How I read the Bible

It was about four years ago, right at the beginning of the year. I was in a place, or going through a time, however you want to characterize it, where I felt no direction in life at all. I knew I needed to be there for my wife and kids. I knew I needed to provide. I knew I needed to try to live my life to the best of my ability in such a way as to honor God. But I just didn't have any passion or fire. Is that any different than any other day in your life? Haha! I have to put that in there.

I was so tired of not feeling any direction in life, and I knew something had to change. On January 2, 2013, I decided to start reading the Bible in the mornings, every day, before I did anything else. So I did that. Every day. Every morning. Before I did anything else. I did that every day that year, and almost every single day it was before I did anything else. 

Jeremiah 29:13 says, "You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart." So that was the start of my search. Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

Notice the second two words...seek first. What does that mean? It could mean a lot of things, and it could mean different things in various situations. What it means to me is that we should seek the kingdom of God first. Before anything else. It should be our primary aim, or first focus, the initial goal to be achieved above and before all else. I decided to take it literally, as in time of day. That's why I wanted to read his Word first, at the very start of my day. 

Sometimes I was a little too "religious" with the idea of it being first. My wife can tell you. One time I was reading the Bible when she asked me to go get something or do something outside the house. I promptly reminded her that she was messing up my commitment. Not the best idea. But I really did take it seriously. On Christmas morning, even, I got up early enough to make sure I read before we opened any presents! It was something I did not want to compromise on.

I read a couple chapters in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament, as well as some of Psalms and Proverbs. I read the entire Bible through the course of that year. I had a one year Bible that breaks it up into daily readings. Since then, I have read the Bible through three more times, once each year. I've used now three different versions of a one year Bible. I'll link them below.

To be clear, I don't think it is mandatory to read your Bible first thing in the morning before anything you do anything else. The Bible probably doesn't mean that. It means seeking his kingdom should be first, and that's probably not to be taken in terms of the order of your day. It probably means He should be the priority in your life. You might think more clearly and are more focused in the evening. That's fine too. But when I tried that, I ended up being too sleepy to concentrate and mostly just ended up not doing it. 

On the other hand, maybe that verse really does mean we should seek His kingdom first in the day, before anything else. I decided that commitment was important for me. It might not be for you. But when you have kids, having time with God, in whatever way you do it, in the morning before everyone wakes up and it is still quiet, is very special and sweet.

What is also very important for me to stay on track is to have a plan. When I was growing up I often read Proverbs, one each day. Of course there are 31 chapters in Proverbs, and I don't think that's an accident. You could start there if you need a plan. As I got older and knew I needed to read more, I could not keep my commitment without a plan. That's why the one year Bible works really well for me.

A downside to reading through the Bible in this way if that's the bulk of what you do is that you're not really "studying" the Bible. There are helps and notes and commentary in the one year Bibles, but it's not a situation where you explore a specific topic in depth to a great degree. But I asked God to help me see and learn what He wanted me to get. Each time I read though, even when it's a familiar passage, something new pops out to me. It's encouraging.

One other thing I haven't done a great job at is praying every day, much. More recently, last year, I began to write sort of a prayer journal each morning. Well, some mornings I do and some I don't. Sometimes I look at Facebook or check my email and my time goes. No time for that prayer. But I've always found with prayer that my thoughts wanted and I have trouble staying focus. It's that way for a lot of people. Writing my prayer and thoughts has been a very good way to stay focus. And it also allows me to go back and review my prayers periodically.

To be completely honest, I do feel like God has blessed me in this. There is more peace in my life. He has blessed my family, and I am content. You know I quoted Jeremiah 29:13 up above. Do you realize that's two verses after Jeremiah 29:11. Come on. You know that one. Say it with me. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." That's one version of it anyway. So after God says he has these plans for us, He follows it up with telling us how to find Him, and all those other things will follow.

If you are struggling with reading the Word, maybe give this plan a try. It really takes very little time, but you have to make it a priority. It must be something you do every day. Don't not do it. Be consistent. Every day. Every single day. Commit to it. If I can do it, you can. I promise you will be blessed. 

The first Bible I used:
The MacArthur Daily Bible, NKJV

The next Bible I used:
Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Daily Bible, NASB

The Bible I am reading now:
The Daily Walk Bible, KJV