Access Granted

First, I want to give a shout-out to my readers all over the world: the United States, the Philippines, Russia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Serbia, Romania, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Australia, France, Singapore, Venezuela, Australia, Turkey, Hong Kong, Argentina and probably a few more I’ve missed. I’m truly humbled that God is bringing us together.
Second, I have to apologize for not posting more often. The fact is, I write for a living, and reality demands I tend to the paying work first. And the paying work has been keeping me pretty busy, though not necessarily productive, as you will see.
A few weeks ago, my largest client asked me to take on project management for a newsletter I help write and edit. It was a great fit, and I was honored to do it. The problem – or at least a problem – was that I work remotely instead of on site.
This required I be granted remote access. Turned out that I had been granted access about a month earlier, except that I was notified of the new account and given the password via the account that I couldn’t access without knowledge that it existed or the password with which to access it. See the problem? Resolving all the access issues took weeks of persistence of my part and on the part of a dedicated IT employee.
Sadly, many of us go through an entire lifetime believing envisioning an “access denied” warning when it comes to gleaning the truths of the Bible for ourselves. We believe that we must rely upon others to read the Bible to us, and those same people must interpret it for us because we do not possess the ability to unlock its mysteries for ourselves.
I was there for a long time myself. On Sundays, I listened hungrily to the Scripture passage that was read and always yearned for more. How incredibly freeing it was for me when I learned that God intended for me to read His truths for myself and that He had provided a Helper through whom to understand what He was trying to teach me.
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. – John 14:26
But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is to come. – John 16:13
You don’t need a degree or title to read and understand the Word of God. You don’t need to stand behind a pulpit or wear a robe. You don’t need to be a scholar or a student of hermeneutics.
Getting our hearts and heads around Scripture is a matter of dogged determination to plunge in head-first by the guidance of the Author of truth Himself. You can pray as the psalmist himself prayed:
Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in Your law. I am a stranger on earth; do not hide Your commands from me. – Psalm 119:18-19
Let me understand the teaching of your precepts; then I will meditate on your wonders. – Psalm 119:27
When the temple veil was torn, Jesus allowed us common folk into the Holy of Holies. Everyone who believes in Him has been made into a priest before Him (1 Peter 2:9).  And His truth instructs us and gives us assurance of His salvation.
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. – 1 John 5:13
The way you get to know someone is by spending time with him. It’s the same with God. Know God by knowing His Word. Access granted.