As the students slam the doors of their cars, they mentally prepare themselves for the next 12 hours. Twelve hours? Even a mediocre marathoner can finish in five. But these students won’t be tying on running shoes. Their marathon is mental. Their training minimal. Their equipment…the Bible.

"I think everybody who’s serious about their faith just sort of has this feeling: I wish I read the Bible more."

Bible marathons are a growing trend in Portland. Less than 800 students attend Multnomah Bible College and Seminary, but in the past two years more than 250 of them have participated in marathons, logging in some 200 hours of Bible reading.

Bible marathons have become so popular that Multnomah professor Dr. Garry Friesen, who organizes the events, can barely keep up with the demand. Marathons fill within days of the initial announcement.

“It’s not like we created something new,” Friesen laughs. “It’s reading the Bible!” Something Bible college students do plenty of. So why the frenzy? “The word marathon catches everybody’s attention,” Friesen says. “I think everybody who’s serious about their faith just sort of has this feeling: I wish I read the Bible more.” Friesen conceived the first marathon in 2003 after junior Josh Dyck approached him with an idea: read the entire New Testament in a single day. Dyck heard it could be done in 18 hours.

“I told him it was the worst time,” Friesen says. “It was the end of the semester. Everyone was crashing. And Josh said, ‘Yeah, let’s do it!’”

Friesen and Dyck planned the marathon for a Saturday. They spread the word, expecting only a handful of people. Fifteen came.

“We started at 8 a.m. and ended at 2 a.m. the next day. But nobody wanted to leave,” Friesen recalls. Every last person hung in there and completed the reading.

“The group bonded,” says Dyck. “We were impacted by reading so much Scripture together. The Word of God is living and active and it was definitely moving.”

Dorie Halsey, an alumnus of the seminary who now works as a physical therapist, remembers that first marathon. “I didn’t lose my concentration or ability to listen even once,” she says. “The next day during worship at my church, I felt like my face must be glowing a little like Moses’.”

Since the first marathon, students have attended more than 16 events, which continue to grow in popularity.

“There’s something about the bigness,” Friesen says. “You have to make hard decisions to do it.”

Junior Sheila Lickford, who has participated in eight marathons, was drawn by that bigness. “Completely immersing myself in the Word was something I’d never done before. It sounded like a real challenge!”

After the first marathon, Friesen began refining. He decided 16 hours was the maximum amount of time participants could stay engaged. He organized the marathons with a 5-minute response time at the end of each 2-hour block and scheduled breaks throughout the day.

Now participants take turns reading 15 to 20 verses each. On the seventh chapter of each book, they stand and read one verse each. Friesen uses a variety of methods to keep the group’s attention, including Bible on tape.

He also encourages marathoners to focus on a major theme and a personal situation while reading. At the end of the day, they are invited to share a few words about what they’ve learned.

The Bible marathon draws participants because it’s a community event. Like an actual marathon, the challenge is easier and more fun when you do it in a group. “It’s hard to spend a good amount of time in Scripture on a regular basis,” Dyck says. “And to do it in community is so encouraging.”

The group atmosphere also guarantees some silly moments. At one marathon a girl unexpectedly stood on her chair to read her portion. “By the end, whenever the seventh chapter was read, we all stood on our chairs,” Friesen says. “People were laughing and helping each other get up and down.”

Perhaps the greatest impact of the marathon lies in the sheer mass of Scripture covered in a short period. “It feels like a feast day,” Halsey says. “It is a big picture day with the picture being of God’s hand and heart.”

Friesen agrees: “Being washed in the Word puts your eyes on eternity and the greatness of God.”

This kind of impact keeps participants coming back for more. A core group of marathoners, including Halsey, have attended eight or more events. In January an ice storm covered Portland on the scheduled day of a Matthew through Romans marathon. Friesen feared attendance would be low, but nine people braved the treacherous weather to participate.

The fascination with Bible marathons doesn’t stop with college students. As students graduate, they take marathons with them. Young adult groups, Bible studies and high school youth groups have all used marathons with great success. Friesen, who sends out a weekly e-mail to friends and former students, wrote about the marathons in one of his messages. He wasn’t prepared for the response. “I offered to send guidelines and I received 150 e-mails!”

Friesen provided guidelines to his entire mailing list, and so far more than 15 marathons have taken place as a result — some in places as far away as Brazil, Taiwan and Trinidad. They have proven very successful as a training tool on the mission field.

Friesen, who believes the marathon’s appeal lies in its simplicity, hopes the movement will continue to grow. Fanatical students claim you only have to try it once to get hooked. They say the payoff is well worth the sacrifice.

“I was a little skeptical at first even after hearing people tell me how great they were,” says Peter Gardner. “I had to just see for myself.” He read the Pentateuch at a marathon. “Those books I wouldn’t commonly look at, but it became more clear to me why they are included in the Bible.”

* * *

It was a long but rewarding 12 hours. As marathoners close their Bibles, they begin singing the familiar words of “Amazing Grace” -- words heavy with meaning. These dedicated few saw the arch of God’s love and care running from Genesis to Deuteronomy.

Friesen pronounces a benediction: “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”

Sleepy students scatter into the darkness. They are satisfied in a challenge conquered. They head for their cars, their eyes on God, His Word ringing in their ears.