I suspect you are a person of faith. You love Jesus Christ. You seek to be a faithful disciple.
Yet, you are not satisfied. You want to grow in your faith. Deep inside is a passion for drawing closer to Jesus.
What happens, however, if that yearning to increase your discipleship never occurs?
Answer these two questions:
- Reflect upon the current state of your faith (What is now?).
- What are the risks of everything remaining the same (maintaining the status quo)?
I recommend you write your responses in your journal. Take the time to think through these steps honestly and thoroughly.
Use these thought starters to help you reflect.
1. The current state of your faith.
- How would you describe your relationship with Jesus?
- Do you obediently follow his teachings?
- Are there specific sins you struggle with in your life?
- How often do you pray? How long do you pray?
- Do you read the Bible? How much time is spent reading the Bible?
- Do you simply read the Bible, or do you reflect on what you read?
- What other spiritual disciplines do you follow?
- Do you serve in a ministry?
- Do you share your faith with others?
- Do you take part in a church? What is the frequency of your participation?
- Do you have a mentor?
- Do you have an accountability group?
- Are you mentoring someone?
- How much of your life is given to worldly things such as entertainment, social media, television, and the pleasures of this world?
- Do you give to the poor, hungry, thirsty, orphans, and strangers in the land?
Writing the answers to these questions in a journal will help you process and put words to your thoughts. Once you have completed the questions, go back and read your answers as one description—this is what is.
What does your current state look like? Sound good? Healthy? Need some work? Got some issues?
Maybe your current state isn’t so bad. You are in pretty good shape. Yet, you want a deeper, stronger relationship with Jesus, and you want to serve him more.
Regardless of where your current state falls, move to the second question now.
2. What are the risks if you do nothing? You maintain the status quo.
- Will your faith improve?
- What sins will you continue to struggle with?
- Will your prayer life improve?
- Will your knowledge of the Bible increase?
- Will you remain frustrated with your spiritual discipline?
- How will your mission and ministry be affected if you maintain the norm?
- What about your growth in Christ with others?
- How will your faith-sharing be impacted?
Go back through the reflections in Step 1 and write how each item is impacted if you keep doing what you are currently doing. Once complete, read your responses as one description. Think of the reading this way: “This happens to my faith if I do nothing different.”
At this stage, you have a two-part description. You could place a heading above each one. The first, This Is What Is. And the second, This Is the Risk of What Is.
Keep your descriptions close. Read over them several times this week.
Your descriptions may reassure you. That’s great! For others, maybe not so much. That’s okay too, for now. At least you have been honest and put it to words.
In the next article, I’ll show you what to do with your description. If you are struggling, we’ll set a course to change that. Even if you are heading in the right direction, next week’s steps will help you along the way.
Until next time. Keep running the race of faith.