  Leo Tolstoy once said, "Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself.
" I think that is especially true of ministers. I just finished reading a book entitled A Little Excercise for Young Theologians and it has been great. One of the great mistakes that the author warns of is the mistake of reading the Bible with others in mind, but never with yourself in mind.
This is what he writes: "The man who studies theology, and especially he who studies dogmatics, might watch carefully whether he increasingly does not think in the third rather than in the second person. This transition from one to the other level of thought, from a personal relationship with God to a merely technical reference, usually is exactly synchronized with the moment that I no longer can read the Holy Scripture as a word to me, but only as an object of exegetic endeavors. " He says this is "the first step towards the worst and most widespread ministers' disease. " I find myself falling into this trap many times. If you read a passage and immediately think "How would this preach? " then you have probably fallen into this trap also.
For all of you ministers who read my blog, please know that I am gonna pray for you today. I ask that you pray for me too. Thanks. 
