Don't have time to eat breakfast? Not even a bowl of cereal or a slice of toast? No problem. Just unwrap a "breakfast bar" made from one of many popular cereal products and eat it on your way to work or school. It may not be the most nourishing meal, but it's convenient, and that seems to be what people want most today. In the US alone, more than 30,000 new beverage, health, beauty, household, and pet products appeared in just one year. The most popular of them emphasized convenience.

In today's world, it's easy to become hooked on the "quick and easy" approach to almost everything. But it's dangerous to base our spiritual life on what is most convenient. Even this booklet can become a snare if we read only the interesting stories and fail to read the Scriptures and take time to pray.

Today's Bible reading reveals that in the midst of teaching, healing, traveling, and preaching, Jesus never allowed the pace of life to deter Him from spending time with His heavenly Father. Mark wrote, "In the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed" (Mark 1:35).

Today, let's resist the lure of convenience and take time to be alone with God.  —DCM  — David C. McCasland