Trekking Through the Word in 2012 December 12, 2011
Trekking Through the Word in 2012
One of the things I enjoy most about the Christmasseason is its close association (for obvious reasons) with the new year.Christmas Day arrives, and one week later, a fresh year begins. For me, January1 seems to symbolize inspiring possibilities and new potential; and, of course,many people take advantage of that feeling by forming a few resolutions for thecoming year. Over twenty years ago I made a New Year’s resolution to readthrough the whole Bible in the next 12 months, and it turned out to be one ofthe best goals I’ve ever set. By God’s grace I’ve kept it up pretty faithfullysince then, and I can assure you that the benefits are incalculable.
This year I’d like to invite all of you to join me. Ifyou can commit about 20 minutes a day to read your Bible, you can finish theentire book in a year. We have made several different reading plans availablein the foyer. One takes you through the Bible in roughly chronological order.Another follows the order the books are arranged in our Bible. A third plan hasyou reading in 4 different places in the Bible every day, just to spice thingsup. If none of those looks appealing, I have a few others in my files and thereare even more whole-Bible reading plans available online. I’m sure we can worktogether to find one that looks good to you. Let me know if you need any help.
Needless to say, if you’re not reading your Bible muchat all on a daily basis, zero to twenty might be too ambitious; youmight be wiser to select a reading plan that requires less time. If this isyour situation, we’ve made one more plan available that will take you throughthe whole New Testament, reading just 5 minutes a day, 5 days a week.
Whatever you decide, please take up this challenge toread God’s word every day. Get a reading plan, pick a daily time, and thenamputate a 20-minute item from your current schedule (because you can’t justkeep adding things to your schedule forever, you know!). Who knows what Godwill do in our church if we get in the word together in 2012!