Book Review
Read the Bible in 90 Days: It changes lives
By D. Wayne Bogue, Special to the Layman, December 21, 2011
Can reading the Bible through in a short time frame actually change lives? Talk to Ted Cooper Jr., founder/executive director of The Bible in 90 Days.
By reading 12 pages of Scripture per day, Cooper not only read the entire Bible in 90 days, he also experienced the Spirit of God transform his and his family’s lives.
Twelve years ago in 1999, according to Cooper, he and his wife were happy agnostics. Residing in Houston, Texas, the Coopers had a contented, successful life. Cooper was a businessman who specialized in computer consulting. The Coopers were busy raising three children, ages 11, 9 and 7.
As Cooper reported to Electa Draper of The Denver Post, “We were nice enough people. We just didn’t happen to believe in any of this [faith in Christ] and didn’t have time for it.” But God, as He often does, brought faith into the family through its youngest members. The children, it turned out, had a curiosity about Christ and wanted to know more.
The Coopers believed their children should be able to make up their own minds about the spiritual direction of their lives. So Cooper began to take them to the Presbyterian church he had attended as a child.
All went smoothly. The family attended Sunday school and worship each week. Then questions began to rise – questions the children brought home to their parents, questions about God, faith and life that Cooper himself began to ask.
Cooper went to the Bible, albeit secretly, to find the answers. He began to read the Bible “undercover.” In fact, he poured through the Scriptures at a fast pace, completing 12 pages per day for 90 days. He wanted to quickly put an end to the questions swirling around his household and his own mind.
Cooper finally shared with his wife that he was reading the Bible. He read aloud to her the parts he found amusing. “We made a game of it,” Cooper said. “After several days, I quit making fun of it. I found myself engrossed in it. About halfway through, somewhere in Isaiah or Jeremiah, I started to believe what I was reading.”
Cooper went on to read the Bible three more times in 1999. The Holy Spirit changed his life, awakened faith in Jesus Christ and transformed his family from friendly agnostics to passionate, and still friendly, believers.
This is not only the account of one family’s transformation in Christ, it is also the story of a man’s call to form a brand new ministry based on his discovery of the power of reading the Bible through in 90 days.
In 2001 Cooper offered a class on reading the Bible in 90 days to his own congregation. In 2002 Cooper left his secular career and started his new vocation: The Bible in 90 Days.
Cooper is clear about what The Bible in 90 Days is and is not. What it is: “The Bible in 90 Days is a Bible reading curriculum. It helps people read attentively the entire Bible – from cover to cover – in 90 days.” (emphasis in original)
What it is not: “The Bible in 90 Days is not a speed-read through the Bible. Rather, it’s akin to reading the Bible like a novel.”
To help make reading the Bible in 90 days a successful venture, Cooper and his team produced a curriculum to facilitate group participation. Cooper understands that making the program a group effort increases the support that many need to complete the reading and gain the spiritual benefits.
The Bible in 90 Days offers both leader and participant guides. The participants guide is linked to a DVD and helps group members discuss the joys and challenges of their weekly readings. It also serves as a friendly form of accountability.
The participant guide provides a schedule so that individuals can keep track of their daily reading. The questions provided in the guide help prepare for the weekly group meeting, but participants may bring any question they wish to the group.
The leader guide makes clear that this is not a class that is “taught” in a traditional sense. Rather, the leader serves as a facilitator who encourages dialogue, keeps the group focused and supports the group in its goal of reading the Bible in 90 days.
An NIV translation of the Bible specially designed for the program is available, as are DVD and audio resources.
This program works, says Cooper, for the following reasons:
Time frame: 90 days vs. a year (or more)
Readability: large print, easy to read translation
Community: weekly meetings for support, fellowship, accountability and knowledgeable insight
Support materials: we provide just enough additional materials to keep participants engaged in reading the Bible, but no more. We don’t want participants reading support material instead of the Word.
A lowering of barriers: by tending to many of the practical aspects of reading the Bible, we foster an environment in which the participant is more likely to recognize the leading of the Spirit that he or she read and be transformed by the Word.
The program has been and is being used across the denominational spectrum. It has also been used in prisons, drug rehab missions, corporate Bible studies and neighborhood small groups.
Cooper states that recently, small towns have invited their residents to take part in the curriculum. As of today, groups have ranged from 2 people to 1,000 people, across 47 states and several foreign countries.
The entire Leader’s Kit, which includes a Bible, Participant’s Guide, Leader’s Pack (Teaching DVDs) and the Essential Bible Companion (a supplementary resource book) costs $79.99 plus shipping. Individual components of the curriculum may be purchased separately.
The Bible in 90 Days is located at 7111 Harwin Drive, Suite 130, Houston, Texas 77036. Cooper and his team may be reached at 713-526-6800.
The website is www.biblein90days.org.