Still Reading

What was I thinking?  On my April 23 post I wrote that I was hoping to read the New Testament through in 21 days.  Today marks the 21st day and I am barely into Acts.  I have found that it is not too easy to set aside the 60-90 minutes a day to do the reading, even though I am listening to the download of the New Testament that I put on my iPod and following along in the Bible.  It is certainly a worthy endeavor, but I will not be finished today!

There are many approaches to reading the Bible.  Pastor Sam at our church suggested that you read a passage of scripture, a Psalm, for example, or a chapter from the gospels, and record 50 observations about it.  A couple of days ago I heard of a radio preacher who said that digging the meaning out of a passage, whether a chapter or a book, is more significant than to skim the Bible from cover to cover.

Reading the Bible in 90 days is not intended as a replacement for careful Bible study or meditation on the scripture.  But it can give a unique perspective that you are liable to miss when you are doing a more in-depth study.  It is like perusing a challenging textbook, and then returning to it for a very thorough reading. It hits the highlights and gives you the "big picture."  My "big picture" won't be as big as it might have been if I'd been more disciplined, but I'll keep going, at my own pace, and one day be able to announce that I have completed the New Testament.

If you, too, began to read through the whole Bible or just the New Testament, keep at it.  God's Word is alive and it reveals truth to us, but we only hear it if we are paying attention. Let's persevere.  We'll be blessed for it.