People like challenges.
And studies show that the most enjoyable challenges are those that are difficult enough to test our limits, but not so difficult that they crush our hopes of ever achieving them.
For example, playing basketball with a 6-year-old is fun, but beating them at a game of HORSE is bound to leave you unfulfilled.
On the other hand, trying to stop a 7-foot NBA player from dunking on you is certainly going to be challenging. The experience will probably not be one you’ll want to repeat.
So how does all of this relate to Bible reading?
Is reading the Bible in a year a worthy and worthwhile goal and habit to build into our lives? Of course. And for some of us, the 10 minutes of daily Bible reading it takes to accomplish that goal are difficult (if we’re unwilling to give up things like screen time and other less-than-productive activities).
But for 60 days, could you do more than just a few minutes? Could you reorganize your time and priorities to accomplish something challenging, fulfilling, and downright beneficial to your spiritual growth?
We think so.
How to do #60DaysThruTheBible
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Open your Bible.
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Read.
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Repeat for 60 days.
To read the entire Bible in 60 days, you’re going to average 45–60 minutes of daily reading (depending on your reading speed, which most of us vastly under- or overestimate).
Even if you’re not the type of person who likes reading on your phone or device, you should still consider using the Plans feature in the Bible App. There are plenty of plans out there that provide you with a daily reading schedule, with the added benefit of allowing you to check chapters off as you go.
Power Read the Bible in 60 Days with Jeff Anderson is a great example of a 60-day plan that includes a brief devotional for each day and a recommendation for reading speed.
The Benefits of a 60-Day Bible Read
Perspective
It’s one thing to say that God is faithful. It’s an entirely different thing to see God’s repeated faithfulness to His people, time and again, in every biblical narrative.
When you traverse hundreds of years of biblical history in one sitting, you get a better view of just how good, consistent, serious, and awesome our God is. He created this world with a plan, and that plan is unfolding according to His will.
No Roadblocks
It’s easy to get sidetracked. Who’s this person? Which Herod are we talking about? What am I supposed to do with this passage?
It’s great to have questions and actually find answers for them, but this can often hinder us from actually reading God’s Word. We won’t get very far if we let ourselves get in the way at every verse.
The point of a 60-day read isn’t to pull off at every exit on the interstate. We’re trying to get somewhere and see some things!
Pro Tip: If you keep struggling with wanting to dig into all the interesting questions that are raised, jot them down and save them for later. You will build a list for future bible study.
Saturation
Spending 60 days in God’s Word will fill you up. When you immerse yourself in the Bible and spend more time in it than you do on any other leisure activity, it’s going to be top of mind. It will be your first thought when dealing with difficult situations and the first thing on your lips when looking for words to praise Him.
We are striving to become more like the picture that Charles Spurgeon painted of John Bunyan, author of Pilgrim’s Progress and well-known Puritan preacher:
“…the very essence of the Bible flows from him. He cannot speak without quoting a text, for his very soul is full of the Word of God.”
– Charles Spurgeon, speaking of John Bunyan
Joy
If you want to know God’s Word, there’s no greater joy than knowing you’ve read it. All of it. And still want to keep reading it.
Going through a 60-day read is akin to a runner completing a marathon. It’s not easy, but crossing that finish line is worth every sacrifice along the way.
Neither the marathoner nor the Bible reader should do so out of some misguided feeling of obligation. No one is forcing the runner to run—they do it because they enjoy running. They participate in races because they enjoy running. They finish the race because they enjoy running.
Let that same thing be said of our Bible reading. Whether we do it in 60 days or 365, we do it because we enjoy our Creator.
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified” 1 Corinthians 9:24-27.
Special Notes
No one is stopping you from listening to the Bible on your commute, while you mow the lawn, or while you’re in the shower. If you think that “doesn’t count,” that’s fine, but the reading plans in the Bible App count it (and so should you).
The Bible App also has plans for 30- or 90-day full-Bible reading. There’s nothing special about 60 days, except that in our experience it is a pretty good balance between achievable and challenging.
Godspeed as you read!
Baptist Church Planters exists to help church leaders build healthy disciple-making churches. If you need support or resources to generate real and sustainable fruit in the life of your church, please reach out to us today. We’d love to help.
