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The first thing Jesus did when comforting His puzzled and grieving disciples: He opened the Scriptures (Luke 24:32).

That was their Scriptures, the Old Testament. Now we have also the New Testament. We have a huge treasure house of comfort and guidance. The first step is to open the Bible.

When tears blind your eyes, open the Bible. When you're angry at God, open the Bible. When questions chase each other wildly in your mind, open the Bible. When you want specific direction in life, open the Bible. Maybe you can't read, or focus, or find a specific word, open the Bible anyway. The mere act and state of having the Bible open before me has been my salvation at times.

The second thing Jesus did when comforting His puzzled and grieving disciples: He opened their eyes (Luke 24:31).

He opened their eyes so that they recognized Him, Jesus, in the midst of their experience. We have the promise that Jesus will always be with us (Matthew 28:20). The second step is to look for Jesus.

Look for Jesus in the Scripture. Look for Jesus in your daily experiences. Seek relationship with Jesus as more valuable to you than any Bible "answer" or life "solution." This first value for me has sorted out a million other values in my life.

The third thing Jesus did when comforting His puzzled and grieving disciples: He opened their understanding (Luke 24:45).

He wanted them to understand. He wanted them to understand the Scriptures. When He had opened the Scriptures and opened their eyes to see Him in the Scriptures, then he could open their understanding of those Scriptures.

I want to understand the Bible and its instruction for my life. Understanding is the third step in the process, after I have opened the Bible, and after I have looked for and found Jesus in the Bible and in my life.

So let us open the Bible!