How This Started

I should start this out by confirming that, yes, this is a race, but it’s probably not the type of race you’re used to. You see, there is no tangible prize. We are not attempting to break any records, and besides a lifetime of Bible reading, we haven’t really been training…in fact, our lack of training is kind of what led to this challenge.

So being the nerd that I am, I was listening to one of my many podcasts when I came up with this idea. It was a message (New Thru 30: It is Written…) by Pastor Steve Furtick of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC. He had challenged his church to read the New Testament in 30 days. His reasoning behind a quick read inspired me. He compared it to the first few days of an intense workout and diet program. You immerse yourself into it and it’s hard, but eventually, if you stick with it, you see results. After the first few weeks of hard work, you maintain your results through a lifestyle change. I like that, a lifestyle change.

I’ve been a Christian for a long time and I’ve read a lot of the Bible, but I don’t think I can honestly say I’ve read through the whole thing. I tend to stick to the parts of the Bible that I know, the parts that are easy to understand, the parts that are not…boring. I’m familiar with “read the Bible” programs. There are 90 day ones, chronological ones, ones that break down verses day by day. Really, for as organized as I am, you would think those programs would be great for me, but the truth is that I’m a lot more competitive than I am organized and to get me through the book of Numbers, I need some competitive motivation!

Holly and I both work forty plus hours a week. We both have lives. We both have reading list. We both have our “shows,” but we both want to know God better. We want to be able to distinguish the truth from the many lies in our lives. We want to become better people with greater purpose. So we’re taking the time to make it happen. We’re spurring one another on in friendly competition.

This is a race, because we need help! This is a blog, again, because we need help! I knew that if I really wanted to commit to doing this, I needed to know that I was accountable to others. It is my prayer that you, our readers, will benefit from what God teaches us. His word is alive and I’m excited to read it front to back to catch the things I never knew I was missing. I’ll probably have more questions than answers at the end of this, but as Pastor Furtick put it, this is just a jumpstart to a lifelong habit of reading and learning the word of God. My questions will serve as a guide for the rest of my life.