Read the Bible Challenge

Before the turn of the new year of 2014, the radio station I was listening to during the Christmas season had a segment about a mayor of a small town in Texas who declared 2014 the year of the Bible and challenged the citizens to read the Bible every day during the year.

He got a lot of blowback from the media and special interests groups – groups not interested in the Bible or anything Christian. Those intolerant types scare the tolerant and make them back down.

My Self-Challenge

Well, I decided to stand with that mayor and decided to read the Bible everyday in 2014 – my own Year of the Bible. It wasn’t much of a stand and he didn’t even know what I was doing. But I felt compelled to do something. The devil was trying to stop people from reading the Bible. Well at least one more person was now reading the Bible every day.

I have read the New Testament sans Revelations many times. I have read the first five books of the Old Testament, Psalms and Proverbs many times, the Chronicles, Kings, and much of the major prophets. But I have never read the entire Bible. The new year is always a good time to rededicate to our spiritual life. So I am committing to reading one chapter of the Bible every evening before I go to bed.

I stand with the mayor, for God and on scripture.

Are you with me?

2020 Update

Since that feeble stand back in 2014, I have been reading my Bible every day. In 2019 I started a plan to read the entire bible in one year – and completed it a few days before the end of the year. In addition to that, I was reading the Torah Portions each Saturday (Shabbat), so that was twice through the Bible.

In January 2020, I started another whole Bible reading plan in addition to Torah Portions.

Why Read the Bible Every Day

When you read your bible every day and you read more than the token or obligatory chapter, things start to come together. You see how everything is connected. The Bible is actually a single story written by many authors.

You will notice that many of the verses in the New Testament are actually quotes from the Old Testament. The Old Testament was the only Bible the apostles and early church had. This is what the Bereans referenced to make sure what Paul was telling them was true. He called them very honorable for doing that.

When you read in other translations other than the one you are most familiar with, you may begin to see things your never saw before. It is easy to gloss over things when you get to a passage that you have read and heard many times – it almost looses its meaning. Reading in another translation, even though it is very similar, is like seeing things through someone else’s eyes.

The stories in the Bible are exciting and intriguing. Everything is leading up to the returning Messiah.

Your Turn

What are you waiting for? You can start a reading plan any time. You don’t have to wait until the beginning of the new year. There is no time like the present.

You can download a Bible reading plan app to your mobile device. You can buy a physical reading plan bible or journaling bible. Or just pick up the one closest to you and start reading.