Curt Daniel's "Helpful Hints on Reading the Bible" (Part 3)

Here is Dr. Daniel's helpful hint #3 on reading the Bible (Note: no one is bound to read the whole Bible every year, so there is no need to feel unnecessary guilt if one does not. It is a practical and sensible goal, however):

3. READ THE WHOLE BIBLE EVERY YEAR

"Have you ever read through the entire Bible? You may be a new Christian or an older one, but it is good for all of us to read all of the Bible. Martin Luther read the whole Bible twice a year, and Arthur W. Pink did it three times a year. At the end of his life, George Mueller acknowledged that he had read the Bible 100 times. It is one of the few books that gets better and better each time we read it. Some new converts immerse themselves into the Bible immediately. It is not at all unusual for a new Christian to read the entire Bible once or twice even in the first 6 months of his Christian life. Unfortunately, later on we slack off. Instead of that insatiable hunger, we settle for a few tiny snacks from time to time, usually from our favourite portions. But reading the whole Bible once is not enough. We need to live off of it. Nor should we settle for snippets, such as the "Verse of the Day" daily devotionals. At that rate we wouldn't finish the Bible in an entire lifetime! Moreover, if we ate as little physical food as we do spiritual food, we'd die of malnutrition. So, we need to read it all, and do it daily. That means that just a little over 3 chapters a day would complete the entire Bible in a year. It is best to read a certain amount every day rather than read an accumulated portion once a week. Consecutive annual Bible reading is helpful and important. It keeps us balanced, else we stay in our favourite passages (which are usually the "nice" portions which comfort but do not challenge or convict us). Reading the whole Bible keeps us balanced. Also, remember that "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (2 Tim. 3:16). Have you ever been reading a relatively obscure part of the Bible, and had a verse jump out and grab you? It arrests your attention, tells you something you never knew but now are glad that you read it. It may strike conviction, reveal something unknown about God, or bring a new promise. There are charts available. Some have 2 from the Old and I from the New for every day. Others divide Scripture up chronologically. Probably the simplest way is simply to go straight through from Genesis to Revelation."