One Goal Achieved...

Last April when we arrived in Phoenix, I decided it would be good to try reading through the Bible cover-to-cover once again. I did it in college because James and I decided it was important for both of us to have read the whole thing before getting married. But it had been a while since I did some in-depth scripture study so I figured I would try it again - but this time do it in half the time and with a slightly different method.

Instead of reading the Bible in order (which can get very tedious...) I printed up a check list and decided to skip around and really dig into whatever book struck my fancy, then check it off when I finished so that I would know how much progress I've made. I'd do a little bit in the New Testament, then read one of the big history books in the Old Testament, then maybe Psalms or a couple of the minor prophets before reading through one of the Gospels. It may seem erratic but it was actually great because I started to pick up a lot of associations and was able to appreciate the history a lot better when I didn't have to trudge through it all at once.

The goal was to finish it in one year - so by the end of April 2010. I was right on track to achieving that goal, but I fell behind with the move and my surgery. However, I spent some good time reading this week and am proud to say that I finished Revelation this morning!

I'm not as excited about the goal as what I really achieved by completing it. I know how much reading through all of this helped keep me grounded and remind me daily to trust God when I was stressed out. I've grown a lot and look forward to continuing to grow as I read more and more... It never ceases to amaze me how the words never change, but you can get something new out of them every time you reread it. The Bible truly is the living Word of God!

Now it's time to figure out what to do next... Maybe read it in a different translation? Or just take a lot more time and do manuscript studies? We shall see...