Bible in a year (or less!)

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Hi everyone

I've tried to follow the bible in a year app 3 or 4 times but never managed to stick with it beyond a few months. I'd really love 2024 to be the year I finally read the bible all the way through and wondering whether I try the app again - and somehow persist - or whether I should just accept that method doesn't work for me and follow a different plan.

Any advice from those who've successfully read their way through the bible would be greatly appreciated 😊

Thank you!

I am like you, I've tried and failed but I am trying again in 2024. I found what looks like an interesting plan on www.intothyword.org.

I really like the Dwell app. It has various Bible in a year plans. You can also choose from different voices and translations.

I currently have David Suchet talking me through Revelation and will be starting again in January. Maybe we could check in with each other to encourage one another?

Anyone have one that doesn't jump around the bible? All the ones I've tried do at least an old testament and a new testament bit each day.
I'd rather one that went through the books in order.

I did the chronological Bible in a year plan (on the Bible app) this year. It was great - I particularly loved reading individual Psalms alongside their associated contemporaneous events.

I got one from Wycliffe Bible Translators that goes through a book before stating another.

I have listened to Father Mike schmitz Bible in a year podcast all the way through twice and then started his catechism in a year. He's great. I absolutely love his enthusiasm.

Then you just have to make 20-30 mins a day to listen to it and try not to get too far behind/ catch up again. I've been known to listen whilst running.

If you usually tail off after 3 or 4 months, pick a shorter plan covering some books (maybe one OT and one NT?) and complete that/those instead.

Once that’s done, start another plan.

Keep track of what you’ve done and within a couple of years you could plausibly have covered all of it.

I'm doing the Bible in a Year Podcast with Fr Mike too, will listen to it while commuting.

I did Fr Mike's Catechism in a Year this year, and stuck with that most days, had to catch up a few days but I found it easier to listen to than the Bible in a Year one.

My problem has always been getting stuck in all the laws.
I read the gospel according to Mark, which is more of a story, so found that easier to get stuck in.
Also using a study guide is good.
The bible never mentions a stable for Jesus birth for instance.

Why do you need to do it in a year? Why not read a few verses a day then research them? You're far more likely to take it in and remember it better if you take it slow and steady.

Thanks for all the replies. Sounds like Fr Mike is very popular but I'm C of E so not sure that would be suitable?

@NotTooOldPaul that looks like an interesting plan - I'll have a look on the website.

@TLIMSISNW thanks - I'll check out the Dwell app too. Good idea about checking in 😊

@carmerondaydee i like the sound of this too. Lots of options!

Yes this probably is the best way to do it! Perhaps I'm being over ambitious. I think I'll try a bible in a year plan one more time but if that doesn't work, pick certain books.

I think I'm going to give Fr Mike's one, one more go, but focus on the bible reading and not the commentary. I found it too long before, but if I allow myself to switch it off during the commentary section then I will have a better chance of completing it.

I have the lectionary app on my phone (for professional reasons) but they miss out some of the juicier stuff over the 3 year cycle. So I have an audio book of the King James Bible - I'm currently on Ezekiel. It's actually a pretty hard slog cover to covering it despite it being my day job!

I read the Bible in just under a year (January to mid-December), but I did it the old fashioned way. Started at Genesis and finished with Revelation. No special apps. My only pickiness was that it had to be the NIV.

Although many people like to jump around in the Bible, this didn't work for me. Too much risk of missing things and no sense of progress. I just read it like any other book and (Lord forgive me) made little pencil marks on the pages to show where I'd stopped for the day.

Honestly I didn't even use a study guide. My reasoning was that I just needed to read it through once and afterwards I could do a deep delve into the bits that were actually pertinent, when they were familiar to me. Not all the books are created equal in terms of lessons you can learn—some e.g. Numbers are horrendously dull!

The only thing I'd say is that you need to engrain the habit of reading EVERY day. No cheat days, no exceptions. I only just finished on time although to be fair, I like to read aloud to stop myself skipping words. You won't do it in a year if you take days off.

Good luck!

Why do you want to do it, and why might CofE be unsuitable? The latter suggests you don't simply want to read the bible.

I've read it twice (different versions). Long before apps had been invented. My method was to start on page 1 and keep going until I ran out of pages. I used a bookmark between sessions - no need to write in the margins.

I did the Bible Project one a few years ago. It was chronological and there were short YouTube videos to watch alongside which really helped add context etc. I found it really good and didn't have too much difficulty sticking to it as I found it so interesting and it became part of my routine.

JW.org

Fr Mike is reading the Catholic Bible, and OP is C of E, that is what she meant by unsuitable.

I've read it straight through before, but as others have said getting through certain parts is difficult, the podcasts/apps etc make it easier.

Another concept that comes to mind is this study on what helps with New Year’s Resolutions from Richard Wiseman. The study investigated which advice helps people stick to their New Years Resolutions. It is memorable to me because I was one of the participants(!) I periodically revisit the results to remind myself how to achieve a resolution.

You could make an accountability thread if that would help you? I am currently 26% of the way through the Bible in a Year on my app. Like you I had failed attempts in the past. Not sure what it is that is making the difference this time, and I am only a few months in so who knows whether I will stick to it.

Good luck.

I'm going to be trying to do it, I have bought Faith Womack's Grace Bible reading plan with videos, she pairs OT and NT books that complement each other (e.g. Genesis and Acts), and gives you 45 grace days so if you can't do study on a particular day you don't have to worry about getting behind. Yes it does cost, but I've done some of her other courses and really like them. Faith tries to make all her courses non-denominational so there's that, too. I think it's the idea of the videos that go with that swayed me to give this a go.

What's the reason for the 'in a year' target? If you've repeatedly tried to do it in a year, failed and started again, you could probably have done the whole lot if you'd simply kept going from where you left off each time.

Interesting idea I’d like to read other religious texts too I’m not sure if there is another app so you explore the main religious texts over a year

Fr Mike Schmitz and Bible project are both good.

If you do decide to just pick certain books then Fr Mike’s podcast is based on Jeff Calvin’s Bible timeline which just covers the 17 or so narrative books. Obviously if you are using a CofE Bible you might just need to miss the books that aren’t in yours.