Simply Scripture for Lent and Easter: A Daily Guide to Reading the Bible Gospel of Mark and Acts of the Apostles

Have you ever wished to recite scripture quotes off the top of your head? Or do you long to build a habit of daily scripture reading?

Having a doable plan to regularly and prayerfully engage scripture can make this practice sustainable for people with busy lives. Simply Scripture for Lent and Easter is the perfect place to begin. This daily prayer guide, keyed to the Lenten and Easter seasons, provides a simple framework for reading and reflection upon Mark’s Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. Bookend your day with morning and evening readings that incrementally walk you through these foundational books of the New Testament with greater confidence and understanding.

Without skipping a single word of the biblical text, Colleen Reiss Vermeulen, director of the Catholic Biblical School of Michigan, offers a unique, prayerful approach to spiritual reading that satisfies both the mind and heart. Vermeulen guides you to begin and end your day with a prayerful reading of short passages from a single book of scripture, an approach that she has used for years with her own family. Each day contains helpful context and thoughtful questions to help you uncover both the literal and spiritual senses of the text. Whether you follow this method on your own or read with your family or another small group, this simple process of daily prayer firmly grounded in scripture will help you get to know your Bible and draw you closer and closer to God.

From Ash Wednesday through the Easter season, each day’s prayerful reading follows a pattern inspired by the Liturgy of the Hours—inviting you to read and pray the Bible surrounded by heartfelt connections to God found in the Psalms. The daily pattern will quickly become familiar:

• First, contemplate a verse from the Liturgy of the Hours psalm.
• Second, read a citation from Mark’s gospel (during Lent) or the Acts of the Apostles (Easter) with a short introduction.
• Third, notice the weekly verse to remember and make an effort to memorize it throughout the week.
• Fourth, reflect on the actual meaning of the passage, what God is saying to you, and how it applies to your life.
• Finally, read the concluding prayer heard at Sunday Mass during Lent or Easter and traditionally used in the Liturgy of the Hours.

Simply Scripture for Lent and Easter is perfect for an individual or for the whole family to do together. Children can get to know the real Bible, not just the stories, and grow attuned to hearing God’s voice speak to them through the written page.

As you journey through the seasons of Lent and Easter, this Bible-based devotional will help you discover how the hand of God works in the lives of his people—and how he is at work in your life, too. Learn to cultivate a deeper, richer spiritual life that you can sustain all year long as you continue to read other books in the Bible.

Colleen Reiss Vermeulen is cofounder of catholicbiblicalschool.org and a teacher and director with the Catholic Biblical School of Michigan, an adult faith formation ministry.

After receiving her undergraduate degree from Cornell University, Vermeulen served on active duty in the US Army. She earned a master of divinity and a master of nonprofit administration degrees from the University of Notre Dame.

A contributing writer to the Living the Word Catholic Women's Bible, Colleen Vermeulen has taught children and adults the Bible for many years and served in parish catechetical, young adult, music, and evangelization ministries.

An officer in the US Army Reserve, she lives with her family in southeastern Michigan.

Sarah Christmyer is a Catholic author, speaker, and adjunct faculty member at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is the codeveloper and founding editor of The Great Adventure Catholic Bible study program, where she served as director from 2010 to 2013.

She earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Gordon College in 1981 and a master's degree in theology from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary/School of Theological Studies in 2017.

Christmyer is a member of the board and executive committee of Malvern Retreat House, where she serves as chair of the spiritual programs development committee. She is the author, coauthor, editor, or contributor to more than twenty-five books and bible study programs, including Gaze Upon Jesus and Walk in Her Sandals. She has blogged for WINE: Women In the New Evangelization, the American Bible Society, and Ascension Press. Christmyer has been a guest on Relevant Radio, Breadbox Media, Radio Maria, Iowa Catholic Radio, and Holy Spirit Radio.

She lives in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area with her family.