the Bible in 1 year!” While this is definitely something great to strive for, ultimately you are going to break it. It might come when you go on vacation, hit the snooze button on your alarm, receive a call from a lover asking you to dinner, forget to bring your Bible when traveling, get sick, etc. What's worse, is that your mind makes you feel so guilty and bad about yourself that you end up doing more harm than good to yourself and you quit altogether. If you're having a hard time following me, think back to when you've made a resolution to lose weight. You tell yourself you are only going to eat 1,200 calories a day and work out three times a week. Well Monday and Tuesday you absolutely are crushing it, until Wednesday rolls along and you feel like a rabbit. You're sick of munching on celery sticks, carrots, and putting your chicken over a bed of spinach instead of over warm sour cream and chive mashed potatoes. You decide you have earned the right to 'cheat' a little so you go to the cupboard where the beloved double stuffed Oreos are patiently waiting to reward you for your YTD success. You pop one in your mouth. HEAVEN!!!! It's like you experience the taste of an Oreo for the first time. Who would have thought 48 hours would be enough to forget how delectable the cream is and how it is the perfect complement to the crunch and chocolaty goodness of the cookie part. Okay, time to pour some milk to wash my mouth and then I will be done with my reward. You pour the milk and take two sips. You see the empty glass and your economical/humanitarian self kicks in "now self, you can't waste that milk, milk is expensive! And besides, there are plenty of starving kids in Africa , you can't just put this to waste". Drinking the milk by itself is not an option when you see the tiny black specks floating in the milk, remnants of your 1 double stuffed Oreo. You go back to the cupboard rationalizing that you will only have 2-3 more so you can finish the milk and avoid being given the nickname "Pro-Hunger Garbage Loving Child Hater”. You end up eating 4 more. SHOOT. The milk is gone, but you forget about your humanitarian achievement and enter the mode of guilt/disappointment. I completely blew it. What was I thinking? I was doing sooooo good! UGH. I feel sick. I already ruined this whole day, might as well eat some more. [NOTE: I have no idea why our mind thinks that a 200+ calorie slip/indulgence is justification for 'rationalizing' that the day is shot and giving us a license to eat more and turn it into a binge.] Half a sleeve later you shove the Oreos back in the cupboard, tell yourself you will set your alarm 30 minutes early to get in an extra/unplanned workout to make up for aforementioned snafu. Welp, the next morning rolls along, and you do not go to the gym. You are abnormally hungry, and decide to forgo oatmeal (what you were supposed to have) and opt for a bagel instead. Next thing you know Thursday is shot too, and you decide that the whole week is shot, and you will start again next Monday. Another week roles by and you hop on the scale, only to see that your weight is now 2lbs more than before you started the diet. For a while, you tell yourself it’s water weight, and eat a few more Oreos to forget about the 3 numbers on the scale. By the end of the month, you completely abandon your ‘diet’ and decide to focus on more important things in life, such as oh I don’t know People Magazine.
I’m writing today to share with you my secrets for how I was able to read the entire Bible. I wouldn’t say it was necessarily hard to do. Whereas dieting is as simple as “eat less, exercise more”, reading the Bible is as simple as “Read from left to right. Flip page. Repeat”. Even though we know these truths, we are always looking ways to make things easier and be more efficient. Unfortunately, I can’t speak to how to lose weight, (I have tried to lose 5lbs before and failed). However, I can speak to how to read the Bible. Below are 10 things that helped me read the Bible. In true dieting fashion: results may vary. My example is not typical of most people.
#1 Set a Reasonable Goal and Don't Stress When You Get Off Track.
It will take you 67 hours to read the whole Bible. Yes, I did this calculation before I started and I originally thought it would take me 2 weeks and 2 days to read the whole thing ( 2 minutes per page X 2,000 pages = 4,000 minutes. 4,000 minutes / 60 minutes = 66 hours. 66 hours/ 4 hours a day of reading = 16 days to read the bible). However, it took me four months to read the whole Bible. To help me not feel overwhelmed with the greatness of the task I would narrow my focus. Instead of thinking “I have 1,800 pages left” I would think “Only 20 more pages until I am done with Exodus." There will be days when you don't read the Bible and that's okay. You don't have a goal revolving around a time frame, you have a goal revolving around completing the whole Bible.
#2 Read In Order Genesis-Revelation
Clearly, this isn’t the only way to approach reading the Bible. Reading from Genesis-Revelation isn’t in exact chronological order, but it’s pretty darn close. I believe you can’t fully grasp the New Testament and the need for Christ without first reading the Old Testament.
#3 Get Comfy!
I think a lot of times when I would try to read the Bible I would stop pre-maturely simply because I was uncomfortable. Find a place to sit that is comfortable has good light, allow you to stretch out your legs so you can rest the Bible on your legs verses trying to hold up the book with your wrists. I used a couch in my living room.
#4 Pray
Praying before you start to read is critical. The Bible is complicated. There are a lot of hard to pronounce words. The historical events of the bible took place over 2,000 years ago in a culture that is drastically different than today’s culture, which can make it hard to understand. AND, there are all sorts of different types of literature such as history, law, poetry, songs, wisdom literature, prophecy, personal letters, and apocalyptic literature. “Trying to read the Bible on your own would be like trying to learn Calculus with just a textbook” -Todd Philips.
Followers of Christ have the privilege of having direct access to the writer of the text (God), because the Holy Spirit dwells inside us. Praying will enable the Holy Spirit to guide us, convict us, and reveal truth to us as we read (1Corinthians:10-11; John 14:26). If you are just checking out Christianity, I would recommend praying to God asking Him to reveal himself to you while you read . “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.” (Deuteronomy 4:29). I at first was leery of this, but the days I prayed before I read, I got so much more out of the Bible!
#5 Take Your Time
There is no need to rush. The Bible isn’t going anywhere or changing anytime soon.
#6 Allow Time For Review & Questioning
As with anything, you will be more likely to push a piece of information into your long term memory the more you review it. After finishing a book in the Old Testament, I would often read or listen to John Piper’s sermons on that particular book. The Old Testament reads like a story, and it was helpful to learn themes, and life applications from Piper. I would constantly ask questions. Often times, when I would get stuck on something, I would use my roommate’s Bible commentary by MacArthur as one point of reference.
#7 Talk To Someone About What You Just Read Probably one of my favorite steps! Every Tuesday, on the way to small group, I would summarize what I had read recently. My friend was amazing, she was so knowledge about the bible because she has read the whole thing several times. We had fun talking about Baal worship, King Nebuchadnezzar, Elisha, the Holy of Holy places, levitical law, and many other topics.
#8 Keep Track Of Your Progress
I used Google Calendar. I would create an event for the day I started a particular book and then update the event with an end date once I finished it. It was helpful to have a visual to see my progress. If you’d prefer to use a poster with a thermometer where you color in your progress a la Jump Rope For Your Heart style, by all means do it!
#9 Tell Someone About Your Ultimate Goal
There were periods of time where I went a day or a few days without reading the Bible at all. What really helped me get back into the Word, was talking to my friends that knew of my goal. Every so often, they would casually ask me where I was in the Bible. Sometimes my answer would be the same as the last time they asked me. However, most of the time, I couldn’t’ wait to tell them where I was so they could hear of my progress!
#10 Have Fun
Reading the Bible shouldn’t be thought of as a chore, or something you dread doing. Reading the Bible should be something you look forward to. Yes there were some slow parts, cough cough [genealogies throughout the first 9 chapters of Chronicles] cough cough, but overall it’s a thrilling, exciting, and an adventurous read. And, huge bonus, you get a small glimpse of how awesome the creator of the universe is!
If you think you are up for the challenge, let me know and we can make a thermometer chart together!
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