Meditating,
Studying, Memorizing, and Reading
are different things. Reading is the most basic, simple, easy, and ‘regular’
way to approach the word of God. The more we feed on God's word, the more it
guides us in any moments of our life.
Some
people have the habit/discipline of reading through the Bible at least once a year. But, even simple ‘regular’ (not
necessarily daily) reading of the Bible looks boring to many of us. I myself
have been forming the habit, but it's always a struggle and so, I've got to
motivate myself through creativity!
If
you want to read through the Bible, you've got to make a plan. Reading
through the Bible is tougher than most people imagine. It's a thick book that
requires 70-100 hours of reading.
If
you want to form the habit of reading through every year, you've got to have
a creative plan. We could easily get demotivated by the fact that we've
read through once. Reading a new thick book looks more exciting than re-reading
an old thick book.
Over The Years, I've Been Trying To Be
Creative:
*#1. Read a different
Bible version each year. There are over 200
English translations of the Bible. That's more than you can live and buy and
read! (But if you are poor; if you don't know your Bible enough; and if Bible
translations are not available, then you might want to restrict it to just 2-3
translations — ESV, NKJV, KJV, NASB, NIV, or TEV/GNB)
*#2. Read the books
of the Bible chronologically. From the first book
written to the last book written. Ask your Pastor or refer a Study-Bible for
that information!
*#3. Read the events
of the Bible chronologically. Refer a good
Study-Bible or a Bible Handbook for that information.
*#4. Read through
each book of the Bible in one or two sitting(s).
That sounds a heavy-duty duty, but it's rewarding. This is really something to
accomplish it, very motivating actually, isn't it?
*#5. Read the books
of the Bible according to its genre.
Ask your Pastor or refer a Study-Bible for the information. (History, Poetry,
Prophecy, Gospels, Laws, Epistles, etc.)
*#6. Read 3 Chapters
of OT and 1 Chapter of NT every day.
That will require you 15-20 minutes daily. If you read lesser, welcome to the
next year! So try to read more actually! Do the math! (929+260 chapters in 365
days).
*#7. Read with a
Practical Plan. I. Don't overestimate your habit/discipline, always read more.
Everyone gets out of routine sometimes— sickness, laziness, busy works, etc. II.
Prefer regular reading to daily reading. (For a heavy-duty reading, 5days
of reading and 2 days to catch up in a week).
*#8. Read the Bible
by the number of pages. Do the math. 5
pages? 10 pages? 50 pages? My Bible has 1095 pages. Each page has over 800-900
words.
*#9. Read the Bible
Proportionately. This may not be applicable to most of us. If you read 30,000 words of a
novel; if you read this and that pages of such and such book; if you spend such and such amount of time in reading
newspapers; if you spend such and such amount of time in watching movies,
entertainments, gyms, sports, and games,
then what?
*#10. Read the Bible
with Pen(s). Determine to circle or underline
certain words, phrases, or themes before you read each book. Read a good
introduction of each book to do that. Please don't frustrate yourself circling
every "and." (Rather underline every "know" in the book of
1 John, for example). Sure, you might need a new Bible for this!
I'd love to know if
you have discovered some other interesting ways to read through the Bible. And
also, I'd love to know how you are reading your Bible.
May you continue to
grow exceedingly in the grace and knowledge of God's word!