The Christian Walk

A couple of days ago I sat with a man who is discouraged with life and somewhat also with God, so I gave him some helps for victory.

I recently had a young man come in looking for help with his Bible reading program.  He had found, as I have found at times, that too often after reading a chapter or two, he had little or no recollection of what he had read. It was words on the page that were thought  about, but quickly slipped away.  While he could check off Bible reading for the day, there was little help from the activity.  While Bible reading was foremost of what we talked about, we also talked about other helps for walking in victory.

To both men I gave these general ideas:

Be in the Bible Daily

1. Take a smaller bite. Rather than tackling a chapter or more, read only 3 or 4 or 5verses.  Then read them two more times looking for a phrase that catches your attention.  Look for 3 to 7 words that ring a bell.
2. Then ponder on that phrase.  What did the writer mean?  What does it mean to me?  What do I do with it?  Write it down or tuck it into memory for the day.  Return to it often in the day.
3. Pray – Ask God to make the phrase stick and be helpful to you throughout the day.

Have Good Friends

Do they have to be Christians?  No, but they can’t be anti-Jesus, church or Bible and they need to be moral.  Don’t let bad company pull you aside or away.

Be Engaged in Church

Churches or church programs full of young people can be fun, relevant and OK, but don’t cut out the older folk who are your prayer force, which is needed far more than you know.

Live Clean

Live pleasing to God for God is watching.  Live in such a way that God is pleased to bless.  Flee sin, hate sin, address sin – confess, repent, and turn away from it.

Embrace His Purpose for Your Life

The world is going to Hell and we are His ambassadors!  We are His representatives.  We are His servants.  We are His laborers in His fields.

The world sees us as weak and/or weird.  They think the idea of a God with no beginning is anti-science or of a worldwide flood as illogical or of a man inside a fish for three days as folklore.  They see us as needing a crutch.  They see us as foolish.  It takes the power of God to overcome their deadness, dark minds, and hard hearts.  Seeing a person reject their own “logic”, turn away from the world’s “wisdom” and say “No” to Satan’s lies takes a power beyond our words and influence – it takes God!

Yet, for us, being an ambassador is kindergarten – it is show and tell!  Back in the day we would bring a trinket and made a big ado about it while the teacher and classmates often endured our excitement.  It is much the same in the world.  We are to show and tell Jesus, truth, heaven, and Bible stories and let God use our witness to impact those around.  We are to sow and water – God gives the increase – God reaps!  Let’s be faithful ambassadors!