Many people are starting new Bible reading plans as the new year kicks off. Let me suggest a slightly different approach: saturated Bible reading. Instead of reading as much Bible as possible (and possibly retaining very little), focus your efforts on a few chapters of the Bible over many days. Right now, I am reading the first four chapters of Mark's Gospel every day in the month of January. You may think, "Doesn't that get old, reading about the same miracles Jesus performed and interactions Jesus had with people?" Actually, no.

When you focus on the same passage over a several days, God speaks to you in different ways. Each day you have new experiences, and the same story can take on a new application. Also, you become very familiar with the passages. The Holy Spirit enables you to recall verses that encourage, exhort, or even confront you when you need it. If you read the passages from a written Bible (instead of electronically), you remember what part of the page the story is found.

Saturated Bible reading will increase your meditation on the Scriptures, especially if you start to voice it to God as a personalized prayer as you read. Give it a try.