I am going to be reading the Bible from front to back -- 10 or 15 minutes a day. I will start on January 1, 2023 and through daily readings will be done with that on December 31, 2023.
I would like to invite you to join me.
If you fill out your email address below, you will receive an email each day starting January 1, 2023, containing the day's Bible readings. There is no cost to sign up for the daily email of Bible readings and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Additionally, I will send you a free guide entitled "How to Read the Bible Cover-to-Cover in a Year," so that you can see the entire roadmap and where we are going.
If you join by clicking one of the paid links below, in addition to receiving the daily emails, and the free guide, you will be welcomed into an online community.
By joining 55Hours.org the online community, you will receive the daily email as well as audio and video recordings of the day's reading, access to a community for discussion, and as the group grows over the year ahead, many more exciting activities around this goal of reading the Bible together in a year.
It all starts with a commitment . . . to read the Bible cover to cover in 2023.
And that is not as hard as you may think.
How Big Of A Commitment Is This?
Having read the Bible cover to cover three times now as I write this, I know that someone reading with burning desire to make his way through the Bible can finish that in about 55 Hours of reading, which comes out to less than 15 minutes a day over the course of the year.
With less than 15 minutes a day of reading, you can have the Bible read front to back in just 365 days. It is not just a 15 minute a day commitment, but it is something that will repay your many more times what you put into it.
I want to help you walk through that every day of the next year and I know that I can do that best in the form of the 55hour.org community. I believe that is the best support and encouragement that I can offer you in the year ahead as you undertake this transformative task.
Why Do This?
*Draw Closer To God
*Get To Know Jesus Better
*Read The Wisdom Of The Ages
*Look For Answers To Questions You've Had For A While
*For Fun *Because You Feel Like You Haven’t Been Getting The Whole Story In Church
*A Loved One Died And You Know You Too, Before Long, May Have To Sort Through What Eternity Will Look Like
*Just To Say You Did
*Daily Refreshment As You Put Down The Bible At The End Of Each Day's Reading, You Will Feel Like A New Person. You Will Have A Little More Wisdom. You Will Have A Little More Edification. You Will Have A Little More Strength To Get Through The Day Being The Best You That You Can Be.
*Step By Step You Will Grow Better In Your Walk Through Life, Growing In Ways That You Would Not Otherwise Be Able To Grow
*You Know Others Have Invested In You In The Past, And You Know That A Community Like This Is A Great Opportunity To Invest In Others
*Reading The Bible, Especially Older Translations, Just Seems To Have Such Gravitas That It Automatically Makes One Become A Better Writer
*Bucket List
*Just To Say You Did
*Because You've Always Wanted To
*Because This Is An Era So Lacking In Wisdom And A Little More Time Spent With Such A Wise Book Would Do You Some Good
*Meet Some Awesome People
*Great Way To Start The Day
*A Great Way To End The Day
*Because Everyone Who Spends A Year This Way, Walks Away From It A Changed Person -- If They Let That Change Happen
And many more . . . individual motivations are so deep, broad, and diverse that for every person who has signs up, there could be another ten bullets to add to this list.
Christians and non-Christians alike are welcome to join in this challenge, and I would like to encourage that. But please keep in mind that the online community will be a place to encourage one's faith and not a place to have discussions intended to challenge faith. The world provides many opportunities to challenge one's faith. I want to provide a special place, removed from the din of the world, a place for encouraging and growing one's faith.
From now until January 1, my team and I will be getting the ball rolling to prepare for that. By joining early, you will save money, and you will also be helping my team and me test out some of the systems that we are building for this project of reading through the Bible together.
See What Are Others Saying About Doing The 15 Minute Challenge in 2023.
Have a look at thoughts from some of the thousands who will be reading the Bible alongside you in 2023. These are the real names of real participants and some of their goals for 2023, (but since I'm a little obsessive with protecting the privacy of community members in our private group, please forgive me for not including photos on this public page).
Kelly -- Longtime Believer, Wants The Momentum Of A Group With A Goal
“ I've been a believer and a Bible reader for decades but I have been struggling as of late to make reading the Bible a daily practice. I'm hoping this will keep me accountable and I look forward to the discussion and learning from others in the group.”
— Kelly
Tara -- Looking To Go Even Deeper Into God’s Word
“ Always a believer, came to the Bible brand-new last year. Sinking into God's word during 'testing', decided to give it all up, trust every word. More, God, brought testimony. Amazing experience of God stepping in, in real time, with protection, property, provision, more. “
— Tara
Guy -- First Time & Ready To See Where This May Lead
“ …never read the Bible! Hence the reason for joining. Am looking forward to this challenge - even if I don’t really know where this is heading…”
— Guy
Not John’s First Rodeo, But It’s Been Too Long
I've always believed the Bible is truth, have read it straight through once, and it's time to do it again. Been too long.
— John
Barbie -- Says "BRING IT ON!" ... First Time & Looking Forward To The Group Discussions
"I have never read the Bible. I am intrigued by the fact that in just 15 minutes a day for 365 days we can read the whole Bible.
"I am looking forward to sessions to discuss those 15 minutes a day. There is a lot of wisdom in the Bible. I am excited about this project rather than dreading it. Bring it on!"
— Barbie
Lisa -- Lifelong Church-Goer, Never Read The Bible
"I am embarrassed to say that, despite being a fairly regular churchgoer for much of my childhood, I have never read the Bible more than a few scriptures at a time. I believe it was Naomi Wolf who recently mused that her recognition of our Creator and her desire to cultivate this long-neglected relationship has blossomed in the last 2.5 years. I feel the same and hope I will be forgiven for my unexcused absence."
— Lisa
. . . Lisa’s 16 Year Old Son Will Join Too
"Here’s a wonderful little detail: my 16-year-old son is willing to do this yearlong project with me! I am looking forward to the opportunity to discuss with him what we are reading and learning."
— Lisa
Rob -- Looking For Inner Peace
"I joined the group to motivate me to read the Bible.
I’m looking to get more inner peace this year."
— Rob
Eric -- Looking To Be Challenged And To Better Understand The Truth
"What are you looking to get out of the year of Bible reading? -- I am looking forward to constructive discourse on this material not hindered by anyone's personal dogma, hopefully resulting in new ideas and a greater understanding. In other words, I wish for my personal beliefs to be challenged resulting in a better understanding of the Truth."
— Eric
Alice -- Lost Her Way For A Time And Is Now Coming Back Home
"Father was a protestant minister, and although I never totally stopped believing, I kind of lost my way for a while. In recent years have been reconnecting with God and Jesus in much more depth. My favorite reading bible is The Living Bible, I frequently refer to the Amplified Bible for more detail, and sometimes seek the familiar wording of the KJV. Am grateful for this project because I've been meaning to read the Bible completely through but don't stay on task all by myself. Blessings!"
— Alice
Sally -- Raised In Church, Started Reading 3 Weeks Ago And Is Ready With Some Questions
"Well, despite having been raised Catholic, I, myself, have never read the Bible until maybe 3 weeks ago. I'm in Genesis. And boy, do I have questions. That's why I'm here. For some discussion about possible meanings and that is also what I hope to get out of this; a better understanding."
— Sally
Kate -- Wants To Know God More Intimately
"All through my life (72 years), I have read various bits and pieces of the Good Word. However, I'm taking this new challenge to become more thoroughly acquainted with what the Lord expects of me and what I can expect of Him."
—Kate
Susan -- Has Found The Bible "Riddling And Monotonous" And Wants A Group Setting To Help Overcome That
"Hello! I have tried to read the Bible through before but I found it riddling and monotonously repetitive in places. I'm hoping a group format will alleviate those frustrations and help me accomplish this goal! I'm hoping to gain a deep understanding of the many messages in The Good Book."
—Susan
Andrew -- Newly Baptized, Ready To Read The Bible For The First Time
"Hey folks, I'm going through the bible for the first time in earnest, and look forward to the pacing and accountability of this group. As a middle-aged guy, I finally found the light and got baptized this Summer. I look forward to understanding more of what's in the good book. Cheers!"
—Andrew
David -- Started The Bible 5 Times, Never Finished. Wants To Be A Better Person From This Year’s Reading
"I've made concerted attempts at reading the Bible at least 5 times and never followed through. Maybe this will be the one! I have no idea which version I am going to read. My prime reason for doing this is that I hope to be a better person after having read the entire book."
—David
Marilyn -- 18th Time, Wants To Read With A Group This Year
“I’ve been reading through the Bible once a year, Genesis to Revelation, since 2005 in various translations. You can never plumb the depths of it. I am really looking forward to doing so with a group.”
—Marilyn
Quick FAQs -->
Q: What version of the Bible will we use?
A: You may read any version of the Bible you wish.
Q: Who will be reading the day's Bible reading?
A: Each day, a new volunteer will be invited to read from the Bible with that day's reading. It will be recorded on video. The first 15 days (through the book of Genesis, I will get us kicked off) by doing all of those readings.
No one has to record a video of themselves reading. It really is voluntary.
Q: What language will we do this in?
A: While I suspect we will end up with a few different language groups, the main channel will be an English language channel.
Q: What denomination is this for?
A: No denomination or faith group will be given preference over another in this project.
No tradition will be given preference. I suspect this group will see quite a wide range of expressions of Christian faith. The entire goal of the project is simply to encourage each other in one's faith walk by encourage the daily reading of the Bible. I approach this with no other agenda than that -- read the Bible together, every day, reading the entire Bible in a year.
Q: Who is invited to participate in this?
A: You are invited to share this page with anyone you wish and to make the most of this offer. My aim is to build a vibrant and stable online community to facilitate and encourage this project.
The online community uses private, censorship-free software, that I have used the past 5 or 6 months for other projects and which will match our needs nicely, without requiring us to use a big tech social network to host our community.
Recognizing how impactful daily Bible reading is for me, with this project, I would like to help encourage many people a year to read the Bible who otherwise would not have read the Bible in a year. I would like to help make it a normal and natural thing for every fully functioning adult to consider it commonplace and responsible to turn to the Bible for 10 or 15 minutes a day, and to consider it a common thing to read through the Bible each year.
Those large goals begin with this invitation to you today to join me.
If this is an attractive idea to you, please accept the offer and join me in this adventure today before things get rolling.
When you tap the buttons above, you will be brought to the website of my shopping cart provider -- Circle.
There you can pay with several forms of payment including credit card or debit card. The charge will likely appear on your statement as RealStevo.com. Any other questions, just ask -- you probably know my email already, but just in case it is allan@realstevo.com.
Incentives For Joining Early
No one will be locked out of the community for coming in late, but those who do not start on January 1, will be charged more. January 1, the price goes to $20 / month or $200 / year.
Church Membership, Family Membership, or Group Membership
If you are part of a church group, or have a big family, or if you have any group of people who would be interested in reading the Bible with you (work associates, fellow members at a social club, friends, people who you are doing a weekly or monthly bible study with, folks you know from the community), then this one is perfect for you.
This a less expensive option and really comes with no limits. You are allowed to invite as many people into the group as you would like you to.
Or perhaps you just know that you can put some work into it and reach out to a few people you know who are sure to say "Yes!" to the great idea of reading the Bible with you from cover to cover through 2023. Such an experience helps to bring people together.
***This is more affordable than the other options, but it comes with a commitment.*** It is a commitment that I won't bother you over, but a commitment that I would like to ask you to do your best to keep. If you select this option, you are committing to try your best to recruit at least 20 people as new members by December 31, 2022.
All you have to do is send me their emails at allan@realstevo.com and they will be added free of charge under your membership. And I really mean there is no limit to this. If you recruit 100 people, 1,000 people, even 10,000 people, I will not be thinking about the money I lost, I will be pleased as can be that 10,000 people are joining this effort.
As I have mentioned previously, it is not about the money, it is about the joy of welcoming others to join in this awesome project of reading the Bible together. If you do not find 20 people, don't worry. I won't be keeping track of who is honoring this commitment. It is just an agreement that by clicking on this option, you are going to make a real effort to bring 20 folks along with you.
And when you add your friends, I just want to be clear -- I don't want to convert anyone. I don't want to proselytize to anyone. I don't want to convince anyone of a special reading or interpretation of the Bible. I don't want to pitch any particular denomination. I do not even want to convince you to believe in God. That is not what this group is intended for.
In fact, non-Christians, or atheists, or anyone else are just as welcome as firm believers in this group.
I just want folks to pick up the Bible of their choosing and to commit to reading it over the next year. That's what this group is about. It is meant to help provide structure to that effort, ideally structure that will make this a most successful experience and a commitment that is easy to follow through with.
Propose A Way That You Can Make This Experience Richer For Others
If you have ideas on how to make this experience richer for others, shoot me an email at allan@realstevo.com and I will be all ears. This may involve reading, hosting a question and answer time, creating a special language group of Bible readers, doing another live broadcast, or even just being there in the comments section to support others and to offer regular comments on the readings.
So to sumarize. . .
Thank you so much for joining me in this exciting goal of reading the Bible through cover to cover, and thank you so much for joining me as part of this exciting community.
Allan Stevo
Founder, 55Hours.org