Often around this time of year people think about the need to read their Bibles more. I highly recommend it! (See Thirteen Reasons to Read the Bible.)
I wrote in an earlier post about devotional tips:
When I first became a Christian as a teen-ager, the church I was in then had a strong emphasis on reading the Bible through in a year. I am so glad, because I think that, more than anything else, got me grounded spiritually. There are many advantages to reading the Bible through in a year: it kept me focused; I knew where to read next instead of wandering around aimlessly; I discovered choice nuggets in places like II Chronicles and Zephaniah that I probably would never have discovered otherwise; it kept me balanced; it helped me understand passages in their context; and each time through I would understand the passage more.
There are a number of plans online for reading the Bible through. One here is based, I believe, on the One Year Bible plan. BibleGateway.com has a few different ones: a comprehensive one for reading the Bible through in a year, a 121-day biographical one covering some of the major people in the Bible, a 61-day survey schedule, and a 61-day chronological reading plan.
I mentioned in that post on devotional tips that I no longer read the Bible through in a year, but I do still read it through, for all the reasons mentioned above. But by going at my own pace I can take more time with particular passages if needed.
One resource I would highly, highly recommend is the book What Do I Know About My God by Mardi Collier. Whether you do her particular plan or not, the testimonies of how God has used His word in her life are inspiring. Another good resource is Alone With God by Jason Janz.
Anything is better than nothing, so I encourage you, if you’ve never made reading the Bible every day a part of your life, or you have but you’ve let it slip, it’s a worthy investment of your time. Whether you’re just starting or you’ve been reading it for years, I pray you’ll have a blessed year of getting to know God better and drawing ever closer to Him.
(Graphic courtesy of Creative Ladies Ministry.)
Stray Thoughts 
Thank you for sharing this! Reading the bible more this year IS one of the things that I would like to change about myself. The links you provided will be very helpful. Thank you and I look forward to more uplifting posts on your blog in 2007!
Thank you for sharing… that’s something I used to do, but I’ve let it slide. I want to get back to doing that… and I know your blog will help keep me focused.
Really, really nice blog! Thank you!
I would love to ask you or your readers a question, if I may?
I’ve been playing with the thought of putting on an audio cd of the Word to wash over my children as they sleep.
Not as any kind of hypnotherapy of any sort, but to just let the Holy Spirit minister over them.
Am I being weird, or too spiritual?!
Would love to hear from you!
Jenni
Bless and Thanks
I heard Mardi speak several years ago about the project in her book. I started then. When her book came out, I devoured it and started my 14-year-old daughter on the project. She loves it and is always sharing something she learned. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. They are a shot in the arm to keep on keeping on! May the Lord bless you in your new year!
Hu, JenniR, and thanks for the kind words. 🙂
While there is certainly nothing wrong with playing an audio version of the Scriptures while children sleep, I think they’d benefit a lot more from hearing their parents read a small portion to them while they are awake. Perhaps you already do that as well.
Besides reading the Bible itself, we read from a “Bible in pictures” book to our kids when they were small (this is just my opinion, but I’d avoid the ones with comic book type drawings. I didn’t want my kids to equate Bible people with comic book characters at all). Some people I know used Jesse Lyman Hurlburt’s Story of the Bible.
My kids were big fans of “Patch the Pirate” and listened to his tapes as the went off to sleep. Majesty Music also has a wealth of CDs for kids.
Thank you so much for your reply, Barbara.. I can see I’m going to spend a lot of time in your site – I have so much to learn, parenting must be one the biggest challenges I have ever faced!
Also, thank you for all the valuable resource materials too.