Did you make a resolution to read the Bible more this year? Perhaps you made a resolution to read the Bible in a year. How are you going so far?
One of the goals at Church by the Bridge this year is to read the Bible in a year, and we’ve put together a plan that people can follow. A talented member of the congregation has also created a phone version - by visiting i.cbtb.org.au, people can see the day’s reading, and access links to these passages.
The internet provides a wealth of resources to encourage and support our desire to read the Bible. Sure,
- BibleGateway provides a couple of lists of Bible reading plans (here and here), including a plan to read the highlights from every book of the Bible.
- Zondervan has plans aimed at people who are at different stages of their spiritual journey.
- Desiring God has a great post to inspire us to meditate on God’s works, and muse on His deeds.
- At the Gospel Coalition, Justin Taylor has written a useful post with a range of suggested reading plans, including the Discipleship Journal.
A resource I’ve been exploring this year is YouVersion. The YouVersion website allows you to search and read the Bible in different translations, as well as engage with others by sharing contributions (thoughts, reflections) with other YouVersion members. It’s a free resource that I particularly like for three reasons:
- they have produced quality mobile versions of the website to make it easy for people to access the Bible on the go.
- when you sign-up for a free account you can add journal entries (e.g. I’ve been reading Romans this year and using the journal function to take notes about what I’m learning).
- they have integrated a number of reading plans with the website, so you can study the Bible online to a schedule, and takes notes and engage with others (if you desire) along the way. Whether you like the idea of reading the Bible online (it’s a good fit for some!), or just needed some inspiration to get reading, I pray that you will spend much time this year in God’s Word, feasting on Him. And finally, if you’re in the zone and looking for daily structure, you might also be interested in Operation World’s daily prayer points.
