There are a lot of things that one can do in 90 days, but one I hadn't considered prior to about 2 months ago - was reading the Bible cover to cover. This summer, I joined a Bible study with a group of ladies online through Good Morning Girls and Kayse. It was a great time studying Proverbs 31 and learning how to be a better wife and mother - although I seemed to fail more than succeed at those lofty goals. After we completed that study, we decided that we wanted to do something with a little more reading from the Bible. The GMG study really only had 2-3 verses each day and then we talked and meditated on those ideas. So, we moved on to the lofty goal of reading the Bible in 90 days!
Man oh man, you would not believe how much harder this has been than I would have even guessed. Many of us had never read through the Bible before, even though many of us had also been raised in the church and been Christians most of our lives. It said at the beginning that it would be 45-60 minutes of reading a day and while that is ambitious, we also discovered things to help, like an app on the phone that allows you to keep track of the reading plan and listen to the Bible in a few different translations. This has helped, but it is still so hard to keep up and many of us have fallen behind, only to work hard to catch up, and then fall behind yet again. It has been a vicious cycle, with the enemy whispering to all of us along the way - "you can't do this"...."just give up"....."you should have known better than to try something soo difficult"..."you'll never catch up." And other hurdles, like sick babies and toddlers, like a child who always slept during your commute so you could listen to the word who now stays awake the entire time clamoring for music, and many other struggles - not the least of which is motivation. This is and has been a difficult climb and rather than feeling encouraged, we are all trudging up the mountainside feeling as though we will never reach the peak. One member catches up, and others only feel worse to admit how far behind they are, yet this is ridiculous!
It has been just over 50 days and I am currently reading in Isaiah. That means that in a little less than 2 months I have read 22 books of the Bible, other group members are feeling discouraged to still be in Psalms or Proverbs or Ecclesiastes - but really when you stop to think that even reading 19 books of the Bible in less than 2 months is an amazing feat! One that I had never even considered attempting prior to joining this group. So, for all the days that it feels monotonous, that it feels like you will never reach the goal, that you just aren't doing enough - remember that life, Christianity, motherhood, all of it - it is about the journey. It is about doing your best along the path and sometimes messing up or falling behind, but always learning and always growing. Reading the Bible, even in 90 days, isn't about getting through it and reaching the destination (as I am often guilty of only focusing on the end result - rather than the journey) - it is about hiding the Lord's word in our hears. It is about knowing God and the message that He has given us, just a little bit better. It is about remaining steadfast in the face of a difficult goal and knowing that while I may not be able to do it alone - I can do all things through Christ!
