Why I've been going to the same Bible study every week for more than 35 years
How one night at Bible Study Fellowship transformed my life.
For more than 35 years, I’ve been part of the same Bible study. Over that time, I’ve raised children, welcomed grandchildren, navigated careers, and retired — but this commitment has remained a steady foundation in my life.
Why? Because Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) changed my life the very first night I walked through the door in 1988 at the age of 27.
I had no idea what to expect when a friend encouraged me to try BSF. I had told people that I was just looking for some help understanding the Bible. I wasn’t a Christian, wasn’t a church-goer, and struggled to understand scripture the few times I tried.
As far as I was concerned, this was a fact-finding mission — an intellectual exercise.
But at that first BSF class, I heard the gospel for the first time, and I immediately — in my car that was parked on a residential street near the meeting — trusted Christ as my Savior.
In that moment, faith shifted from something abstract and barely on my radar into something transformative. The Holy Spirit had come into my life, and I would never be the same.
Since then, BSF has been a foundation in my walk with Jesus, deepening my understanding of God’s Word, week after week, year after year.
The woman who started a worldwide movement
Bible Study Fellowship traces its roots back to San Bernardino, Calif., in 1959, when five women approached Audrey Wetherell Johnson, a British missionary who had relocated from China, asking her to lead a Bible study.
Johnson agreed, but with a clear stipulation: “I will not spoon-feed you.”
That firm commitment to deep study and personal responsibility is one of the things I've appreciated most about BSF through the decades. The bar was set high from the very beginning.
BSF was rigorous, active participation was expected, and consistent attendance was essentially mandatory.
When I first joined a class in Edina, Minnesota, in 1988, missing more than three sessions during the 32-week study year could cost you your spot. With 500 men enrolled and a waiting list eager to join, if you weren’t serious about BSF, someone else was ready to step in and take your place.
While BSF may have relaxed some of its original strictness — leaders like myself no longer need to wear a jacket and tie — the core commitment to intensive, insightful Bible study remains unchanged.
From its humble beginnings 66 years ago, BSF has grown into a global, interdenominational ministry, offering free, structured Bible studies in 120 countries. This includes even China, where founder Audrey Wetherell Johnson endured three years in a Japanese concentration camp during World War II.
Initially designed exclusively for women, BSF expanded to include men's groups, children's programs and online classes, now reaching more than 400,000 members worldwide. Every participant around the globe studies the same lesson each week.
Today, BSF continues to champion inductive Bible study, encouraging participants to explore scripture deeply and discover personal applications through thoughtfully structured lessons and group discussions.
Here is the current 10-year cycle of studies (listed in no particular order):
Revelation (this year’s study)
People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided, covering 1 & 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, several prophets, and Israel’s divided kingdom (last year’s study).
People of the Promise: Kingdom United, covering Samuel, Saul, David, Solomon, and Israel’s early monarchy (next year’s study).
Romans
Matthew
John
Acts & Letters of the Apostles
Genesis
The Life of Moses, focusing on Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
Isaiah
Here is BSF’s four-fold approach to Bible study:
Personal Study — Participants work through daily Bible passages and questions.
Group Discussion — Weekly small-group discussions provide insight and accountability.
Lecture — A trained leader gives a teaching session based on the passage.
Study Notes — Participants receive written notes to deepen understanding.
But Bible Study Fellowship, as the name clearly implies, is more than just rigorous Bible study — it's also deeply about fellowship.
Participants gather weekly in small, single-sex groups of 10-15 people to openly discuss the lesson, wrestle together with challenging texts, and support each other through prayer. Over the years, I've built meaningful friendships with many men I've met through BSF.
My BSF story
I was 27 years old when I discovered BSF — and Christ.
Except for a few weddings, including my own, I hadn't stepped into a church in 17 years. The last time was at age 10, when the pastor of a Congregational church in Traverse City, Michigan, gave me a red leather Bible.
Though I kept that Bible nearby, I rarely opened it. By the time Anne and I married and moved to Detroit, I knew almost nothing about Christianity.
About a year after we married, The Associated Press sent me to Pierre, South Dakota, for three months. Anne stayed behind for her work. With extra free time and lingering questions about life's purpose, I packed my red Bible, confident I'd figure out Christianity on my own.
It wasn't that simple. The words seemed clear enough, but their meaning eluded me.
After Pierre, the AP transferred us to Minneapolis, where we lived for 27 years and raised our three children. Shortly after arriving, I expressed my Bible-reading frustrations to one of my college roommates, Greg Miller, a committed Christian. He recommended Bible Study Fellowship.
"They can help you understand," Greg told me.
On Sept. 12, 1988, I walked into Normandale Lutheran Church in Edina, Minnesota, for my first BSF class — beginning with the book of Matthew. After introductory activities, all 500 men gathered for a lecture.
Sitting alone in the back pew, I listened as a businessman (BSF typically isn't pastor-led) clearly laid out the gospel. Although I'd heard about Jesus and celebrated Christian holidays, this was the first time I had heard the true meaning of Christ’s life, death and resurrection.
I was stunned. Immediately, I knew it was true. In hindsight, the Holy Spirit had entered my life at that moment, changing everything.
In my car that night, I surrendered my life to Christ. The next morning, when I opened my red Bible, every word came alive — now illuminated by the Holy Spirit.
Like Paul in Acts 9:18, it felt like scales had fallen from my eyes. I finally saw Jesus clearly — as savior and king.
Since then, I've attended BSF faithfully, served many years as a BSF Children’s Leader in Minnesota, and now lead a men’s group in Huntersville, North Carolina.
More than three decades later, BSF remains foundational to my faith journey, providing clarity, community and an ever-deepening understanding of scripture.
If you’re seeking a deeper connection with God or have struggled, as I did, to understand the Bible, I encourage you to explore a local BSF class. Like me, you might hear God speaking clearly for the first time.