The title on my thumbnail says today, “Change Your Life,” and there’s a picture of a lady reading the Bible. The reason for this picture is that it’s a new year, and many of us make New Year’s resolutions, and many people fail to be able to keep them. It’s a good time of year to start reading your Bible more and start a Bible plan, like reading the Bible in one year or reading the New Testament in one year. I would definitely recommend reading the Bible in one year, but you can look at many different plans out there. You only need to search on the internet. I know full well that reading the Bible is beneficial, it’s actually life-changing. As a Christian, it’s important we read the word and get to know our saviour better. You can see a previous blog post on 100 healing scriptures here
You can see my video on how to change your life below.
Reading The Bible Changes You
So, I was listening to something the other day which reminded me of this article. It says scientific research shows the positive effects of reading the Bible four days a week. In the study, they found that Christians who are engaged in scripture most days of the week have lower odds of participating in these behaviours, which the list includes getting drunk (50% lower odds), having sex outside marriage (68% lower odds), pornography (61% lower odds), gambling (75% lower odds), any of these habits (50% lower odds). Then it goes on to say they also increase participation in sharing the good news. For Christians who are more engaged in the scripture, controlling for other factors, those who read or listen to the Bible at least four days a week have higher odds of participating in these behaviours: sharing Faith with others (128% higher odds), disciplining others (231% higher odds), memorizing scripture (47% higher odds).
Why Should You Read The Bible?
So, you can see there are huge improvements from reading the word, and I can vouch for that. I know full well that when I read the word more, I have more peace, more everything really. This time of year, I have a little bit more time to read the Bible. Then, I was looking at another article, and I was going to make a list, but actually, I thought that this sums it up fairly well:
Why should I read the Bible? Number one reason: it’s how God reveals His character. It gives instruction for daily life, teaches you how to pray, explains the gospel, explains how to share the gospel, teaches you how to trust God, shows what God’s will is, is full of God’s promises, which are worth so much. It’s historically accurate. We’ve only got to look at Bible prophecy to see what’s going on at the moment and see how accurate the Bible is. It’s quite amazing, quite fascinating. It teaches you how to forgive, is full of truth, asks and answers big questions. Yes, it’s the Book of Life. It’s the Alpha and Omega of life. Everything we need is in the Bible. It’s culturally relevant. It reveals how much God loves you.
Bible Reading Plans
So, some great points there about the importance of reading the Bible. So, I’d like to suggest to you that being the New Year, and even if you listen to this and it’s the middle of the year, it doesn’t matter. It’s never too late to read the word. Here, where I usually use the Bible Gateway, I often read from it. If you go there, you’ve got reading plans, and this is all free. Old Testament, New Testament, chronological read plan, beginning read the Bible from start to finish from Genesis to Revelation, New Testament of the Year, all sorts of plans. Historical Bible in 90 days, read the gospel in 40 days. So, some great plans.
Right now, I’m reading the Bible. I’m fasting for 21 days, not a full fast, just eating once a day, and I’m also reading the New Testament in 21 days, apart from Revelation. Allegedly, that’s what the plan is, but I will probably read Revelation, and then I can say I’ve read the Bible, or the New Testament, right through in 21 days.
Change your Bible plan
See here where I started, although this isn’t a proper plan, this is a yearly reading plan. Already, I’m through to John 2 in just seven days. So, it just shows you how it’s not as long as you think. I don’t know how long I’m spending, probably about an hour a day, I would think. I haven’t actually timed it, but certainly no longer, possibly less, I would think. But it’s not about rushing through the word, it’s about getting something from it.
Another good thing to do is when you’re reading, pick out a verse or two that you really like and make some notes on what they mean to you. In a year’s time, or even a few months’ time, you can look back and think how much you’re learning, and it’s so beneficial. The word is life-changing. I was on a Bible study this morning online, and every time I go on the Bible study, I learn something, and you come out feeling much better because we’re hearing God’s truth. I can listen to the news and not feel particularly excited about it, but when you listen to God’s word, it gives hope, a future, and so much more. We can call on his name at any time.
The Sinners Prayer
So, maybe you’re watching this and you’re not a Christian. I’ve got a prayer up here, which I said about 26 years ago, which reads. “Dear Lord Jesus, I acknowledge you as Lord and Savior of my life. I repent of all my sins, and I ask you today to take over complete control of every aspect of my life. Amen.” Now, if you said that and you meant it, it means that the Spirit of God can live within you, and you can have the gift of eternal life. Jesus died on the cross to set the captives free, and for those who believe, we can have eternal life and much more. I can honestly say it’s the best thing that I ever did, and I hope if you’re not a Christian, you will do this too.
So, if you’ve got any questions on this video or anything else, please feel free to leave a comment. I’m here to try and help and encourage, and thank you very much for watching.