I recently published my first article in a long time and several people have asked where they could find it. The first part of that article is what you will find below (I'll post the second part next week - hey, that guarantees me three posts in my blogging reboot). It was originally published in Just Between Us Magazine (Spring 2019 issue; www.justbetweenus.org). I've been a volunteer Editorial Assistant for them for almost 20 years now and I would highly recommend you consider subscribing to this fantastic magazine for women in ministry.
My 90-Day Bible Adventure: Part 1
I read the Bible in 90 days…and you can too
(really!)
How’s your devotional life? Did you make a resolution to read your Bible
in a year? Did you leave it behind in Leviticus or ditch it in Deuteronomy? I
have good news for you: you can still keep that resolution this year. Yes, you read that correctly. You can read the Bible—the
whole thing—in just 90 days. I know because I’ve done it. And it was one of the
best things I’ve ever done to boost my faith.
Before you dismiss me as some super Christian who spends two hours a day
in her Bible, that is not me. In fact, to be honest, I have been a Christian
for 25 years, but I am ashamed to say I have never been consistent in my Bible
reading. I have read the Bible through before twice—once in four years and once
in two. I love studying the Bible,
but reading it is not my forte. I
think it stems from my dislike of reading anything more than once. I know that
the Bible is living and active and new every time I read it, but it still takes
great effort for me to read it consistently day in and day out.
So, when the idea popped into my
head to read the entire Bible in 90 days, I thought I had lost my mind. If I
couldn’t do it in a year, how in the world was I going to do it in three
months? Yet I couldn’t shake the Holy Spirit’s prompting. If I could stick to such a rigorous plan for
90 days, wouldn’t that make Bible reading a lot easier? Spoiler alert: yes!
How can you possibly do this with a job, kids, and your crazy, busy life?
Try the YouVersion Bible in 90 Days Plan created by Ted Cooper. The plan is to
read approximately 12-15 chapters a day, which takes about an hour. Most of us
can’t do that all in one sitting, but we can read portions throughout the day. For
example, I often read a chapter or two in the morning, listened to two or three
chapters on my way to work, read a chapter or two on my lunch break, listened
to two or three chapters on my way home from work, and then finished it off
before bed. Were there nights when I didn’t finish? Yes, but I made myself catch
up the next morning or on the weekend.
Why should you do it?
It will give you a hunger for
the Word. I found when I got to Psalms and Proverbs, I really wanted to
stop and meditate on the passage, but I couldn’t do that and reach my 90-day
goal. I did pick out a verse or two each day to meditate on, but my objective
with reading it so quickly was to grasp more of the overarching themes of the
Bible. Not being able to stop and meditate gave me a hunger to come back and read
those passages more slowly the next time and incorporate them into my life.
It will help you in teaching,
mentoring, or discipling others. The whole Word of God was still fresh to
me as I prepared to teach on a specific passage of Scripture that fall. It helped
me plug that piece of Scripture into the greater context of the whole Bible as
I taught, mentored, and discipled others.
It is your only offensive
weapon against the devil and his schemes. In Ephesians 6, we see that we have
many defensive weapons: the helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, shield
of faith, belt of truth, and shoes fitted with the gospel of peace. But we only
have one offensive weapon: the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
It’s pretty hard to wield a weapon you don’t have! When trials come and Satan
whispers in your ear, it’s important to know the verses that match your
situation.
It will help you connect the
Old and New Testaments better. I was recently studying the birth narrative
of Jesus and His name—Immanuel—God with us. The Holy Spirit brought to mind
that God’s presence was with God’s people in the tabernacle. He was with us in
the physical person of Jesus as a human being. And He is with us now –
indwelling His children. I had never before realized that God has been with His
people throughout time in every person of the Trinity. What a glorious thought!
It will enhance your worship of
God. Now that the totality of Scripture is more familiar to me, my soul
resonates with Scriptural truths and they come to mind more frequently. I can
worship Him more fully and completely because I know Him better. And isn’t that
the whole point of Scripture?
What are you waiting for? Jump into the best spring read ever—the Bible!
P.S. Let me know if you decide to embark on this adventure! You won't regret it!
Copyright ©2019 by Cherry Lyn Hoffner. You
may not reproduce this post in any form without permission. However, linking to
this post is encouraged.
