These 3 words have exerted their irresistible power over my pointer finger an embarrassing number of times.

I can’t help but click.

And before I beat myself up too much for falling for this marketing garbage, I KNOW you’ve clicked those links too. (And risked the petri dish of computer viruses waiting to “infect” our precious devices).

Because we just have to know the shortcut to shredded abs.

The one exotic vegetable missing from our lives that can defeat the common cold.

The life hack that accelerates us to making six figures without leaving the sofa.

Let’s face it: we all, like a dad driving a rental car on a holiday abroad, love a wee shortcut.

If you’re like me, this constant search for the path of least resistance extends to your spiritual life too.

I’ve definitely been the guy who has traded real time in God’s word for a part comedy, part sermon podcast chattering in the background.

There have been times in my life where I’ve tried to convince myself that my work as a songwriter IS devotional time, and so I don’t need any more time in prayer.

I’ve tried a lot of weird tricks and I can tell you I’ve only really found success with these distinctly boring, very normal ways to improve my connection with God:

Spending time in the Word.

Spending time in prayer.

Spending time in worship.

Spending time with God’s people.

I’m pretty sure this might be information many of us were told on our first day of Sunday School.

But we haven’t graduated from it.

These are the practices that transform us, our families, our communities and our nations.

We don’t need a novel new approach, we just need to get the basics right.

Did you ever notice that “disciple” and “discipline” share the same root word?

Maybe it’s time we reconnected those two ideas.

Maybe it’s time to stop looking for loopholes.

Maybe that’s the trick.