Read the Bible in 90 Days?!
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Photo Source: kelsey_lovefusionphoto
Photo Source: kelsey_lovefusionphotoReading the Bible has blessed me over the years.
One of the most poignant memories I have of my time in France was a morning I spent just reading the Bible. My friends thought I was nuts that 4 hours of Bible reading would be enjoyable, but it was.
Over the years, my Bible reading has been sporadic. I would guess 1993 was the last time I devoted 4 straight hours to studying scripture. But, I’ve read through the Bible several times using Robert Murray M’Cheyne’s reading plan. And the kids and I have worked through Matthew, Mark, and Luke over the last school year.
But, to be honest, I haven’t been in a good groove lately. And I can feel it.
I’m not talking about feeling guilty for neglecting quiet times. I’m not talking about meeting the expectations of those around me that I would be “in the Word.” I’m not talking about measuring my success by how many Bible verses I can quote.
Been there, done that. Those aren’t sufficient reasons for studying what God has to say to us.
There’s a better reason.
I know that I am tired. I know that I feel scattered. I know that there is One who can give me rest, who will lead me through dark places.
And I want to hang out with Him more.
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So, I’m tackling something that I was loathe to do back in January when I first heard about it. But, now that my days aren’t full of papers, books, and students’ dirty looks, I’m going to tackle a big goal: read through the Bible in 90 days.
Crazy, eh? Yeah, that’s what I think, too. I’m lucky these days if I read three verses. I may fail miserably at this. And you’ll all know it, too!
But, I’m gonna try.
Not because of the brownie points I might earn. But because I want to know Jesus better. And in turn, I think I’ll probably learn a lot about myself.
Lord willing.
ETA: Since this writing I’ve done the 90-day Bible reading program 4 times. It’s been amazing during summer vacation in between CBS sessions, but it’s also a great practice for preparing for Easter. You won’t get through the whole Bible during Lent, so adjust your start time if you like.
I agree that I am also doing this to know Jesus better. To deepen my walk and make the time to spend in His Word daily!
God Bless!
I signed up for this challenge as well! Thanks for posting it!
I’m joining you as well! Thanks!
Laura
I just finished Day 49 of this challenge. I always pray before I even begin reading each day and my Bible is full of verses I have underlined to come back to later for more study. If we approach it, seeking God and eager to learn from His Word, He will bless our reading of it. I always try to share something of what I have read with my children each day. It helps me to retain it and hopefully encourages them to read more of God’s Word. There is so much in the Bible that, I find, if I don’t have a plan, I will not even read many of the books in it for months or even years. Not good! I probably won’t be able to read it this quickly very often, but I have enjoyed it this summer. It’s good to be in God’s Word! Go for it!
I am so excited for you to be doing this. Yours is one of my very favorite blogs! I completed the Bible in 90 Days challenge at the beginning of the year and I am mentoring & reading this time around. I hope you will be encouraged by the group and that you will have an awesome experience with this.
For those above who are doubtful about this, it is definitely not for in depth study but for the attentive reading of every word of the Bible. If you pick up a novel that you like alot, you don’t just read a page or 2 a day. You stay up late & get up early to keep reading until it’s finished. The Bible becomes much of the same thing through this program. The stories come alive, the connections become more evident and the story of God’s love for us becomes so apparent throughout the old & new testaments that reading stops being a burden and becomes a joy. You’ll see the Bible as you’ve never seen it before.
As to the reasoning behind the 90 days, you can read about it at biblein90days.org but quickly the man who started it was not a believer, was curious and wanted to know what the Bible was all about and decided to knock it out in 90 days. Halfway through the Old Testament, he became a believer. So then he designed the program for others to see the Bible in the way that he had.
I wish you the best in your reading! We’ll be praying for you!
I’m surprised at the negative comments about reading the Bible in 90 days. How can reading the Bible be bad? Fast, slow, and everything in between, is there not freedom to experiment with how we pursue God.
Reading through the Bible is certainly a discipline worth pursuing. It gives us a more complete, whole picture of God’s word. It is a different discipline than meditating, studying, or memorizing God’s word. While it is different, it is no less important. It serves a wonderful purpose in completing that broader brush stroke look at this powerful, life-chaning instruction book and it’s brilliant author. It lends an opportunity to understand the cohesiveness of the Old and New Testament, the unfolding story of redemption from beginning to end, and so much more. These things are harder to grasp in a slow, meditative reading of the Bible.
There is no wrong way to ingest God’s word. I think you will find this quick, full reading valuable. I also think you will find it different than slowly studying a small section of scriptures in meditation. That’s okay. They both have a place in pursuing God. They’re both spiritual disciplines meant to strengthen and change us into people who intimately know God.
I think it’s a cool idea to enjoy the word of God as it were a novel. His word will not return void, even if you read it quickly, without combing every detail and meditation from it’s pages. Save that idea for next time.
I’m so glad for the freedom and creativity God gives us in our pursuit of His heart.
@trisha, Wow! Really well said!
I signed up for this too 🙂 I can’t wait to dig in and get back on track.
Yeh I am not so sure of why you should push for doing it in 90 days? That seems like a reflection of our culture more than letting the Spirit lead you to reflect and meditate on the Word of God…ya know? I mean by all means, pushing to read it in 90 is better than not at all but the time limit just strikes me oddly.
I don’t really know much about where the 90 days come from. But, I know that Luther and Calvin both read the Bible several times a year as did George Mueller. I know there are more, but my mind is blanking on their names. So, I know it’s not necessarily “modern” in the 21st century kind of way.
I also know I waste a lot of time doing things that have no meaning. So, I’m hoping that this will be a good replacement.
While I totally encourage reading the bible daily, (psalms 1:2), I’m not sure if doing the whole bible in 90 days is good. Along with reading the bible, we need to meditate on it and apply his thoughts to our lives. My kids and I have been reading the bible from the beginning of this year and we are now just starting 1 Kings during King Solomons rule and how even though he started out as a faithful worshipper of God, he fell away by not applying Gods council and he started worshipping false gods, thus God left him and his family. We read a few chapters throughout the week and then discuss them and do a bit of research if we don’t fully understand it. I always try to think of a way to compare it to our lives and how we should act. So, in my opinion, I would think that God would approve of quality over quantity. If you find yourself reading an entire chapter and not understanding it, then it really doesn’t mean anything, does it. And believe me, there are plenty of chapters that are tough to understand! I love bible based discussions so feel free to email me if you want! This wasn’t meant to offend at all, just help, I hope. 🙂
Not offended. 😉 And thanks for saying so.
And I definitely understand where you’re coming from. I think in-depth study is necessary and valuable in the Christian’s walk with God. My intention to read quickly is not to read casually. Rather, I think this is actually intense study, to be in the Word every day and to have a goal. I know that there have been many heroes of the faith who read the Bible two and three times per year. George Mueller read it 4 times per year, every 90 days, in his later years. So, I don’t think we’re without historical examples. Guys like Luther would probably drop their jaws at how little we read when we have multiple copies of the Bible in our homes.
At the same time, I agree that if one is reading and not getting it, then slowing down may be the best approach. Quite honestly, I don’t think we have to worry about my reading too fast. LOL. This is actually an experiment and I’m sharing it, I guess, in part to spurn these kind of discussions, and to encourage other people if they’re interested in tackling it. I have become weary in a lot of ways and desire some kind of kick start in my walk with God.
And like I said, my goal is not to earn brownie points with God or be able to brag. I’ve heard from many people that really being saturated in Scripture like this changed them. But I’ll let you know…. 🙂
Hey, if I start where I left off during the last time I tried this, I just might have enough leeway to not give up in frustration after a couple days of just not getting it done.