Looking for Jesus in the Daily Walk Bible

A story on the impact of God’s Word

By Christina Muñoz Madsen

“900 people signed up to read through the Daily Walk Bible. We had just gone through COVID, and it felt like a revival. People were looking for something.”

The first time I ever read through the Bible, I could hardly tell you the Christmas story or the Easter story. Now, I facilitate an online Bible study for 1,400 people who are all in search of who God is and what He would have them do. I never saw that coming, and I don’t take any credit. I just share how God brought me here.

I grew up in the small town of Yankton, South Dakota, where my dad was born and raised. My mother is Chilean and comes from a Catholic background. My parents took me and my two sisters to church every Sunday, but I was completely disengaged. I had no idea what it meant to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Then, when I went to the University of Minnesota to study theatre, I was surrounded by people who were hostile to Christianity. I ran in the other direction.

I eventually switched to journalism and became a news reporter in Little Rock, Arkansas.

When I was 24, my world was shaken when my dad was diagnosed with bile duct cancer. Nothing like that had ever happened to me before, and I hadn’t developed strong coping skills. I convinced myself he would recover, that truly bad things just didn’t happen to me. But when I drove the 800 miles north home to see him, I discovered he had weeks left to live. I begged God not to take him, and for the next six months, that prayer seemed to be working. Then he declined quickly and passed away. I had prayed once in my life, and it didn’t work, so I was done.

Six months later, friends from the newsroom invited me to a Christmas event at their church, which I only attended because I love everything related to Christmas. There, at the church, I watched a theatrical event about not reaching out to God when you had the opportunity, and I was prompted to give my life to Christ. At the time, I didn’t know what that meant or what to do next.

Not long after that, my friend and coworker was raped and murdered in her own home. That friend’s mother, a Christ follower, held on to her faith despite deep depression and grief. It was completely different from how my own mother had responded to the death of my father. I realized I could respond to suffering in one of two ways, and it was the faith-filled way that was most appealing. But I also knew that my faith was based on one book, the Bible, and I had barely read it. That nagged at me. So when the wife of my husband’s boss invited me to join a Bible study at her church, I accepted her offer.

I got a Daily Walk Bible  during that study, and I read every word of it. I went from having very little connection to the Bible to having a life-changing experience with Jesus. It was so impactful that I invited seven women from my TV station to read through the Bible with me in a year. We would struggle to coordinate our schedules for a weekly meeting, so I started sending reflection emails. I would ask them what they thought about a specific part of the day’s reading and spark conversation.

Years later, I left the news industry to spend more time with my daughters. Our family moved to Conway, Arkansas, where I signed up to teach a Sunday School class at a local church. Like I had done in my previous workplace, I began asking around to see if anyone wanted to read through the Bible for the coming year. When 42 people signed up, I realized that I needed to ramp up communication. I started sending an email every morning with notes and questions related to the daily reading assignment. Seven people completed the reading that year. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but reading the entire Bible in a year is no small feat. I always say that no matter how far they got, participants probably read more than they would have otherwise.

At the end of that year—2015—I felt like my mission was accomplished. But two years later, one of the women who participated asked me if I would consider doing another year. I prayed about it and felt prompted to post the opportunity on Facebook to gauge interest. 270 people joined. Two years later, in 2019, we had 300 people. In 2021, 900 people signed up. We had just gone through COVID, and it felt like a revival. People were looking for something.

This year, more than 1400 people signed up. That’s so hard to believe! What I love most about facilitating the study is that every year, I see something different in each reading. God shows different things to different people. The Daily Walk Bible is driving the growth of the people signing up to read it with me. I ask each person to use the Daily Walk Bible so that we are all on the same page. I constantly reference the insights and the devotionals I find in the Daily Walk Bible. The devotions are just so powerful.

At the start of each year, I encourage everyone to form a small accountability group if they can. I meet with a group every Friday morning, and that time is sacred for me. The Bible is not meant to be read alone. Through our Bible study’s Facebook page, I have seen local groups form from coast to coast. We have groups in California, Massachusetts, Arkansas, Louisiana, and everywhere in between. We even had a few from Australia. I don’t lead any of those groups, but I do my best to encourage them. At some point in the year, everyone wants to give up. An accountability group gives them encouragement and pushes them onward.

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing. We aren’t far into the year before we start navigating really challenging material. I remember one person reading about all the battles in Kings and Chronicles and being very turned off. She decided she didn’t want to serve a “God of anger” and quit reading. That was gut-wrenching. I questioned what I was doing in that moment.

But I have also witnessed people coming to Christ through these Bible studies, and many more have grown closer to God. During the time I did the Bible study and have been facilitating, my husband and both of our daughters have both committed their lives to Christ.

Just as I can’t take the blame for those who turn away, I can’t take the credit for those who draw close to Him. This is all the work of Jesus. I can only point to what He has done.

By Christina Muñoz Madsen