Michael J. Chitwood

How’s Your Bible Reading This Year?

No, my question isn’t meant to guilt you. Like many, I have attempted to read through the Bible each year and found myself behind schedule. Due to my own failure, some years I switch to different reading plans; other years I sped up my reading plan. Despite the differences, I’ve found one thing that works each year.

Each year I read through “The Story” by Max Lucado and Randy Fraizer Since there are only 30 chapters in the book, my approach is to read just one chapter a day.[1] That means within one month I have read through the overall narrative of the Bible, which becomes a foundation for me to read the rest of scripture throughout the year.

If you choose to follow my lead, know that this book is uniquely complied by Lucado and Frazier. Both authors have compiled significant sections in the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible to allow scripture to read in narrative form. Yes, parts are withheld from this compilation, but they are removed to facilitate the overall redemptive story of scripture. In between these gaps, Lucado and Frazier write transitional synopsis’ to guide the reader into the next portion of the larger narrative.

Technically, Lucado and Fraizer’s approach promotes Biblical Theology, which focuses on the redemptive story in the Bible. Both authors communicate this redemptive tale with great care through the scripture passages they include. As a result, anyone is able to read The Story and see how scripture points towards Christ being the fulfillment of redemption: A fulfillment that puts Abraham, Moses, The Law, Joshua, the Judges, Ruth, the Kings, Major and Minor Prophecy, and more into a redemptive context. A context that requires one to read the entire Bible, even the passages left out, to then realize scripture’s deeper redemptive narrative.

As I stated earlier, “it becomes a foundation for me to read the rest of scripture throughout the year.” Continue reading “Resolve to Understand The Bible This Year”