Creating a Rhythm For Your Spiritual Life

 Finishing well is an important trait of a believer.  

  • Matt. 24:13-14,  13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
  • Matthew 10:22, And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
  • James 1:12 ESV,  Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
Christians are to be called to be productive, to be persistent, and to be consistent. 
  • Matthew 13:23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.”
  • James 1:12 (NIV) “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”
  • 1 Corinthians 15:58  “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”
A new believer is in a new world.  A new world means there is a new norm.  The goal for 2024 is live in a spiritual norm where you are growing steadfastly and abounding in the Lord.  

Here are a few advice to strive for the new norm.  The four s's for success
  • Sense the hunger and longing of God. Psalm 42:1, As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, "Where is your God?"
  • Sin numbs your heart.  Eph. 4:17-21,  “Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!— 21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus.” 
  • Be steady.    
    • Obedience, Joseph led his family by following God, even when he didn't know what God's plan was. For example, when carrying his newborn son, Joseph held Mary's hand and trusted in God's ways.
    • Stewardship, Joseph entrusted God's creation to him and oversaw his master's household. He also stewarded God's plan to save Israel and Egypt from starvation.
    • Trust, Joseph trusted in the Lord and knew that God was watching, protecting, and blessing him. He never broke faith with his brothers, even after their father's death.
    • Overcoming temptation,  Joseph knew that a sexual relationship with Potiphar's wife was not God's will. He was able to resist temptation because he was close to God.
    • Name his children, Joseph gave his children names that credited God with healing his emotional pain and making him fruitful. 
  • Get support. Heb. 10:25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

John 10:27,28 says My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  The beauty of belonging to God's family is that, while you may have distractions and options, once you hear God - the struggle ceases, like a sheep who follows the shepherd, YOU FOLLOW HIM.   

The constant push and pull gets settled because as you get to the normalcy of Christian living, you experience God's power.  Eph 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

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