There Are No Hacks

Did you know a guitar pick can burst into flame in less than two seconds?

Most people don't realize that many guitar picks are made from celluloid—a material so flammable it makes excellent emergency tinder. Strike one with a ferro rod, and it can help start a fire when you least expect it.

I've always loved little survival hacks like that.

In fact, I love them so much that I wrote a book called Survival Hacks. It's filled with hundreds of tips and tricks designed to make life in the outdoors a little easier.

But there's something I learned the hard way about hacks.

What it makes me wonder is how much of my life I spent looking for spiritual shortcuts.

For years, I thought going to church was enough.

I thought praying before meals was enough.

I thought obeying some things while ignoring other things was enough.

I thought I could fit God into the margins of my life and still experience the fullness of what He had for me.

Then in my early 40s, I realized something:

There are no hacks to a relationship with the Lord.

"Then He said to them all, 'If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.'"

Luke 9:23

Jesus didn't offer a shortcut.

He offered a daily walk.

A daily surrender.

A daily relationship.

Our culture loves quick fixes, life hacks, and instant results. But the Kingdom of God doesn't work that way.

You can't hack prayer.

You can't hack time in God's Word.

You can't hack obedience.

You can't hack intimacy with God.

The strongest Christians I know didn't get there through shortcuts.

They got there through thousands of ordinary days spent faithfully walking with Jesus.

One prayer at a time.

One act of obedience at a time.

One day at a time.

Take a quiet moment today and ask the Lord:

"Is there an area of my faith where I've been looking for a shortcut instead of pursuing a relationship?"

Then sit quietly and listen.

Spend five uninterrupted minutes with God today.

No phone.

No distractions.

No agenda.

Just be with Him.

Father,

Forgive me for the times I've looked for shortcuts instead of seeking You.

Teach me to walk faithfully with You day by day.

Give me a hunger for Your Word, a desire to spend time with You, and the courage to obey whatever You ask of me.

Help me stop fitting You into the margins of my life and instead place You at the center.

In Jesus' name,

Amen.