Christian Living

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“Mom---Hellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllpppppppppppppppppppppppp!”

It’s the cry that sets every mother’s hair on end. Something, or someone, is threatening her child.

In this case, it was someone AND something—my husband, John, and his hair trimmer.

“Dad says he’s going to cut our hair!” my sons yelled in unified terror.

I dropped everything, ready to defend, like Samson’s mother would have done if she’d foreseen Delilah’s actions. (Judges 16:19)

Several years ago, John got a hair trimming kit—a black box housing a nifty trimmer with various attachments that have inspired John to snip and shave everyone in his path.

At first, we humored him by allowing a trim here or there, but humor leapt to horror the day he attempted a full cut and style on our youngest son, Daniel.

Unable to pry my eyes from Daniel’s newly created widow’s peak, I wailed, “He looks like Eddie Munster!”

I should’ve shut down Haircuts by Dad right then, but didn’t. We paid later when John gave our oldest son, J.R., a buzz cut.

I couldn’t watch, but listened to the steady hum of the trimmer until it sputtered out.

“What’s wrong with this thing?” John said, tapping the trimmer.

Trimmer the Terrible had overheated, leaving a traumatized J.R. sporting a half-buzzed head. I hustled him into the car, and drove madly to the first salon that welcomed walk-ins.

Later, I said to John, “You’re an awesome dad, but—STAY AWAY FROM OUR CHILDREN’S HAIR!”

For all John’s talents, he missed the boat on hair care. Despite good intentions, he never used that trimmer correctly.

From electronics to emotions, there are many things that people handle incorrectly. I knew a man who couldn’t handle his riding lawn mower, resulting in numerous mishaps, including him once being dragged around the yard by his RIDERLESS mower, leaving neighbors debating whether to call 911 or America’s Funniest Home Videos. On a serious note, I’ve seen people mishandle authority, finances, discipline, talents and success.

The Word of God also gets mishandled, sometimes deliberately and other times unintentionally.

2 Timothy 2:15 instructs us be a worker “who correctly handles the word of truth.” Further instruction says we’re to teach with patience and humility, presenting doctrine that is Biblically sound.1 We aren’t to add to or take away from what is written, customize scripture to our liking or tell people what they want to hear. 2

In correctly handling God’s Word, an important lesson is found in Acts 18: 24-28, which tells of Apollos, an early church worker who “taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.” After hearing Apollos speak, Pricilla and Aquila invited him into their home and “explained to him the way of God more adequately,” expanding his knowledge to include the death, resurrection and kingdom of Christ. Armed with the full story, Appolos became a great defender of the faith, “proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.”

For years, I ranked my Biblical knowledge as being above average, though I wasn’t regularly studying scripture, relying instead on what I’d “always believed.” Imagine my humbled surprise when I got involved with scripturally rich Bible Studies, and learned how many verses I could quote—partially; how many teachings I knew—but didn’t know how Jesus applied them; how many passages I was familiar with—except for an omitted word that defined their context. Whatever caused my Biblical gaps, the solution was adopting Apollos’ willingness to be instructed, corrected and directed towards better understanding the truth.

Apollos’ attitude could be the most vital step in correctly handling God’s word. Proverbs 10:17 says, “He who heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others astray.” Even if our Biblical smarts are A-plus, there’s always more knowledge to gather, as we’re reminded in Proverbs 1: 5: “let the wise listen and add to their learning.”

Hebrews 4:12 teaches, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

More than a book of suggestions, the Bible is powerful and life-changing, which is why we’re charged to handle it correctly. Having learned that I wasn’t as Biblically brilliant as I thought I was, I no longer depend on what I assume is correct. I seek, study and learn, knowing that anything less might be the equivalent of a half-buzzed head—incomplete, inaccurate and in desperate need of repair.


1-- 2 Timothy 2: 24-26, Galatians 1: 8-9, Titus 2:1
2-- 1 Corinthians 4:6, Revelation 22: 18-19, 2 John 9, Acts 20: 20, 27-30, 2 Peter 3:16, 2 Timothy 4: 3-4, Galatians 1:10-12


Donna G. Morton © June 2006

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