Back in January, I started a new Bible reading plan. I decided to use Professor Grant Horner’s system of reading through the Bible.
It has been incredible!
Allow me to give you a brief synopsis of the plan.
The Bible is divided into ten different reading lists: the Gospels, the Pentateuch, Major Epistles, Smaller Epistles, OT Poetry, Psalms, Proverbs, OT History, OT Prophets, and NT Church (including Acts, Romans, and Hebrews).
Each of these lists have differing amounts of chapters in them. When you read one chapter from each list each day, you’ll finish each list at different points. When you finish a list, you simply start it over. This means that you will never be reading the same ten chapters each day. Each day puts new scriptures together, drawing your attention to the comprehensiveness of God’s Word.
As I said, it’s been incredible!
Today, I finished the last chapter of Malachi, which is in the longest list. That means that I’ve read every chapter in the Bible this year. But at ten chapters a day, I’ve read much of it more than once. For example, the shortest list is Proverbs. I’m currently in my ninth reading this year of the book of Proverbs. Or the 62 chapters of Poetry… I started my fifth reading just the other day.
At this point, I’ve read more than 2500 chapters so far in 2012. With only 1189 chapters in the Bible, this plan has helped me read more in a shorter time frame than any other plan I’ve ever tried.
And I’m loving it!
Here are a few benefits:
- Timely. I can read my ten chapters in about 30 minutes. This is consistent from day to day.
- Fresh. I never know from day to day if or how the chapters I read will interweave with one another.
- Exciting. I’ve developed a new passion for reading the Bible. This plan has revitalized my perspective.
- Challenging. In order to keep so many different lines of thought untangled in my mind, notes are a must.
- Familiarity. In reading several books multiple times per year instead of just once, my memory of where things are found is improving.
- Passion. This plan has recreated a passion for reading God’s Word in me. I’ve always been consistent in this, but this year, the hunger is more intense.
I plan on maintaining this plan for a while longer to see how I continue to grow. I’m thinking for the next few years. I like it that much.
The only drawback I see is that I’m wearing out my Bible much faster.
But that’s ok. I like the look of a worn Bible.
How do you read the Bible? What are the benefits of your system in your life? You can share your thoughts in the comment section below.
This year, I’ve been using the Daily Audio Bible to listen through the Bible. Each day there is a OT reading, NT reading, Psalm, and Proverb.
Do you find it any harder to be consistent using an audio version? I’ve never tried that method, or any audio books really. Glad it’s working for you!
Hi Jeff. I discovered your blog the other day and am enjoying your insights. I started the plan a few weeks ago on my Kindle. Actually, I downloaded several Bibles – some free, some paid – all ESV and one NASB. ESV is my favorite, but there weren’t enough available for all the Scriptures. This is much easier with my Kindle. I can go from Bible to Bible reading one chapter in each, and the next day, each Bible opens to where I left off in each book. I know Dr. Horner places a lot of emphasis on knowing where a particular passage is located on a page. Doing this the way I’ve described with my Kindle is just so easy, but I’m wondering if I’m missing something with this method. I love this Bible-reading plan, and I love the way I’ve set it up on my Kindle, but do you think I’m missing out because I’m not reading on a hard copy Bible or do you think I just need to go with the best way to read for me?
In my opinion, you should use the method that keeps you in God’s Word the best. I’m currently using a Bible on my iPad (NASB). I’ve considered the idea of knowing where things are on a page, and have decided that it is a minor issue, for two reasons. First, the more you read the Bible, the more you’ll become familiar with where things are at based on context, instead of the location on a page. To me, this is more crucial. And second, in order to keep my reading fresh, I change translations every year. I still keep my trusty NASB handy, but I will do the bulk of my reading in a different version. So if I were using a physical book, placement on the page becomes a moot point anyway. The point isn’t to get through the Bible (or even to know where things are in the Bible). The point is to let the Bible get through you. keep doing what works for you!