There was a minister who served in a rural parish for several years before pursuing a career in teaching. He lived on a farm while he served in the pastorate. One Sunday morning he was puttering about the barn before church when his three-year-old daughter came running in, holding out her pudgy little hand. She said, “Look what I found, Daddy. Isn’t it pretty?”

My friend saw the morning sunlight glisten on the object in her hand. It was a double-edged razor blade. He thought to himself, how do I get that blade out of her hand? If I try to take it away from her, she will clutch it tighter, and if she does that, she may cut herself badly enough to scar her hand for life. So he said, “Honey, that is very dangerous. It will cut you. You must not close your hand. You must give it to Daddy.”

“But it’s mine,” she squealed. “I found it!”

“Yes, I know, but it is dangerous. You must let me take it.”

He stepped closer, and she began to close her tiny hand.

“Don’t do that, Honey, “he said. “It will cut you, and then I will have to take you to Dr. Jones.”

“I like Dr. Jones,” she answered, smiling. “He gives me suckers when I go.”

It is not easy for a theologian to reason with a three-year-old.

Finally, my friend assumed a curious attitude about his daughter’s new-found treasure. “It certainly is pretty,” he said. “May I take a look at it?” He cupped her little palm in his, and while he shared her pleasure in the find, he gently pulled back her fingers one by one till he could lift the deadly instrument from her hand.

When Jesus comes into your life and says, “Let me take over,”…whatever you do, do not close your hand on the things that you hold. Give them all to Jesus.

• Dennis Kinlaw

“All Scripture is God-breathed…” (2 Timothy 3:16).

Think about that. All of Scripture is authored by God. The Scriptures are God-breathed. How did God breathe and author the Bible? The Holy Spirit moved human agents to write the Holy Scriptures. Human beings put ink on paper, but God, through the Holy Spirit authored, inspired, and breathed God’s word.

The Holy Spirit wrote the Bible.

We are also told that the Holy Spirit of God leads and guides believers. We are told in John 16:13, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”

The Holy Spirit wrote the Bible.

And…The Holy Spirit leads believers.

Here’s what this means. The Holy Spirit will never lead believers to do something contrary to the Holy Bible. No matter how strongly you feel about something, and no matter how convinced you are that God is speaking to you…if it contradicts the Bible, that ain’t from God.

“Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult or you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?’ Nor is it beyond the sea ,so that you have to ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to get ti and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?’ No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it” (Deuteronomy 30:11-14).

People go to the gym religiously, but we cannot worship faithfully. People study the stock market as if their life depended on it, but we cannot study the scriptures as if our eternal destinies were at stake. We can spend hours upon hours on Netflix, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, but we have great difficulty praying for fifteen minutes.

What does this tell us?

Our commitment to other things demonstrates that we have the capacity to devote and commit ourselves. The issue is neither our capacity nor our inability to commit. It isn’t our hectic schedules that prevents us from practicing our spiritual disciplines. The problem has to do with our hearts, our willingness, our priorities.

Sure, I indulge in a movie or binge watch Netflix. But, I also am committed to reading the Bible, praying, and journaling every day. I don’t read the Bible and pray because I am a pastor. I read the Bible and pray because I am a Christian. The only thing preventing most people from being devoted to spiritual disciplines is themselves. It is a matter of priorities.

This is the only way we get to know who God is. Commit to spending time with God everyday. Ten minutes in God’s word and five minutes in prayer. If you’re already not doing so, no better day than today to get started.