One of my all-time heroes of the faith, George Müller one said,

“The vigor of our spiritual life will be in exact proportion to the place held by the Bible in our life and thoughts. I solemnly state this from the experience of fifty-four years…I have read the Bible through one hundred times, and always with increasing delight. Each time it seems like a new book to me. Great has been the blessing from consecutive, diligent, daily study. I look upon it as a lost day when I have not had a good time over the Word of God.”

George Müller was a missionary who founded schools and orphanages in Bristol, England in the early 1800’s.  You can read more about his amazing life here ~~> George Müller

Our lives are the product of our thoughts. To live right, we need to think right. We must read the Bible frequently and regularly so that God’s thoughts may be frequently and regularly in our minds; so that His thoughts may become our thoughts; so that our ideas may become conformed to God’s ideas; so that we may be transformed into God’s own image and be made fit for eternal companionship with our Creator.  Henry H. Halley

Many years ago, we took Bibles throughout Asia and I will never forget how grateful each family was to receive a Bible of their own.  That can be hard for us to imagine when more than 87% of American homes have Bibles that are often collecting dust on a shelf.  If the Word of God is what it claims to be then reading the Bible should be a fundamental part of the Christian faith.

Here are some of my personal notes on Bible reading:

There are 1189 chapters in the Bible, 929 in the Old Testament and 260 in the New Testament. An easy way to read through the Bible in a year would be to divide the total number of chapters by the 365 days in the year.  That would come to about 3 ½ chapters a day, an easy read for most of us even with our busy schedules.  However, that being said, I found that as a wife, mom and missionary I needed more wisdom and encouragement from the Lord on a daily basis.

The plan I am sharing with you is the one I have followed for years (with a few extras).  The basis of my 5-3-1 Bible Reading Plan is simple, it is a plan that provides daily encouragement through reading 5 Psalms and 1 Proverb in the morning and then 3 chapters each evening.  When followed, this plan will take the reader through the entire Bible in a year as well as reading the Psalms and Proverbs through once a month for 12 months.  All that wisdom and encouragement each and every day, that is my favorite part!  I often read in the morning and listen to my audio Bible in the evening.

I will be sharing a FREE download of my personal plan for this year.  Each month you will be able to find the plan for the month and when followed, you will have joined me in reading through the entire Old Testament once, the entire New Testament twice as well as the Psalms and Proverbs through twelve times this year.  I was hoping to finish this post BEFORE January 1 but I have been very ill with pneumonia.  That being said, the plan for February will be up sooner rather than later.  😉

 FREE DOWNLOAD: BIBLE READING PLAN

I would love to hear how you are doing or any questions you may have regarding your Bible reading time.  May the Lord lavish His most extravagant love on you this New Year,