Bible Reading Challenge

Greetings Olive Tree fans. I am not usually the one who writes our posts, but I wanted to start a weekly blog post going through a particular Bible reading plan: The Bible Reading Challenge. I invite you to join in the plan with me and read my recaps of the previous week’s readings, which I hope to post on Monday or Tuesday of each week. If you need help getting a reading plan loaded up in your Olive Tree app, you can visit our help site (help.olivetree.com) to find step-by-step instructions per platform.

The Plan

Here is a little background on the plan. The Bible Reading Challenge kicks off today (September 2) and runs through May 26 – a school-year plan, for those in the northern hemisphere. This plan is tied to the calendar, so you will always be taken to the current day’s reading, even if you have missed prior readings. While this might mean that you jump back into the middle of a narrative that you missed the first part of, it also means you don’t have to get discouraged if you fall behind – you can always jump right back in on today’s reading. It is a 6-day-a-week plan, with a placeholder passage from Deuteronomy on Sunday, which can be used as a catch-up day if needed.

My aim in doing this is to provide some insights gathered from my time in the Word, recapping the previous week’s readings with what stood out to me. Given that the readings for the week will encompass somewhere in the ballpark of 30 chapters of Scripture, I will not even remotely attempt to be exhaustive in my comments, but to provide a few things that struck me when going through. My hope is that this can be an encouragement to others to be in the Scriptures daily.

Psalm 119

Today’s reading, Psalm 119, is a great introduction into doing a plan like this because it is all about the beauty and importance of God’s Word. This Psalm is an example of a Hebrew poetic style that doesn’t come through well when translated. It is broken into 22 8-verse stanzas, which most translations do note, where each verse in the stanza begins with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet (e.g. verses 1-8 begin with Aleph).

In going through it this morning, I found the stanza in verses 33-40 is a great prayer for approaching the reading and study of God’s Word.

33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes;
    and I will keep it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law
    and observe it with my whole heart.
35 Lead me in the path of your commandments,
    for I delight in it.
36 Incline my heart to your testimonies,
    and not to selfish gain!
37 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things;
    and give me life in your ways.
38 Confirm to your servant your promise,
    that you may be feared.
39 Turn away the reproach that I dread,
    for your rules are good.
40 Behold, I long for your precepts;
    in your righteousness give me life!

Psalm 119:33-40

It details how we need the statutes and commandments of Scripture in order to turn from sin and live rightly. Though we cannot do this perfectly, we pray that God would continue to transform us more and more into the image of His Son. God’s Word is living and active, sharper than a two-edged sword. We need it to cut us to the heart, to reorient our life and our loves, and to strengthen us for the work we are called to do.

May God shape you and bless you richly through your time in His Word.