It’s been 2,273 days (almost 6.25 years) since I launched my second book. (The first book is a different story for a different email.)
Since then, I’ve published another 10 books. Plus a handful of short stories. Some days it feels pretty random. Other days, a bit more strategic.
Since last weekend I launched the latest two books, I thought I would share a bit of the master strategy that drives me.
Let me be clear, I didn’t follow the strategy perfectly to get where I am. But it has been a general force driving me forward over all this time. I really wish time travel wasn’t just for Star Trek movies – some days I wish I could go back in time and do things in a different order.
But here’s where I am (and where I’m going).
My drive in writing is to help people get closer to Jesus. I want them to read His book and understand more and more about what God wants them to do in this life.
It’s too big a task for me to have all the answers myself. So my goal is to emphasize God’s Word as the authoritative source of all answers for life and living. These days, I think we need to lean into that – and run away from all the other voices claiming to have the answers for what ails us.
General Biblical Literacy
If you don’t know the Bible, then you have no hope of knowing what God is doing, or what He expects out of you. But for a lot of people, the Bible is a big confusing book that makes no sense.
In 2014 I taught a series of classes on an Overview of the Bible. The goal was to make it plain and understandable to the average person. Don’t get lost in all the confusing details of Leviticus or Ecclesiastes or Ezekiel. I provided a simple framework that organizes all the stories of the Bible and gives ordinary people a way to understand how it all works together.
Getting to Know God’s Word is the book I wrote that explains how to approach and understand the Bible as a whole. It takes the materials from that study and puts them into a single, simple book.
A few years ago, I hung out with some church planters from Nicaragua and they asked me why I hadn’t done any work in Spanish that they could use. Turns out they have a glaring lack of good discipleship and training materials they can use in their work.
Oof. Punch in the gut.
So my goal now is to earn enough money from all my other books to pay a Spanish editor to finish the translation that I’ve done (based on an AI translation tool) so I can gift them with a case of books to use in their ministry.
Hermeneutics – How to study the Bible (New Testament Epistles)
The next step in the journey from general Biblical Literacy is to study the Bible. That’s why I wrote Study the Bible – Six Easy Steps.
I want believers everywhere to have the skills to rightly handle God’s Word. I know for a fact that it’s totally reachable for almost everyone. It just takes some instruction and some practice.
This book was my second book, and has sold around 7,500 copies over the last 6ish year. I believe it’s done a great job getting the word out about how everyday Christians can engage profitably with God’s Word.
I’ve created guided studies for Titus and 1 Timothy using this method. The goal is to practice the studies and come up with the experience of opening Scripture and discovering what God says.
When I first wrote it, I had New Testament Epistles in mind. That didn’t really become obvious until I did a study in Ruth. I needed a new set of questions and activities in the Six Easy Steps format.
Studying the Old Testament
That led me to my most recent release: Study The Bible – Old Testament along with the companion study of Ruth. There are too many great truths in the Old Testament to leave it out.
This book follows the same Six Easy Steps method for Bible Study but adapts it to address the specific needs of Old Testament stories.
It took me a long time to finish this book… but I feel like a have a little bit of momentum now…. so I’ve started thinking about the next installment.
Studying the Gospels
The four gospels are New Testament stories. They will share some similarities with the New Testament Epistle approach and the Old Testament Story approach. And then they have some very unique elements.
So my next project is going to be Study the Bible – Gospels. It will adapt the Six Easy Steps Bible study methodology to best work with the four gospels.
I have a lot to say about how we ought to approach the gospels and I think it will be tremendously enlightening to see how the Six Easy Steps method adapts to the uniquenesses of these four books of the Bible.
I plan to use the book of Mark to be the example study.
Of course, since each of these book covers features a different color, I’ve chosen Red to be the primary color of this book. (any guesses why?)
Advanced Techniques
Each of the Study The Bible books has a relatively simple approach to the study process. This is intentional. But over time, if you follow this method, there are some advanced techniques you can use to get even more out of God’s Word.
So Study the Bible – Advanced Techniques will expand upon the simple elements of Six Easy Steps method. It won’t be hard per se. But it will offer the Bible Student who has become comfortable with Studying God’s Word some skills that will expand the depth of their study.
Other Books
That’s as far as I want to commit now. It’s a five book series that when taken together will give you a deep foundation in God’s Word. It will provide practical guidance and instruction in studying the vast majority of the Bible.
There are some specialty books, however, that I might come back to after this is done. Deep dives to explain some very specific situations that the more experienced Bible student will appreciate.
You don’t have to go to Seminary or Bible College to learn how to study God’s Word. If you were to work through this entire series, you would be set up for years of spiritual growth. You would go far beyond your peers in church or small group. You would become a wise and knowledgeable Christian.
In fact, I think in this age of dwindling biblical literacy, you would become the example that reverses the trend. Instead of a culture-influenced Christian, you would be a Bible-influenced Christian.
Instead of the kind of believer who makes up answers to life’s challenges, you’d be the believer who discovers God’s sovereign design for life.
It’s shocking to think of what could become of the church today if just 10% of the people who call themselves “christian” would really dive into the Bible. But it’s also depressing to continually see that people don’t want to or know how to do that.
Now you have my master plan. I hope you take maximum advantage of it. I’d love to think that everyone on that reads these emails wants to become one of the 10 percent.
Time will tell.
If you want to learn more, all the books are on my website and you can research them there. Most of them are widely available where you like to shop.
Until next time,
Dennis
