I have never been one to make “New Year’s Resolutions.” However, every year, I set out to read the Bible cover to cover.
I have preached sermons, finished many Bible studies, and written devotionals that include Scripture, but I can’t claim to have read the entire Bible from start to finish. I’m not sharing this to shame anyone who has had a similar experience. I don’t believe there’s a celestial record of who has read it in its entirety, or that there’s any reward for doing so, but I want to be able to say I have achieved this goal.
Lord knows it’s not from a lack of trying, but it can be intimidating, I get distracted easily, and sometimes the yawning just won’t stop! Here’s how it goes. I pull out my Bible, journal, and an assortment of bright highlighters. I prepare my mug and start with Genesis, but by the third attempt to finish the same chapter, fighting sleep, I give up and decide, “Maybe next year.”
In early 2025, I decided to openly share my struggles on Instagram, certain that I wasn’t the only one who had struggled with this very thing. I created a post inviting other women in the same predicament to join a Bible Reading Accountability group I would lead, where we committed to reading the whole Bible together in a year. Using a Bible Reading Guide and a WhatsApp chat, 18 of us started this journey. Although some members have not continued with us, 14 remain committed, and we are now just 9 weeks away from finishing our Bible-in-a-Year reading journey.
On this journey, I have rediscovered familiar stories and discovered new ones that I hadn’t heard before. I’ve experienced moments of comfort, encouragement, and invitations to repentance, along with a priceless sense of the Lord’s presence through community. Community is one of the key elements that the Lord has used to remind me that He is my strength.
Each day, our group checks in to ensure that we are staying on track with the plan. We pray for one another, share the passages that have ministered to us during our reading, and help each other see the fingerprints of His Word in our own present lives. The sisterhood that has been nurtured among us, and our dependence on His daily bread and on each other as we commit to being women rooted in His Word, has been life-changing and reminds me daily that I am not alone. And friend, neither are you!
One of the most significant breakthroughs I’ve experienced has been the powerful passages that the Lord has graciously used to convict my heart and invite me to draw closer to Him. One such text that has had a profound impact on me is found in the Book of John. Through my reflections on this gospel, I have been reminded of a crucial truth about my journey with Scripture. It isn’t merely about reading the Bible as a routine task; rather, it is about allowing His word to truly reside within us and to shape our thoughts and actions through genuine surrender to His will. This understanding has deepened my desire for a more intimate relationship with God and has encouraged me to live out His teachings in my daily life.
“You don’t have his word residing in you, because you don’t believe the one he sent. You pore over the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, and yet they testify about me. But you are not willing to come to me so that you may have life.”
John 5:38-40 CSB
In this passage, Jesus speaks to the spiritual condition of His listeners, including the Jewish religious leaders. Despite their extensive knowledge and expertise in Scripture, the teachings they studied had not truly taken root in their hearts. Their lack of faith revealed a deeper issue—not a lack of knowledge, but a failure to surrender.
Surrender involves yielding ourselves to the Lord, allowing Him full control over our lives. When we fully surrender, we undergo a transformation that reveals God’s glory. To experience His transformative power and to impact others, the Word of God must not only be head knowledge but also dwell in us, taking root and bringing about the transformation we long for.
I once heard it put like this: surrendering to the Lord isn’t merely inviting Him into our lives’ entryway, but granting Him full access to every room. If my ambition to read His Word doesn’t come with surrendering my life and allowing it to live in me, I might miss out on the gift of a personal encounter with Jesus and experiencing His transformative power. All I may have done is read a series of exciting stories, miracles, and displays of power, which I might not truly experience because I haven’t come to Him wholeheartedly, who holds eternal life.
Friend, no matter what promises you’ve made or resolutions you’ve set for this New Year, I encourage you to trust Him with your surrender and let Him make your heart His home. Approach Him as you are, for it is in Him we find eternal life.
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Thank you for sharing your struggle and – surrender .
I participated in an on-line Facebook – “Journey Thru The Bible” by Pam Loeffler years ago . It included ladies from all around the world and was amazing ! Took us 4 years as each person would read passage each day Monday to Friday and comment on the word SOAP – S scripture O observation A application and P write ✍️ prayer .
Sometimes 25 people plus commented and sometimes a dozen but out of the 46 who signed up 14 of us stayed daily .
I would encourage everyone to get a group and do this as they daily surrender their life and some time in their day .
Great things you will see and accomplish but the greatest is knowing Him more and walking with Him not ahead of Him
Cheryl, that four-year journey sounds like it was rich in learning and growth in your faith. Thank you for sharing, and I hope I can do something like that too.
A beautiful story and devotion, Ligia. I have had the same problem. Every time I start to read the Bible, it seems another problem pops up which I need to take care of right away. Sometimes it takes me hours to settle these situations and when I am finished I am exhausted and reading anything just lulls me to sleep. I am 78 years old and have just took a very painful fall out on the ice as the facility I live in do nothing to help any of the 100 residents here. I laid out there in 13 degree weather for 15 minutes as there, as usual, no one around. I am trying to start reading the Bible again, but the pain really eats at me and I end up falling asleep. I have so many beautiful Bibles from (In)courage and I am going to start today. It will take me more than most, but I will get it done. Thank you for your story and I pray you have a Blessed week. Love, Betsy Basile
Betsy, I am sorry to hear about your fall and I pray that you will recover soon. I also want to remind you that the Lord is Emmanuel, God with us. He sees you and is always with you. I am encouraged to hear that you will start reading the Word, and I know the Lord will meet you among the pages. Sending much love, xo
Oh how this is perfectly timed. I have been struggling with many difficult decisions in my life lately. I think, rather burned out with exhaustion, sounds more of the description. I’m losing it all, my home of many years, relationship, income I had at my disposal, my health and the pain from multiple issues as my body attacks itself and me!
And if it’s not for bad luck, my car just took a nose dive. Where it is, is practically an abandoned relatives home, due to be torned down. And it is freezing or cold for us Floridians.
I do have a gas stove and refrigerator/freezer, and hot water heater. So I turned that baby on.
Also never travel in winter without 2 pillows and the most amazing blanket ever, and yes, Walmart delivers here too. Thanks be to God that sees my needs, yet holds nothing back.
This blanket though, I bought some years ago when I travel to see my daughter in NY. I got caught in a blizzard in PA on my home to Florida. I travel a lot to be with my kids, so this has been life saving in freeing weather.
I was driving along, in what is both, home and transportation, and my talks with God, when I heard as clear as can be… surrender all. It didn’t seem difficult to lay it all down, because I have nothing, I can do nothing on my own. I know God has gone before me, preparing a place and a time for all his glory to shine.
On that day, I chose to surrender it all to Him. Confidently waiting. Eagerly listening. Thank you Jesus!
Forgive all my grammatically incorrect mistakes. I can’t think so clearly today, and I’m typing as I speak.
Joanie, I love that you have a warm blanket, and even during difficult times, the Lord keeps meeting you in the warmth of all His care. He is consistently faithful and kind. I’ve learned that surrender, like love, is an active choice we make every day. I pray that the Lord will continue to bless you with grace during this season and empower you with courageous obedience as you trust in Him for everything you need.
You are so right that the Bible isn’t just a book to read through. It’s a place to have communion with Jesus and others. If you would like another way to experience the Bible, I recommend the “Bible in a year” podcast with Fr. Mike Schmidt. He proclaims the word as well as delves into some of the different readings each day. I have listened for three years and learned so much more about God‘s word each year.
Thank you for sharing your recommendation, Jane. I will certainly look into it. Blessings!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experience. It is most appreciated on this part of my journey, His confirmation continues!
Amen Sandra!
The Lord is near. Psalm 23:1 NIV “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.” – you lack NOTHING, my friend!
I gave this challenge to myself last year. There are 1189 chapters in the Bible, so divided by 365 days that was about 3.25 chapters daily. That was readily accomplished in some shorter books, but challenging in others. I read the Bible in The Message paraphrase which reads more like a novel, no columns but straight across the page. I completed by the end of November. Now I’m going over various chapters to learn more.
Elsa, cheering you on!!!
I have done the same this year and am going slowly but surely. I am in Exodus now. The one thing I have noticed, though, and it strikes me in a different way reading it when I’m 54 and actually trying to read it carefully, is the slightly disturbing stories that I did not remember. Like Lot’s two daughters getting him drunk and having sex with him and both getting pregnant. Also, the way women and daughters were viewed as property and not with loving relationships. It’s sometimes hard for me when I’ve always been taught that we shouldn’t “modernize” the Bible to adjust to modern views, but then we have things like Abraham sleeping with Sarah’s servant to be able to give Sarah a baby and that going very wrong for them. If someone today were to say, oh God told me to sleep with our housekeeper so that I could give a child to my wife, we would classify them as crazy. So how can we not modernize the Bible when there are many stories similar to this in the old Testament. I have a strong faith and this doesn’t change that and my belief in Jesus’ teachings but in some areas we have to remember that the Bible was written by humans and put together only a couple centuries ago by men selecting which books to include and not include as well as being translated many times. We cannot use the Bible to condemn certain practices and people, and then excuse other parts of the Bible by saying, oh that was just back in the “Bible days”
Hi Natalie, there are some good points in your comment that I encourage you to unpack with your local Pastor or leader; they can help you go deeper in your learning. What I will say is that 2 Timothy 3:16-17 NIV reads “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
The scriptures are God-breathed and useful across all times—yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I recognize that context plays a significant role in some Bible stories, helping us better understand their meaning or reasoning. I don’t think it’s necessarily about not modernizing it, but rather about remembering that it is written for us to understand God’s character, salvation history, and timeless truths applicable to our lives today.
Bless you, friend, and know the Lord will continue to meet you in your reading of His Word.
Me and my Husband are doing the Bible Recap. It goes through the entire bible in chronological order in one year. You read about 20 minutes per day. We listen and read at the same time. Then she comes on with a video to explain what you have read. It is awesome and it is the first time we are truly learning what we are reading.
Praise the Lord, Tahnee!
I love that both you and your husband are reading and learning together. May the Lord continue to journey with you as you seek Him together.