A Bible Reading Plan for a New Year
December 30th, 2013 | John Chandler
I’ve always known there is a value in having a regular practice of Bible reading. Continued time spent in the Old and New Testaments develops our understanding of God’s heart. Maybe even more important, we become familiar with how God has been at work in the world so that we might recognize how God is at work in our immediate reality.
That doesn’t mean I’ve always done regular Bible reading very well, especially when it came to any kind of Bible reading plans. You know, the kind setup to help you work through the whole thing in a year. I tried them a few times, but started to fall behind each time. Optimism gave way to guilt which I stifled with apathy. Until 2012.
In 2012 and 2013 , I used the Moravian Daily Texts, which were recommended to me by a few trusted friends. As one of them said, it helps him ‘stay on the rails.’
Each daily reading includes assigned Scriptures, a few lines of verse from a hymn or other poetry, and a brief reflective prayer. Sundays feature the lectionary readings for that week, while the rest of the week has a daily reading each from the Psalms, the Old Testament, and the New Testament, so that you read all the way through each over two years.
And as 2013 wraps up, I’m happy to say that I’ve stuck with this reading plan for two years now, working through the whole of Scripture. You can be certain that I missed a lot of days, sometimes falling even a week behind. But because the readings are briefer than other reading plans, it wasn’t too much to read two a day until I was caught up. (Which is exactly what I’ll be doing tomorrow to end on time.)
So, as a new year arrives, I’d encourage you to consider using the Moravian Daily Texts for 2014. It’s a good year to jump in as they start anew in Matthew 1 and Genesis 1. I pray it can become a rich and meaningful daily, or almost daily, practice for you.