WHY-Wednesday: Why I read through my Bible in a year, every year?

"As Christians, we should read through the Bible in a year, every year" 
--I've heard said a time or two.

"How ambitious.   How fun.  But really...?"

Reading through the Bible in a year, every year.
 Let me tell you something...

This has been one of the most powerful ways by which the Lord has been working in my life this year.

It's exhilarating. 

Yes, I do believe there is a place for quality instead of quantity in Bible-reading.

Yes, I do agree that life is busy.  We are young moms, soccer moms, homeschooling moms, working moms, sleepless moms, aching moms, stressed moms...

Life happens.  I get it, I get it.

But even so...

As our Sunday School pastor says:  "if some is good, more is better."

If a little bit of Bible-reading is good, why not drench ourselves in it?

If this Means of Grace has been gifted to us, why not rip it open every morning, every year?

I think this is what C.S. Lewis mant when he famously said:

"[we are] like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."

We are far too easily pleased with convenient Bible-reading tools catered for our fast-paced and busy lives.

We are far too easily pleased with the excuse that we are too busy to take the time to read through it.

We settle for a life that is ignorant of the vast richness that comes through doing this.

We are far too easily pleased.

We simply cannot imagine the richness and the spiritual growth we will experience by aggressively reading our Bibles. 

We cannot, we cannot.

You have to do it to know it!

*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"

I don't want to close this post without giving a few practical suggestions for doing this--

- Use a Bible that is meant to be read in a year.  I am currently using this one and love it (it also has a kindle edition for your tablet). If you do not have a Bible that keeps the pace for you, you will not read it as fast and will then become discouraged. 

-  Try to stay ahead.  Things happen, life happens.  But if you fall behind, just spend a day or two catching up.  No big deal.

-  Depending on what book of the Bible you are currently reading through, most readings will take an average of 15 minutes.  Fifteen minutes!!  Give or take.  This is nothing!  You can do it in the morning, during lunch break, before going to bed, while the kiddos watch Curious George, etc.  Time should not be a hindering factor.

-  If you would like to begin getting in the habit of reading through your Bible now (yay!), I would recommend starting half-way through, where the date of your read-through-your-Bible Bible tells you to.  This way, when the New Year rolls around, you'll be back on track.