Settling in and starting again

Over the last few weeks, I have found myself spending more time reading than writing. It is not so much that I have had less to say as it is that my writing has been directed toward the church where I serve. Since my last post, we have been settling into life in our new home. There are days when it still feels like a temporary home, but then the mortgage payment goes out and I am reminded that we really are here.

With settling in comes new routines and spiritual habits. For the first time ever, I have a study at home which means I have a place to work and read and drink coffee.

The first big chunk of this year was spent slowly reading through a couple of Bible books (mostly John’s gospel in anticipation of our autumn sermon series). Between now and the end of the year, I’ll be doing a read-through of the whole Bible. It has been a while since I did that as I have been choosing instead to focus on deepening my familiarity with some books.

But as I look ahead to the rest of 2026 and what I hope to accomplish, it seems to be a good time to read the whole of the big story. As a pastor, my work is very much studying and working to understand whatever passage is next in the series so that I can teach it. What can get lost there, however is the context of the whole story.

That’s my goal and that’s my small thought as I recover from a day of preaching and teaching. There is value in remembering that the Bible is a story, meant to be read and enjoyed. There is a time for deep meditation but there is also a time for simply reading.

If you missed out on starting a through-the-Bible reading plan at the start of the year, it’s not too late. This plan from Jacob Crouch actually finishes before the end of the year so there is still time to start it and finish.