BIBLE READING RESOURCES

We will be reading through the "One Year Bible" as a church in 2025!  If you would like to participate, please pick up a free Bible at Church on Sunday. You can also purchase your own for delivery by clicking the link below or download a free plan on The Bible App!

Are you seeking to grow closer to God in 2025? Try this simple approach to your quiet time—the best time to start is right now. 

First, commit to pray and read the Word of God each day. Choose the plan you will use and begin today! Here are some plans to consider:

• One Year Bible - 365 daily readings
• Common Lectionary Bible Reading Schedule (scroll below or read on our Monterey Church App)
• Your own Bible reading plan

Then, commit to setting aside at least one dedicated hour, two times a week for quiet time with God. Plan for success: choose the space, day of the week and time, and materials (a pen, journal, and your Bible of course!). Follow this 9-step approach:

1. Pray through the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). Personalize it; use your own words.
2. Journal anything you sense God saying through this time of prayer.
3. Make a list of things that are weighing you down. (Release to God.)
4. Read and reflect on your daily reading; underline or highlight what resonates with you.
5. Journal: Why do I think this is speaking to me?
6. Journal: Rephrase the meaning as if Jesus is speaking directly to you. (Let the Holy Spirit have your pen…)
7. Journal: Respond directly and personally to what you imagine Jesus is saying to you. (Let the Holy Spirit have your pen…)
8. Page 1 of Your Journal: List your biggest fears, hopes, burdens, decisions, and opportunities for yourself and your family in 2025. (Exhaustive!)
9. Last Page of Your Journal: Reflect on the faithfulness of God over each of these areas in 2025.

God's promise to us as we take these steps in faith is this: "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13 NIV)

We read and study God's Word daily to grow in our faith and understanding of the Lord. Our church follows the common lectionary, which includes a reading from the Hebrew Bible, a Psalm, a reading from the Epistles, and a Gospel reading.
Download the upcoming monthly Bible Reading Schedule and Devotional Guide below and commit to reading God's word each day.   

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! If you know how to tune in to God’s voice, then keep up that great and faithful work. But if your way isn’t creating the results you need, try this one—maybe it will freshen things up. Please don’t make the terrible mistake of being unteachable and prideful in your relationship with God. We are all very much the same; the Bible tells us we must all diligently seek Him with all of our hearts. You need to create this time and practice in your life just like the pastors, leaders, and every member of your church. Remember: God’s people perish without it! 

Fear not. The Bible says even the most sensitive hearers of God misunderstand or have times when they don’t clearly hear. The best way to be sure that we tune God in, and do so accurately, is to daily seek Him through the Bible and through prayer. What God reveals tomorrow will qualify and test what we have heard today. If yesterday seemed silent, it may be because God wants to speak more dramatically and clearly today. A daily conversation will cause you to see themes and reoccurring words from God that become a drumbeat and are very clear. Going to church and a dGroup (discipleship small group) are also two critical ways to discern and test what we think we are hearing from God. People who pray with and for us will help confirm what God is speaking to you. The church’s teaching will also amplify and clarify what God is speaking to you on a personal level. 

No. God will re-begin with you right where you are. Though a devotional time does require discipline, it’s not to be a religious behavior or guilt driven. If you miss a day or two and desire to catch up, so be it, but that isn’t necessary. Just re-begin, and God will meet you right there. 

It is the time we use to set ourselves apart to hear from and devote ourselves to God by seeking Him and His will for us through His Word.