So the last ten days past by and with a flurry of reading activity, there was success.
Success to the point where cycle 23 was completed!!
So we started the ten days with 169 chapters to go to finish the task, and discovered along the way that due to some dodgy maths somewhere the target was actually 172 chapters.
So what was read in the last ten days.
Ezekiel 12-48.
Hebrews
Daniel
Hosea
James
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
I Peter
2 Peter
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
I John
2 John
3 John
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
Jude
Revelation
It seems like a lot of books! And in one sense it is, but many of them are quite short, but after one hundred and ten days cycle 23 has been completed and I am one step closer to my goal of reading the Bible at least one time for every year of my life.
My age: 44
Times read: 23
Goal: One time for one year and trying to reach that by the age of 50 meaning now 27 times in 6.5 years.
That means we need to do 4 and a bit times per year. That's a hard goal to reach!!
Well let's keep going and after a break of a day or two back into cycle 24 and this time I will be reading from the longest book to the shortest book, so I will be taking it away with Psalms.
And as Psalm one blessed is the man who meditates on the word of God day and night!
Someone one said, in a play on the sound of words, I am at a loss to explain the prophets. He was speaking about the prophetic books of the Bible, and sometimes they are difficult to explain, other times they are difficult to stay focused on and I guess motivated to read through.
So the last ten days have been a little bit difficult but I have now made it through two and a quarter of the three major prophetic books!
So what did I read in the last ten days.
Jeremiah.
Lamentations.
Titus.
Philemon.
Ezekiel 1-11.
This was a total of 75 chapters and brings our running total to 1020 out of 1189 and so I have passed the 1000 mark and now have 169 chapters to go!
The one thing I am reminded of as I read these prophetic books is that we always need to read them, as any part of the Bible, and especially the Old Testament, through the cross.
That is, to read it correctly, you look at the original context, then you take it through Jesus and the cross, then you apply it to your own situation. So many people read it straight from the Bible to them, and thus you end up with some seriously weird ideas. Jeremiah said this....
Take it through Jesus, it is much harder work and requires a deeper understanding of context but what you get is a much more valuable and genuine gospel which truly changes lives.
And so one hundred days has come and gone, and now another ten begins.
See you in ten hopefully a lot closer to the goal!
The ten days started at Easter, and with the end of the gospel of John, which was not planned but worked out nicely.
I made it through Isaiah and learnt a few things along the way. It is an interesting book isn't it? Full of messianic writings and grounded in historical events, and with amazing chapters like 6,40 and 53.
So I have made it through one of the big three prophetic books and I start the next ten days with the second one.
I also read Ecclesiastes which really does bash you with its brutal insights of the reality of life. It should be required reading for anyone about to start college or uni. Think about what life really means before you waste it on hedonistic pursuits, or seeking after career.
And then there is Song of Songs, which I'm no real closer to understanding, but some of the images presented are extraordinary, Really not buying the analogy that some have of Christ and the church though.
So let's look at what I actually read:
John 17 - 21.
Ecclesiastes.
Song of Songs.
I Thessalonians.
2 Thessalonians.
Isaiah.
1 Timothy.
2 Timothy.
A total of 109 chapters, which according to our running total means 945 out of 1189 and just 244 chapters to go.
So I begin with the weeping prophet Jeremiah, now there is a man who had total commitment for God. With him and Ezekiel you really have men that said we will not go quietly into the night, we will stand up and for the sake of God we will fight.
Difficult reading but ultimately something which needs to be read.
See you in about ten!
