Sometime late last spring, Rev. Timothy J. Luoma happened across the Bible in 90 Days website and immediately thought, “90 days?! That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard!”

But then… the more he thought about it, he decided it was something he wanted to try. “Hrm, if I turn it into a Sunday school class, that would keep me from giving up!” So he started talking up the idea from the pulpit and in the church newsletter. “I really had no idea if anyone else would be interested, especially over at 9 on Sunday morning!”

The first Sunday we had about 20 people show up (given that a “good Sunday” attendance is about 100, this was especially encouraging). The final Sunday we had about 20 people show up, and attendance stayed consistent all through the summer. In addition we had several others who were reading along at home. Each week’s sermon came from the readings of the week ahead.

Advice & Suggestions

There is a special Bible designed to divide the Bible into about 12 pages per day, and indicates where to start/stop each day.

There is a Bible in 90 Days Curriculum kit available which includes a copy of the Bible, a participants guide, and a DVD which has a 20-30 minute lesson for each week which our group found very interesting.

However, you can do the entire course for $0 (assuming you already have a Bible). You can download the reading list which is available in either as a web page, or PDF document or Microsoft Word (.doc) format from the church website.

A Few Notes

Several participants said that, in hindsight, they would have preferred to read the Bible in chronological order. A One Year Chronological Bible is available and we may read that next year. Also the Bible is available on Audio CD or on MP3 which was helpful for some in our group who have difficulty seeing or who wanted to listen on their iPods. Some just enjoyed reading and listening at the same time.

Additional Resources

The Essential Bible Companion: Key Insights for Reading God’s Word gives a nice 2 page overview of each book of the Bible.

Understanding the Old Testament: An Introductory Atlas to the Hebrew Bible by Baruch Sarel has some good maps of the Old Testament areas with modern layovers.