I don’t know why it’s one of the hardest things for me. Probably because I’ve never really maintained one, and getting momentum is often hard. You know what old Newton said.

I know God doesn’t give us extra credit for reading our Bibles regularly, and I know it’s more for me than it is for Him, but I really want to wind down 2011 in His word every day.

On FindingMyFitness, I’ve talked about making health and fitness easier by automating it. Finding ways to have to think less about doing a task so it becomes easier to actually complete it.

Not to cheapen Bible reading, but I think that’s what I need to do here.

Enter YouVersion.com

A while back I downloaded YouVersion Bible to my phone. It’s really helpful for finding verses while on the go, and it even has a way to “read” while driving because of the audio Bibles that come with it.

The other day they sent me an email with five different reading plans for Christmas, and I just really like that idea. I can sign up for one and either read it on my phone (it’s part of their app) or read it online.

Check out their Bible reading plans here.

Once Christmas is over

The plan I chose ends on December 26th, but I don’t want to stop there. I have a plan (a mental one, not a phone one) to read the Bible next year specifically for information regarding fitness and nutrition, but I also want to pick a year-long plan I can read each day as a small 5-10 minute devotional. This app has a lot of those as well.

Another thing I like is they have ways to remind you. You can sign up for email reminders or post about it on Twitter and Facebook and have your friends remind you. I’d love it if my phone would remind me, but I don’t see that option at the moment.

I didn’t expect this post to turn out to be a commercial for YouVersion, but I guess I really can’t recommend it enough if you have a smartphone (they have iPhone, Android, and Blackberry apps). It’s useful on the web too, but it’s much more convenient on your phone.

So there you have it. Automate your Bible reading by finding a plan. All you need beyond that is the discipline to actually do it (and that’s the hard part)!

God bless you guys,
-j

More great posts:

• Seder Series Part 3 – The Order of Things
• The Hidden Bridge
• Two Verses
• Faith and Expectation
• Excellent Devotion

Philippians 1:6
being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ

-j

More great posts:

• Here’s Some Help For Your Bible Reading
• Seder Series Part 3 – The Order of Things
• Food for my Seder
• My First Seder
• Languaging

You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ – John 3:7

Now, I have no idea if that was his intent (I did ask and will update if he responds), but I think it’s neat anyway. His name is John, and he’s not 37 based on his birthday, so I have a sneaking suspicion. I’m not talking about spiritual handles, like mine (hisc1ay – I am God’s clay) or another friend’s (bled4me2, which is more witty if you know her), but speaking specifically of scripture-related names that are witty. Have you ever come across anything like this?

Update:
I just got a message back from John. “It was not my intent but as a Christian i’m glad to hear that you looked it up. Always encouraging. thank you. 37 has just been my favorite number since i was little and the numbers 3 and 7 are Biblical so another plus to the reasons i like it.” It’s too cool how I just had a feeling that there was more to this guy that a computer name.

-j

More great posts:

• Here’s Some Help For Your Bible Reading
• Two Verses
• Mac? No, Lou.