Reading Challenge for 2019

Most of us set New Year’s Resolutions. I’d like to personally challenge you with this goal:

Read the Bible in 90 Days.

“What?” you say. “Are you crazy, Becky? I can barely read it in a year!”

Here are 2 reasons why I’d love for you to consider it.

1. Continuity

We are a society that binges on everything, from TV Series to Fad Diets to Quick Fitness Goals. Isn’t it exciting to watch four episodes of a suspenseful TV show in a row, rather than “the old days” of having to wait a week in between each one? You get passionate about the characters, the flow, the detailed plot.

When reading the Bible over the course of a few years, by the time you get to the end, you have probably forgotten much of what you already read. But from experience, I found that when I finished it in a few months, I was seeing patterns and themes that had been cluttered before in genealogies and confusing prophecies.

The Bible is one long story about how God has reached down to rescue His people. Read it like a long novel, with subplots and genres, all by the same author. It’ll change your view of God and your faith.

2. You Can!

It takes approximately 45 minutes a day if you are an average reader to get through the Bible in 90 days. In 2017, the average person spent 2 hours on social media! (Source) I can only imagine the time has gone up since then. Have you checked your “screen time report” lately? I’m not saying to quit social media. But for 90 days, read the Bible first and scroll second. I read it on my Bible App so I have it handy at doctor’s office appointments or while waiting in the car.

Tips:

You want to get started? Great! Here are a few tips:

1. VERSION: Choose a version you aren’t as familiar with. Last time, I chose the NLT. It was fresh and fun. Maybe it’s not a study Bible, but it’s a very readable one!
2. HIGHLIGHT: Highlight passages that stand out to you in order to go back and look through them later.
3. CONFUSED? Don’t get hung on up on confusing passages. This is an overview. Keep a running list of what you’d like to look into more later, once you’ve finished.
4. FRIENDS! Do it with a friend. The Bible App has a 90 Day plan you can complete with others. It helps me to know I’m not alone.
5. THEME: Have a “theme” in mind when reading, like faithfulness or eternity or grace or joy or prayer or the Holy Spirit. Keep an eye out for it, like a detective, and highlight in a certain color anything pertaining to that topic.
6. LISTEN: I found that if I got behind, it helped to listen to it through the App while making dinner or folding laundry. This counts! 🙂

I hope you’ll accept this challenge. If you do, I’d love to hear how it changes your life and your perspective. I believe the Bible is alive, and you won’t regret one moment spent in its pages.

Lots of love!

Becky