This month Amy Boucher Pye is reading…
The BRF Book of 365 Bible Reflections
(BRF, ISBN 978-1800391000)
Welcome to 2022! As we start off a new year, you might resolve to add some regular Bible reading to your daily life. I found gathering recommendations along these lines challenging. Well, not for the main volume I’ve selected – I knew for some months that I’d be sharing the wonderful resource from BRF (the Bible Reading Fellowship) to celebrate their centenary. But I thought I might recommend two volumes, and this is where I struggled. Mainly because as I considered various books, I realised that as readers we might not want to commit to a sole writer for a whole year – we might tire of their particular quirks or approach to the Bible. (True confessions…I adore writing devotional readings but tend to engage with the Bible without any of these helps myself.) And so I have decided to list a few options that you might want to explore and make a choice from yourself.
But first, The BRF Book of 365 Bible Reflections. I heartily endorse this one – it’s a treasure trove of hundreds of contributors, from Archbishop Justin Welby and other bishops to current and former editors of BRF’s Bible reading notes (such as Olivia Warburton and Catherine Butcher). Also included are church leaders such as Charlie Cleverly, Rosemary Lain-Priestley and Paul Harcourt, popular writers and speakers such as Sheridan Voysey, Jennifer Rees Larcombe, Tony Horsfall and Chine McDonald and even two involved in Woman Alive (myself and Claire Musters), among many others.
I appreciate how the compilers have arranged this volume. We don’t have to use it linearly, but can jump around from section to section, which include ‘Journeying through the Bible’ and ‘Journeying through the Christian Year’. The contributions are varied but seem to have in common good engagement with the Bible. Maybe I’ll even use it this year!
Want something different? Consider these:
Truth for Life: 365 Daily Devotions by Alistair Begg (The Good Book Company, 2021). Moving from Genesis to Revelation, this devotional digs deeply into the biblical text.
God Hears Her: 365 Devotions for Women by Women (Our Daily Bread Publishers, 2017). Inspirational articles to remind us that God sees us and hears us.
Journey with Me: 365 Daily Devotions by Catherine Campbell (IVP, 2018). A favourite of the book club, which has also won ‘Christian book of the year’. Catherine is a winsome, deep and trustworthy guide.
A Little Bit of Faith by Katie Piper (SPCK, 2021). Hopeful and encouraging daily affirmations (not Bible intensive).
Pearls for the Girls by Sarah Chaplin and Mel Chadwick (Truth Told, 2021). An engaging four-colour weekly guide to dip in and out of; story-based with a light touch regarding the Bible.
You can also join our discussions on Facebook. Simply look for the Woman Alive Book Club and join in. See you there!
