Spiritual Food

In his book Writing for the Soul, Jerry B. Jenkins tells the following story about a conversation he had with Billy Graham as they worked together on Mr. Graham's autobiography:

"You pray without ceasing?" I said.

"I do." Mr Graham said, still with that air of pure humility. "And I have, every waking moment since I received Christ as a teenager." He had to have seen the doubt on my face. "I'm praying right now as I'm talking to you," he said. "Praying that God will use this book, that it will be clear that it's more about Him than about me, praying that we'll both do our jobs well and that He will get the glory."

I was nearly speechless. "And your searching the Scripture," I managed, "how doe that work?"

"Wherever I am," he said, "at home, in my office, or in a hotel room in some other country, the first thing I do in the morning is to leave my Bible open somewhere where I will notice it during the day. I pick it up at odd moments and read a verse or two or a chapter or two or for an hour or two. And this is not for study or sermon preparation. This is just for my own spiritual nourishment."

Now we're getting somewhere. Everyone I know who is serious about his spiritual life would love to have a more consistent devotional life of prayer and Bible reading. Perhaps I was on the edge of real takeaway value.

"Say you miss a day or two," I said. "How do you get back to your routine?"

"Miss a day or two?" he said. "I don't think I've ever done that."

"You never miss?"

He shook his head. "I told you. This is my spiritual food. I would no more miss this than a regular meal."