Only 5% of Christians have read the Bible from cover to cover.

When I found that statistic in my research, I was mad at first; then, I was concerned. Only 5 out of 100 Christians have read the entire Bible? Wow! Why is that, I wondered? Perhaps it's because the Bible is long and difficult to understand. My guess is that 100% of Christians have tried to read the Bible and only 5% of them have stuck with it.

Reading the Bible cover to cover is hard work, for sure, but it can be done, and it can be enjoyable! Our small group at church read, studied, and discussed the One Year Chronological Bible and loved it! We called it "B.i.A.Y." for short -- "Bible-in-a-Year." It was the catalyst that launched several of our members to the next level of their spiritual growth.

Throughout that year, I developed materials to help our group understand what they were reading. This website makes available all of those resources. The Study Guide includes articles on Bible basics, detailed maps, helpful illustrations, organized charts, and weekly reviews, everything you need to help you make sense of what you are reading. The Daily Reflections is a devotional with concise summaries and introspective questions for personal application each day.

Both of these tools will help keep you engaged throughout the year. My prayer is that you will not be part of the 95%, who say that they live by a book that they have not read. I trust that the Lord will use the Study Guide and Daily Reflections to encourage you on your journey through the Bible.

The people at Tyndale Publishers have put together a fantastic One Year Chronological Bible (NLT 2000). While there are numerous "read-in-a-year" plans to choose from, the Chronological Bible is the way to go.

Consider the advantages of reading the One Year Chronological Bible: 

1) You are reading the Bible in the order that it was written, the way that it was written. Hey, that makes sense to me!

2) In the canonical order, you read the prophetic books long after you read the time in which the prophets lived. With the One Year Chronological Bible, you read the prophetical books in the historical period of their time.

3) Rather than read Psalms as a separate book from its authors, you will read the songs that the author wrote when he lived. For example, many of David's psalms are mixed in with the story of his life. After his adulterous affair with Bathsheba, you will immediately read Psalm 51, in which he expressed his guilt and need for forgiveness. 

4) The Gospels -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John -- rather than being separate, are combined, and the combination makes for a smooth reading of the life and teaching of Jesus. Thus, you will not have to read the Gospel four times, but only once. 

5) Likewise, the letters of Paul are mixed in with the history of Acts, and they fall during the time when he would have written them. They are not disjointed books, but rather they are integrated with Paul's life. 

6) The New Living Translation (NLT) is easy to read, which helps for a quick understanding of difficult texts and requires little time trudging through difficult words. 

Are You Ready to Order a Chronological Bible?

Important Note: My Study Guide and devotional were written for the One Year Chronological Bible New Living Translation (NLT 2000). It does not work with other chronological translations, which have different reading schedules. Therefore, when you purchase a Bible, please make sure that you get the one pictured here.

The One Year Chronological Bible is not hard to find. Just visit your local Christian bookstore. If it is not there, you can always order one online.