With the new year, many want to improve their lives in 2012. One of the best ways to do that is to read the Bible daily in the new year.

Several polls taken during the last year have unfortunately demonstrated that American Christians are somewhat illiterate when it comes to the Bible and particularly Biblical teachings. One good way to reverse the trend is to set aside time to read the good book everyday. An excellent idea is to read through the whole Bible or at least the New Testament during 2011. There are a number of good programs to help you in the process.

One of the easiest ways to get it done is to get a ‘One Year Bible’ where the whole year is divided up into daily readings usually with a selection from the New Testament, the Old Testament, and from Psalms. You can even get it in your favorite version at the book store or at Amazon.

If you find that reading all of it in one year is maybe too much, then you could read just the New Testament and Psalm offerings for each day and then maybe save the Old Testament or the following year (or visa versa).

There are also a number of good plans available that allow you to use your regular Bible for the reading. Here’s a few online: The One year Bible Online, Bible Year-eSword, Bible Gateway

You could also get the Bible on CD or tape and listen to it on the way to work this year or download it into your iPod, iPhone or MP3: iTunes, Apps me now

There are lots more Bible helps available just search online.

May God Bless us all in 2012.               *Top

Related Posts?:

1. Why Blogging? -A Bible Study Example
2. Setting Up a Bible Study Blog

I found this on Adrian Warnock’s blog—an app. program by the folks over at Logos Bible Software: Reftagger

This program automatically provides a pop-up window that displays every bible reference in your blog or website in the version you choose. Take a look how it works, just point your curser at the following scriptures and watch how it pops up:

John 3:16     Matt. 28:18-20     Is. 7:14

What is really great, it literally only takes 5 minutes to install on most sites. Also, there is a plugin available for self-hosted WordPress blogs that allows you to further customize it for your site.

What a great addition for ministry blogs, particularly for teaching, preaching and Bible study sites.            *Top

Actually, I believe that anyone teaching a Bible study should seriously consider posting the notes or lessons on the Internet. Here are a few good reasons:

1. Access to the notes for everyone in the Bible study.

Those who miss a lesson or two can catch up. Those who where there but lost the outlines or notes can always download new ones. There will always be a permanent record of the study for as long as the site is maintained.

2. Expanding your Bible study to include a world wide audience really takes very little additional efforts.

For the same effort it takes to prepare for teaching a Bible study at church or in a home fellowship group, you can actually end up ministering to people in countries all around the world. People from Over 138 countries have visited my Bible Study blog and it really is no big deal or exceptional in any way.

Not only that, but the lesson you did last week will continue to be read by folks this week and in the weeks to come. The effort you put into one lesson for one week can continue to minister to people for 52 weeks a year. Also, for 24/7, 365 days, and 52 weeks the next year and the year after for as long as the site is up.

Best of all, a Bible Study blog can be started for no cost at all and with zero website experience. A beginner can set up an attractive fully functioning new blog at Blogger.com or at WordPress.com in less than an hour.

Here’s some links to earlier posts I’ve written evaluating Blogger and WordPress:

-Getting Started With Blogger: An Evaluation

-Getting Started With WordPress.com: An Evaluation

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Now here is the best part. Nearly every lesson that I have posted so far is read by someone every week. The first lesson that I wrote a year ago was read by someone in the UK. The point is, the same effort that you put into preparing to teach one class on one occasion, can be multiplied on the internet where the lesson can potentially be read by someone everyday for as long as you maintain your blog.

Through the use of a blogging tool, a Bible study lesson is posted and stored, and remains accessible internationally every day. For example: if you publish a lesson on Mark 1, the major search engines take note and the next time someone uses a search engine looking for a teaching on Mark 1, your post can be one of those listed and linked to in the search results.

Eventually your blog can gain a following that repeatedly comes back for your lessons every week. With most blogging tools, readers can subscribe to your site and be notified of every update or receive a feed from your site and read your latest in a location of their choosing.

See the next post: “Getting Started with Blogger“. It evaluates how easy it is to get started on Blogger.com and weighs the good and not so good.

By the way, I post short Bible study lessons usually a passage at a time @ ANSWERS For The Faith and then organize the lessons in chapter form and place them on my @ BIBLE Study blog. Take a look, it should encourage you. You ought to be able to do better!                *Top