How to Read the Bible - Ditching the Bible in a Year Reading Plan

Now, I read a chapter a day, digging deeper than I ever did at anyone else's pace.

Reading plans were dragging me through the Bible instead of guiding me.

Every church, every Christian group I've been in, they say you should read through the Bible once a year. As someone who deeply enjoys arbitrary structure and prebuilt curriculums (I take online classes for fun), I took this to heart. I have used several plans over the years, usually the one in the back of my Bible. Honestly, plans tend to distract me from the Bible reading itself. I didn't become a daily reader and meditator until I left the reading plans behind.

If the "begats" cropped up before drama or poetry, the temptation to skim was strong. If anything was too rich or obscure, it was easier to proceed to a more direct, actionable text. It's not that reading plans failed to work in my life. But to some extent, checking off boxes became a primary goal.

I'm sure everyone else can do it just fine, but I approached yearly plans with the wrong heart. Even with reading ahead and storing up extra days, I never completed a single plan. I always drown under confusing Old Testament narratives and dense epistles. When it gets hard, it's easy to chase a new plan or take a break altogether. It was unhealthy. External goals and social pressure can't draw you to the Bible like a desperate need for His voice.

Craving

When my mom's health sharply declined, I grappled with the fear that my parents might not always be around. I took a bath and cried to God that I may never be old and mature enough to have all the hard conversations I longed to have with them. In a moment, His voice was so clear - "It doesn't matter."

There's no human explanation that could absolve the way they hurt me, so what value would those hard conversations even have? I'm not a childhood abuse victim or a tragic girl. What they did to me then cannot define me today. After reliving the bad memories every day since I left their house, the burden was relieved and I felt so unbearably light. I am a new creation in Christ and nothing more.

The burden of reliving bad childhood memories was lifted. Soon, sermons on not dwelling on the past, forgiveness (Matthew 6:15), and peace (Philippians 4:6-7) followed, and my relationship with God became so active. I craved Bible reading. I didn't want to follow anyone's rules; I wanted the Bible to answer all my questions. I wanted to know it cover-to-cover.

I want to read Jeremiah, even if it takes me a year by itself.

This marked the beginning of a new approach to reading the Bible. I chose an important topic – hopelessness, and a book that addressed it – Jeremiah. Despite Jeremiah never resonating with me in the past (why do modern Christians need so many chapters against pouring drink offerings to the Baals?), this choice was impulsive. Even if this one book took an entire year to read by itself, that would be fine by me.

I was there to learn from Jeremiah's ministry. He was the weeping prophet, a young man sent to the big city to preach to the high priests, and he was told no one would listen to him before he even began. His situation was hopeless, and I wanted to know more about him.

And right away, Jeremiah became strikingly relevant. As much as it spoke to God's closeness and support in hopeless times, it opened a flood of new questions and answers. Jeremiah's big message is for priests (us, according to 1 Peter 2:9-10) to cultivate a more authentic and exclusive relationship with God and His Word, rather than the world and its idols. No matter how ugly the world is around us (Lamentations depicts a nightmarish Jerusalem), He will draw out a remnant to preserve.

The book is rich, and the constant buffeting of Jeremiah drew on my heart-strings. When he spoke against the priests' lack of Bible knowledge and misappropriation of Scripture, it enflamed my desire to read even more. I've definitely met priests who reflect Jeremiah 23:30: "Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, declares the Lord, who steal my words from one another." I never want to play telephone with God's Word. I want to read the Bible and speak from the source.

A Question-based Reading Plan

In this plan, I select a topic or question relevant to me and pair it with a book. Even though God responds in unexpected ways and may give you a different question to ask altogether, a simple question or topic makes a good starting point. There's more enthusiasm and personal connection in seeking answers. My topics have been tied to life events, convictions from Scripture and prayer, and recurring themes in my day-to-day life. There's been wisdom, hopelessness, demons, spiritual gifts, generational blesses and curses, our responsibility in sharing the Gospel, and honoring your parents. I think a good prayer to help brainstorm topics is to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any disbelief in you.

When it comes to selecting books, even without extensive knowledge of each book's themes, you can't go wrong when all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, right? I've picked by interest. Once I finish, I may also continue into other books from the same time period or topic. I read Jeremiah, Obadiah, the apocryphal Baruch, and Lamentations back-to-back, though Lamentations is so bleak, I had to pair it with the sweetly loving Song of Songs. There's also a strong argument for beginning in Genesis and reading the Bible start-to-finish and trusting God to speak from anywhere. If your pair of topic and book fuels your desire to read every day, you're in a good place.

I start at chapter 1 and proceed chapter-by-chapter until I complete the book. Then I'm ready for a new book and maybe a new topic.

I quickly found a chapter a day works well for me. It sets a good pace to read slowly, pray over verses, and consult related passages, maps, commentaries, and sermons.

I don't enforce this pace, either. The chapter is done when I can summarize its content and its significance. I give each daily chapter a thorough study, and if I glean nothing from it, I try reading it again the next day as a wiser person.

If the chapter is particularly rich or my life is too distracting, I might divide it into multiple parts over multiple days. Jeremiah 32, for example, spanned the entirety of my last week with Mom in the hospital. Under any other plan, I surely would have been in speed-reading mode or avoiding reading out of shame, but approaching the Bible as a source of guidance rather than a duty heightened its importance during stressful times. Also, I've been enjoying associating certain chapters with moments in my life.

Lastly, I no longer stockpile Scripture readings in advance. I only read one chapter out of the current book per day, no matter its length. I don't want to dilute the impact of each chapter by consuming too many at once. A single chapter is plenty to reflect upon and apply per day, especially if cross-referenced with other passages. If I need more readings, I visit other books, often Proverbs or one of the tiny, less familiar books.

There is no Flyover Country in the Bible

Slowing down compelled me to appreciate what is present in the Scripture. If all Scripture is breathed out by God for men of God, then it's all valuable study material. This means there is no 'flyover country' in the Bible; no part of it should be skimmed over just to get to the 'good stuff'. The 'begats', the meticulous descriptions of each minor character's tribe, geographical details, recapitulation of reigns - all of it is worth studying. Before, I barely knew my -ites from my -ines, but I'm starting to see these tribes as characters themselves, worthy of study!

The Bible is alive, all of it matters, and it unfolds itself to us in a timing beyond our control. A question-based plan may not be as fancy as completing the Bible in a year, but there's a humbling beauty in moving through the text so slowly. Let's read quickly for the breadth of Scripture but also not neglect slow, deep reading.

As thanks for reading my blog, may God give you the answers you seek.^^