The Year You Finish: A Simple 15-Minute Guide to Reading the Bible

We trade guilt for grace and show a simple way to build a Bible-in-a-year rhythm that fits real life. Fifteen minutes, a right-fit plan, and a friend for accountability turn a fragile intention into a steady habit rooted in purpose.

• New year expectations versus real-life rhythms
• Why plans fail and how to rethink success
• Find a clear personal why that endures
• Build a 15-minute daily framework that sticks
• Four habit keys to remove friction and start
• Plan options: straight, mixed, chronological, five-day
• Grace for missed days with two recovery paths
• Accountability through a simple reading buddy
• Shift from completion to connection for lasting change

If you thought of someone who's been wanting to further their relationship and connection with God, but don't know where to start, please send this their way

RELATED EPISODE:

How to Develop a lifelong Bible Reading Habit: The Atomic Habit: Habits Approach

BIBLE READING PLANS:

MIXED:

The One Year Bible, Bible . com (on the web or in the You Version app)

Biblica Bible in Year

FIVE DAY BIBLE READING PLAN

CHRONOLOGICAL: 

The Bible Recap (digital, print, Spanish & ASL)

HARD COPY BIBLE 

ESV: One Year Bible (Amazon)

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💬 Reach out to Jacqui at info@bible-basics.org
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🏠 Or visit a Bible-believing church near you

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Note: All scripture references are from the NIV translation unless otherwise indicated.

Chapters

• 0:00 New Year Hopes And Honest Guilt
• 2:16 Why Plans Fail, Not People
• 4:15 Redefining Expectations Of “Quiet Time”
• 6:18 The Falling Behind Moment
• 7:21 Three-Part Approach To Succeed
• 8:20 Find Your Personal Why
• 10:00 Build A 15-Minute Framework
• 12:00 Four Keys To Make It Stick
• 14:10 Choose The Right Reading Plan

Transcript

Jacqui: 0:12

Greetings, listeners. There's something about the start of a new year that makes us feel like anything is possible. We make goals, we set intentions, and for many of us, one of the big ones is finally reading the whole Bible. We picture ourselves moving through scripture with steady focus and fresh excitement. But then real life steps in. Plans change. Rhythms get disrupted, and before long we're staring at a reading schedule that's already gotten away from us. And that quiet hope we felt on January 1st starts slipping into guilt. If that sounds familiar, you're in good company. Today we're going to talk about how to build a Bible in a year rhythm that actually fits your real life. One with grace, flexibility, and a lot less pressure. Well, welcome everyone. I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where every two weeks we break down the basics of the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. You know that feeling, right? It's January 1st. You are full of energy. You've got your plan, and then somewhere between Genesis and I don't know, the third plague in Exodus, life just completely takes over. You fall a day behind, then two, the guilt starts to creep in, and pretty soon you're like, I'll try again next year. If that sounds even a little bit familiar, you're in exactly the right place. Okay, first things first. We have to get this straight right now. If you've tried this before and quit, the problem isn't a lack of discipline. Seriously, you're not lazy. And it's not because you're bad at sticking to things either. You're not flaky, and you're definitely not a bad Christian because of it. The truth is you're just human. You don't need to become some brand new, super disciplined version of yourself to do this. What you need is a new approach, a plan that actually works with your humanity, not against it. So let's dig in. Why is this goal so hard? I can tell you, for most people, including me, it wasn't a lack of desire. We wanted to hear God's voice. We wanted to know the Bible better. We wanted to grow. The problem almost every single time is the plan itself. Let me just share the real issue. We have this picture perfect idea in our heads of what Bible study or Bible reading is supposed to look like. You know, quiet house, fresh cup of coffee, journal open, worship music playing, maybe a candle burning. A whole hour of uninterrupted peace. But real life doesn't cooperate. Some days you're squeezing in a chapter before an early shift. Some days you're helping a family member, juggling appointments, or winding down after a long day, and your eyes are already heavy. For many of us, the pace of life has changed over the years, but it hasn't exactly slowed. The plan has to fit the life you actually have, not the Instagram worthy one you wish you had. Can you relate to that? I know I can. And this massive gap between our expectation and our reality. Well, it leads directly to what I call the falling behind moment. You know, when you miss one day, then maybe three, and you look at the reading list, and the thought of catching up just feels impossible. It's so overwhelming, you just abandon the whole thing. But listen, falling behind doesn't mean you failed. It just means your plan needed some grace built into it from the start. It didn't leave room for real life. So, okay, how do we build a better plan? Well, I'm going to share the three things that have helped me, and I think they'll help you too. They are first knowing your why, then building a practical or realistic framework, and three, planning for real life with grace. First, the why. Before we even think about schedules or what plan to pick, we have to start with the most important part. Your why. That why is the reason you'll come back on the days that you just plain don't feel like it. It's what keeps you reading when you miss a day, fall behind, or hit a section that feels really hard. So let's find your why first. I want you to take a second right now and finish this sentence for yourself. I want to read the Bible this year because fill in that blank. What's your reason? Be specific and identify why reading the Bible in a year is meaningful to you. Is it to know God better? To find some wisdom for your life? To just feel more grounded. Whatever that personal answer is, I promise you it's way more powerful than any burst of New Year's motivation. And when you've identified that why, repeat it back to yourself often. All right, once you've got your why lockdown, now we can build a practical framework around it. And I really want to stress the word imperfect, a practical, imperfect plan. Let's look at how to make this goal something you can actually do. Yes, I know. Reading the whole Bible in a year sounds like a massive undertaking. But when you break it down, the daily step is surprisingly small. It comes down to this number: fifteen. Just fifteen minutes a day. That's it. Not an hour, just fifteen real, messy, imperfect minutes. And hey, peace and quiet. Totally optional. So how in the world do you find these 15 minutes? Okay, here are four keys to making it happen. First, pick a time and place. Seriously, give your Bible an actual appointment on your calendar. That's where people slip. You can't just fit it in somewhere. Second, remove friction. Make reading the easiest choice you can make, not the hardest. Put the Bible right next to your coffee pot. Or make the app the first thing you see when you open your phone's home screen. Third, stack your habit. This is a game changer. Attach reading to something you already do every day, like after I brush my teeth, I'll read my Bible. Or after I pour my coffee, I'll open my plan. And finally, maybe the most important, choose to read. Don't wait till you feel like reading. It's your choices, not your feelings, that build a real spiritual life. Now, for the third component. When it comes to picking a reading plan for real life, there's no one best plan. There is only the best plan for you. So if you're a simplicity seeker, just go straight through from Genesis to Revelation. Easy. If you need variety to stay engaged, a mixed plan that gives you a little Old Testament, New Testament, and a psalm or proverb reading every day is awesome. If you're a big picture person, you might love a chronological plan that puts everything in historical order. This is my personal favorite. As a matter of fact, in the next few days, I will be completing a reading of the Bible in a year chronologically. And the fourth approach, especially if your life is hectic, is the five-day plan. Why is that? Because it has catch up days built right in. So you don't read for seven days, you read for five days. And those second, those other two days, typically the weekend, you can use those to catch up or to even read ahead. So the key is to choose the one plan that fits your life, not the one that just sounds most impressive. And check the show notes. I'll drop some links to a few of these plans so you can use those and you don't have to hunt around for one. Okay, so we have our why, we have our framework, and we have a practical reading plan. Now we need to get ready for reality. Let's talk about what to do when life inevitably happens. This part is all about grace. Let's just rip the band-aid off and say it right now so it won't come as a shock later. You will miss days, period. Life is gonna get loud. Your schedule will get turned upside down. Things will happen. You won't be perfect. This is not a failure. The cole key is just having a plan for when it happens. So when you fall behind, I'm gonna give you two simple, totally guilt-free options. Option one, a gentle double-up. Just read two days worth for a couple of days to get back on track without stressing yourself out. If even that feels like too much, go with option two. What's option two, you ask? Just skip to today. Seriously, just jump right to today's reading. So you'll miss a few days. You don't owe the plan perfection. The goal isn't about checking every single box, it's about keeping the rhythm, keeping the connection going. And finally, this might be the biggest secret weapon of all. Don't try to do this alone. You don't need a massive study group. Just invite one friend to read the same plan as you, a reading buddy. Start a little group chat where just the two of you might share one or two sentences a day. That's it. You might say, this stood out to me, or wow, this was confusing. A super quick 20-second voice or video note back and forth can be all the accountability you need to keep going. The apps Group Me or WhatsApp, they'd be a great choice to do that. Though you shouldn't expect to be perfect in your Bible reading, there are some things you can expect. Getting God's word on the inside of you will change everything about you. You'll have a deeper relationship with God, a deeper relationship with loved ones, a sense of peace and courage in daily living, an opportunity to help a friend in their faith walk. God always does more than we can ever expect or imagine. So let me leave you with this one last thought to chew on. What if you just totally reframed this entire goal? What if this year wasn't about finishing the entire Bible, but it was about relationship and connection? What if it wasn't about checking off a box every single day, but just about walking with God day by messy and perfect day. What do you think might change for you if you approached it like that? Thank you so much for tuning in. If you thought of someone who's been wanting to further their relationship and connection with God, but don't know where to start, please send this their way. You might be giving them the encouragement they need to open their Bible again with hope instead of pressure. Until then, keep reading, keep seeking, and keep growing in your faith.