Welcome to the journey of a lifetime. Tomorrow (Tuesday the 4th) your reading starts for possibly one of the most intensive reading challenges you've ever had. Don't be discouraged, I'll be right here with you. Each day I will be sending you and email with encouragement. It will highlight key points of encouragement, gentle reminders, and also may have occasional few trivia facts to see if you were reading your Bible with any attention. I don't have a set time that I will be sending out these emails, because my school schedule will be a hectic one this year, so it may be early morning, or you may not receive an email until well after midnight, regardless of when it gets out, it will get to you. Below I have included a few tips to keep in mind while reading to help you stay focused and on top of your reading.
- Open in prayer. Before you begin your reading, ask God to help you focus. This is probably one of the most important tips I can give you.
- Find your setting! Everyone reads differently, some like a little background noise, while others need total silence. Whatever it is for you, be sure to find a spot everyday the night before you are reading your next chapter. That way, you won't have to look for that spot the following day and waste more time.
- If you are the type of person that needs music while reading, BE WARNED! Everyone wants to be able to say that they can do this, but there are few people out there that actually gain anything by listening to music while reading. While you may be capable of reading and listening, this may not be the best time to use this skill.
- If you're a techy, you might like the idea of just slapping the Bible on the computer or your phone or i-pod and reading it on there. Technology in this case, however, is not your friend. Recent studies have shown that reading screens on monitors or phones/i-pods can result in a 25% reading ability. This means that you will understand less, and have to read longer. Since this is the case, I urge you to crack open that dusty old Bible of yours (the real one) and blow off the dust. Try it old school and save yourself a ton of time and frustration.
- Keep a glass of water at hand, and possibly a healthy snack, like an apple. I don't know about you, but if I have a bag of veggies in front of me while I'm doing something, I'm more inclined to nibble on them, than when I am forcibly trying to get myself to eat something healthy. Having water and food on hand will greatly limit your reasons for interrupting your reading.
- Follow me as I blog out the B90X experience at http://myb90x.blogspot.com/
- PLAN YOUR READING THE NIGHT BEFORE YOU READ IT! This is SO important! If you don't plan the time that you are going to set aside for your reading, it won't happen. There are plenty of distractions in this world, and trust me when I say that Satan himself will be throwing all of them at you over these next 90 days. Don't fall into the trap of just "hoping" to get the reading done. Set a time, and stick to it. It doesn't have to be the same time every day, but at least have a set time the night before you read.
- Keep a journal! It doesn't have to be anything fancy. It just will help you with your attention. You can write out every verse that you like in your daily reading, or just write the reference. It's your choice, just do something!
- Make a pouch or bag full of what you need. It shouldn't be a backpack, or a suitcase. Just a simple pencil pouch will do. Keep your pencils, pens, highlighters, bookmarkers, and journal all in here, that way you don't have to go collecting them before each reading.
- Close in prayer, and thank God that you completed successfully another reading session! Take in the fact that you just did it.
-Your spiritual personal trainer :)
So let me get this straight...You're doing the whole Bible and DB is doing just the New Testament?
ReplyDeleteCorrect.
ReplyDeleteYou got it. :)
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