"Superficiality is the curse of our age…. The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people." -Richard Foster, "Celebration of Discipline"
"The spiritual life is first of all a life.It is not merely something to be known and studied, it is to be lived." -Thomas Merton, "Thoughts in Solitude"
"Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself." --Leo Tolstoy
The apostle Peter tells his readers that they must pay attention to God's Word because it is a light shining in a dark place (2 Peter 1:19). In keeping with his advice, I would like to recommend a method for your daily time in God's Word.
Remember:
Any Bible reading method is simply a tool to assist you in drawing near to God; the point is getting to know Him. The main benefit of this system is that it exposes you to the whole counsel of God in one sitting. It provides a variety of books from which the Holy Spirit can minister to your life, and over a period of time you will read through the whole Bible.
Bible Reading Plan, Step One
Divide the Bible into five major sections
History Books: Genesis through Job.
These books provide God’s original intentions and dealings with humanity, including the establishment of His covenant people, Israel.
Poets: Psalms through Song of Solomon.
These books give you praise, worship, and wisdom.
Prophets: Isaiah through Malachi.
These books provide a picture of God’s loving patience with His people, and also a picture of His intolerance with sin and rebellion.
Gospels: Matthew through Acts.
These books provide God’s plan of salvation for all humanity in the Person of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Epistles: Romans through Revelation.
These books provide God’s plan for His new covenant people, the Church of Jesus Christ.
Bible Reading Plan, Step Two
Read one chapter per section per day
If you were to start this Bible reading plan today, you would ideally read Genesis 1, Psalm 1, Isaiah 1, Matthew 1, and Romans 1. If time does not permit you to read all five chapters, just read one or two. The purpose is not speed reading, but meditating on what you are reading so as to encounter God in those pages.
Bible Reading Plan, Step Three
Track your progress with an index card
To keep track of where you are reading at any given time I recommend keeping an index card in your Bible. Divide the index card into five sections with these headings: History, Poets, Prophets, Gospels, and Epistles. Under each heading, write the name of the book you are reading and the chapter that you just read. In this way you will know which chapter to read tomorrow, and when you finish one book in that section you simply move on to the next book.
Your card might look like this:
History
Poets
Prophets
Gospels
Epistles
Genesis
Psalm
Isaiah
Matthew
Romans
chpt 1
chpt 1
chpt 1
chpt 1
chpt 1
chpt 2
chpt 2
May the Lord bless you as you seek Him in your life. He promises that if we make the effort to draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. ~ James 4:8
