Nehemiah’s 52 Days Detox, Part 3; Hints

 

To make this plan more doable and rewarding let me share with you some hints I learned during my 52 days. Hopefully those hints will help you finish the reading focusing on the spiritual impact more than the fun of the experience or the pleasure of the achievement.  

I found it hard; As you can tell by looking at the reading plan, the daily readings are long and you will need determination and persistence to be able to complete the plan. In all honesty completing your readings every day for 52 days will not be easy.

I needed to free more time; I don’t know how your schedule looks like but you will need to plan ahead to free some time for your reading.

Listening helped me catch up; Decide if you will need to read, or read and listen. Listening to the Bible helped me a lot to catch up. Instead of listening to music, or the radio or making phone calls I used my driving time to listen to the Bible.

Pray; Despite the rush and the sense of urgency needed to finish your daily readings please take a moment to pray before and after the daily readings. Ask God questions about your reading, reply to the things that spoke to your heart. Tell Him the things you liked. This will add life to your reading and will make the reading more interactive. Our God is a living and listening God, He will bless your reading and will interact with your questions and comments.

Poetry first was a good choice; Start with the poetry reading first as a way to worship God.

I took notes; Use a note book to take notes of the portions you want to revisit or study in more details later.  Write down your ideas, observations and questions as you don’t want to forget them.

Share your experience; Select a couple of body members and share with them your experience and the new things you have noticed during your reading. I shared with my wife, my mom and body members about my readings and what I am learning and noticing. I am even writing these articles to share my experience with you. Sharing what you are learning is an investment in others and it also has a positive impact on your spiritual growth.

I got behind; It may happen and you will find yourself late, try to keep the reading structure, finish yesterday’s readings before starting today's. With your busy schedule you may get behind, don’t give up just keep going and try to catch up in the weekends.

Understanding the purpose helped me; The achievement is not to finish on time, the success is to get yourself immersed in the word of God. You can’t fail in this, one day of extra reading in the word of God is a gain. I was happy when I finished in 52 days but when I started, I was ready to be as happy if I finished in 60 or even 90 days. Don’t just focus on the speed or the achievement but rather on building the habit, enjoying the beauty of the Word of God and the spiritual impact of feeding your spirit with all God’s word types in the same day.

Selecting the translation, Because I knew this will be a fast read, I selected an easy-to-understand translation. Select one you are comfortable with.

Finally plan your reading after you finish, after finishing the plan you don’t want to wonder what to read now that I have read the whole bible in 52 days. I had a couple of break days but you don’t want to have an extended break. Have a new reading plan or bible study lined up.