Conversation: A One-Year Bible Read Thru...

Hello! Many of you in my Garland Church community have embarked this year on what is a totally cool endeavor: To read through the whole Bible in 2009, and to do it together. I'm very proud of so many of you who have made this commitment to focus on interacting with God through His Word on a daily basis. Sometimes it will be challenging to keep on course with this, but it will be worth it!

Over the course of this year, I want to keep the conversation going about this effort in our community through using this blog. Feel free to subscribe to the feed and post anything on this trail or a new trail if you'd like to enter the conversation. Let's encourage each other on the journey!

To start, let me copy in an email one of our church staffmembers wrote as an encouragement on this:

"Stop reading! You are already too far behind. It's no use!"

Have you thought that, or heard that suggestion coming from the shadows of your mind Maybe it's only me who hears such things! Anyway, I want to encourage you to not give up, and don't be anxious when you do fall behind. We are not machines, and while we do need to discipline ourselves, we should not feel enslaved to this wonderful reading plan. Do what you can and carve out the time needed to connect with God through reading His scripture, and be satisfied with the best effort you can give it. I'm convinced that the Lord welcomes each heart felt effort on our part to read, reflect and respond to His inspired words.

Personally, I'm way behind on the daily plan, and catch-up sessions don't work well for me - I become frustrated and grumbly when I attempt to catch up, because I end up emphasizing quantity of reading over quality of reading. I've learned that a slower pace of reading with a smaller chunk of scripture allows better reflection and absorption. I often need to chew on a single verse, or phrase - ruminating as they say, over and over. A quick once-over leaves me feeling dissatisfied - it seems like a hurried "Hi, how are you?"

with no time to really engage.

So, I'm plodding along. At times I put down the Bible and pick up a commentary to see what the scholars have to say about particularly difficult verses. Then I can return to ruminating on the scripture with confidence that I have an acceptable interpretation of what the passage meant to the original hearers. Then I am able to more readily 'surrender' to the passage so that Christ can be formed within me.

That's been my experience, so far, with this plan. It's good, very good, that so many at Garland are walking along the same path - the same reading plan. I encourage you to enjoy the freedom we each have to progress as the Holy Spirit directs. We are free to be all that God desires us to be, in community, at Garland Church. Keep reading, reflecting and responding!

One person who received this message responded as follows:

Thank you for this encouraging word. I like what you shared
about what does work for you. I'm one of those "machines" who has kept up
with the daily readings. But they are BIG, and I was feeling like I was giving it
quantity vs quality time. All last week I was going through the motions and
wanting to be finished with Job, knowing that this was not the intent of the
exercise. Then on Sunday during the service, suddenly I "got" a whole lot out of
the previous week's readings, which leads me to two conclusions: however we do it, it is not wasted effort; it is very helpful to have the Sunday message or worship experience relate to what we're doing during the week.

What do YOU think? How's it been to meet with God through this effort so far? Let's keep the conversation going...

Lookin' Up...Pastarod