I just finished reading the Bible through in a year or less for the 17^th time.  I can’t wait for January 1 to begin again.  In the meantime, I’m following a reading plan to read the New Testament in 60 days.

             If I were reading this blog and I had never done that, I’d be thinking, “It’s easy for you.  You’re a preacher.  This seems kind of braggy to me.”  So let me help you understand it is not.  It is designed to be an encouragement, not just to read through the Bible in a year but to make reading the Bible in a regular way a habit for you that you miss when you don’t do it. 

The first three times I tried to read the Bible through in a year, I failed.  I laugh about my good intentions being shipwrecked on the rocks of Leviticus, but that’s pretty much what happened three years in a row.  Then I went to a conference led by Francis and Edith Schaeffer.  At that conference Mrs. Schaeffer talked about her struggle with reading the Bible through in a year and how she had gone about doing it by dividing it up beginning at Genesis 1, Psalm 1, and Matthew 1.  I did that and it worked for me.  I now have been using the method that we hand out in the church for the last five times I’ve read through it, and it is by far my favorite method.  It is not for everyone.  My wife does not like it.  She prefers a Bible that is set up to help you read it through in a year.  It doesn’t matter at all what plan you use. 

When I read it through the first time, I felt like I had finished a difficult job.  Now when I pick the Bible up in the morning and read my assignment, I feel like I’ve come back to a wonderful and dear old friend.  It took me a number of times through to get to the point where it was that way.  But we need to recognize everything in life that is worthwhile is cultivated. Nothing comes to us wonderful and new.  I think that’s why old shoes and old pants and an old hat are so good for us to put on.  The Bible needs to feel like that to you – something you miss when you don’t read it and something that you rejoice in being with when you do. 

Make the effort with me again this next year to read through the Bible.  We’ll be handing out the Bible reading plan, but the plan won’t do anything for you if you don’t sincerely desire to utilize it.

Rule 2:  HAVE A WALK, NOT JUST A TIME.  It’s one of life’s most tempting shortcuts to focus on process rather than outcomes.  For example, you may decide you’re going to read through the Bible this year and you’ll use one of the various plans, which will take 15 or 20 minutes each day.  That’s good, but reading through the Bible in a year is a process.  It’s not an outcome.  It may or may not produce a quality relationship with God in your life.  Reading through the Bible will be its most meaningful when you decide, “I’m going to read through the Bible, but I will not let it become a task to complete but will consistently learn what God’s mind is like, what God’s values are, and what God expects of me.”  That’s what’s known as a walk. 

 The Bible describes a relationship with God as a walk because in Jesus’ day the way most people got places was by walking.  They would usually walk in groups, probably for safety’s sake.  I don’t know when the last time you walked in a group was, but if you will observe when you do or watch others walking in groups, you’ll see it’s impossible to take a walk in a group and not talk.  So God wants you to walk through life with Him and talk with Him.  As you do you need to listen to Him, observe Him, and know He is observing you.  So make sure you focus on the walk and not just on the process, task or time.  One good way to do this is when your mind wanders or you are rushing to get through so you can get onto the next task, STOP – ask the Lord to slow you down and focus your mind, heart, and soul on Him.

The Bible tells us that we are to be in the world but not of the world.  That is more than a command regarding geography.  It means that we are to be interested in and involved with the world without falling in love with it or letting it replace God as the source of our values.

            One of the ways I keep up with the world is by reading non-Christian magazines.  There are three I have been subscribing to for quite a while that are terrific magazines, and I recommend them to you.  You may not like them, but they have served me very well in keeping up with the world.  I would love to know what magazines you read that help you keep up with the world, even if they are such obvious ones as Time and Newsweek.  So e-mail me and tell me what you like and why. 

            The three magazines I recommend are:  The New Republic, The New Yorker, and BusinessWeek.

THE NEW REPUBLIC

            The New Republic is thought of as a liberal magazine, and I suppose by most standards it is.  However, it is unpredictably liberal.  The article that killed the Clinton health care program was published in The New Republic.  So most of the time it is a magazine that takes a clear-eyed look at things going on around us, and I find it helpful.  As their editors change from time to time, the quality and aim of the magazine change.  I like some of their editors better than others, but it’s been a helpful magazine to me.

THE NEW YORKER

            This magazine, which started out as a magazine about New York City, has turned out to be an influential national magazine.  The cartoons are wonderful, but the long articles on such varied subjects as “Turkey Hunting in the South” and “Fine Dining in Paris” are articles I find to be very interesting.  They also have very thoughtful articles on politics, the arts, religion, and social issues, and I find it to be very enjoyable.  The length of some of the articles is ponderous.  When they begin to feel too much for me, I just quit and move on to the next article. 

BUSINESSWEEK

            BusinessWeek is the best business magazine I’ve ever read.  I don’t know why.  Other friends of mine prefer Forbes, but I prefer BusinessWeek.  The short articles and the punchy journalistic style keeps me up with what’s going on in the world of finance, and some of the good decisions we’ve made in the last few years have been generated by James Bagwell and me reading BusinessWeek.  So that is another magazine I really enjoy.