Why I Didn’t Want to Read the Bible in a Year

I shared as one of my yearly goals that I will be reading through the Bible this year. As cliche as this goal sounds, I had been toying with the idea for years but never wanted to do it.

As someone who tends to doing all the right things and getting a bit legalistic, I worried that my Bible reading would turn into a series of just checking things off a list and turning it into one more thing I needed to accomplish. So each year, I’d put this goal on the back-burner.

I’m not sure what changed, but this year, I felt like those thoughts were more like excuses instead of real concerns. Sure, I could still fall into the trap of checking things off a list but really, I was worried that I couldn’t read that much “Bible” in one day.

So I committed this year and I’m so glad I did. I thought I’d share some reasons to read your Bible in a year that I’m learning in just this one week.

1. It forced me to get serious about the time that I have in the Word.

I can’t hit snooze. I can’t meander through the house looking for socks or setting up my cozy quiet time spot. My eyes are focused on the most important thing in that moment, consuming the Word. And even more so, I can’t read a few verses and feel like my Scripture tank is filled. I’ve been more consistent this past week than in a long time.

2. It forced me to commit.

True story, for a few weeks before Tyler and I started dating, I went back and forth with whether I really really liked him or just liked him as a best friend. As soon as we decided to date, everything changed. My whole heart was in it. When I committed to reading the Bible in a year, I became a student all over again. This was not something I could be casual about. I needed a firm decision.

3. It allows you to be led to the scripture God has for you instead of picking what you might think you need to read that day.

This might be the best reason I’ve found. I was scared to read the Bible in a year because what if I wanted the cushy love-filled truth in the gospel instead of the painful realities in the Old Testament? This was a big surrender for me and it honestly fits perfectly with my word “led” for the year.

This might be obvious but if you’ve spent a good 30 minutes of your quiet time trying to figure out “what you’re in the mood” to read, you know this is a big one. I can sit down and waste no time. I know what I’m going to turn to.

5. It keeps you accountable.

Sin loves darkness. And I’m not outright calling missing a day in the Word sin but this is where we can start to drift. We stop hearing the Word. We stop getting fed with truth. We start letting other things in. Being held accountable either by an app or an actual group of friends can keep us accountable.

And here’s the thing, even if it doesn’t happen in a year, there is still tons to gain from this commitment. My sister ended up taking 2-3 years. She hit the Gospels and felt the Lord calling her to really study deep. She learned more than she ever expected through the experience.

Have you read the Bible in a year before? I’d love to hear what that experience was for you? What did God teach you? What was the biggest blessing?