Jeff Ling

Do you have a plan for reading the Scriptures this year?

 Here are 5 different plans to take a look at. Why not start the year off right?

1) The Two Year Bible Reading Plan prepared by Stephen Witmer. Here’s a link to downloadable PDF.

2) Lifeway Publishers have a page dedicated to several reading plans including the 4+1 Plan and a Chronological Plan

“Welcome to the Read the Bible for Life 4 + 1 Plan. In using this plan you will read through the entire Bible in a year and through the Psalms twice. The advantage of this type of plan is that you will be exposed to various parts of the Old and New Testaments simultaneously, which will keep your reading very fresh and remind you of “the whole counsel of God”! The plan is “semi-chronological” at points, the prophets of the Old Testament and the letters of the New Testament placed in rough chronological order. There are 6 days of reading each week, giving you a day to rest or catch up with a missed reading.”

3) One of the most challenging but most rewarding is Dr. Grant Horner’s Bible-Reading System.

“Professor Grant Horner’s unusual, challenging, and life-changing Bible Reading System is unlike any other you have ever seen. Try it for ONE MONTH and find out for yourself! You will never be the same.”

4) A plan adapted from a book by James M. Gray (1851-1935), How to Master the English Bible. This is a great system that will help you master any book of the Bible. It’s pretty simple: 1. Choose a book of the Bible. 2. Read it in its entirety. 3. Repeat step #2 twenty times. 4. Repeat this process for all books of the Bible. There are some great tips and good reasons for trying this here.

5) Finally, the English Standard Version website offers several plans, the Navigators do as well and the M’Cheyne Bible Calendar is a favorite of many.

So find a plan and get started! Don’t let failure to be consistent discourage you and get you off track. This isn’t about God’s acceptance of you. That’s settled by the cross – the blood plus nothing! This IS about you knowing the God who loves you and being equipped to speak the truth to yourself and others in love. Just keep going.

Scripture

“And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them…”
(Mark 6:48 ESV)

Observation

“It’s hard to remember that Jesus did not come to make us safe, but rather to make us disciples, citizens of God’s new age, a kingdom of surprise.”—Stanley Hauerwas, Duke University

The compassion of Jesus is on magnificent display here in Mark 6. There’s the powerful statement that Jesus saw the multitudes, noted their lost condition and felt deep compassion for them. There is the amazing demonstration of power in the feeding of the five thousand. Then there is the statement “…and he intended to pass by them.”

Compassion? Jesus sees the struggle his disciples are experiencing, the fear as strong as the waves, the weariness of their arms giving way under the strain of rowing against the storm. The passage even states that he could see they were in “serious trouble!”

And he intended to pass by them.

That statement can get lost amidst the walk on the water, the invitation for Peter to step onto the waves (Matt.14) and the stilling of the storm. It’s a statement that, if you think about it, makes you wonder where in the world his compassion went.

Application

Could it be that there are times when the compassionate thing for Jesus to do is to keep an eye on us while we struggle?

“All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it.” – 1 Cor. 10:13 (The Message)

The inescapable inference is that 1) he will allow you to be pushed or tested and 2) there is a limit he will let you be pushed to. Why? As Stanley Hauerwas said above, God is outfitting us for something greater than our safety, something more profound than simply having a personal “storm sitter.” God is about the business of making us like his Son and turning us loose to partner with him in his activity in the world. Part of that preparation is the furnace of affliction, temptation, suffering and struggle. There is a facet of Christ-like strength that comes not from munching on manna but wrestling with the waves.

Compassion can be letting you struggle but know this, he never takes his eye off you, he knows the limits, and he is the Master of the waves.

Prayer

Lord, sometimes I wonder about Your compassion. I feel lost and forgotten. I think the waves might take me down. Remind me that in these times to You are not far from me and You even use these moments to chisel at that hardness of my heart and reveal Jesus in me. Thank you Lord. I will trust you. In Jesus name, Amen.