We talk often about how we can take better care of our bodies. We can easily neglect proper care of our spiritual health that way. I recognize that not all members of our group share our same beliefs. None of this is meant to be shoved down your throat or said in an intentionally malicious way. But for the community of believers that are here, it's important to address how to properly feed your desire for God and talking about it here is a good way to do it. Also, it's my goal and my command as a Christian to speak God's truth into your life. So if you're not a Christian and you take offense at anything I say, your problem isn't with me. It's with the holy, divinely-inspired, inerrant, perfect words of scripture. It's simply my job to be an ambassador of those words and take them to the corners of the earth, my mission field.
The inspiration for this post is that I happen to be hopping on a plane today and flying to Germany. I will be going with a group of people to evangelize to local Germans as well any refugees that may be in the area. 13 of us will go and witness on behalf of our Lord to those that do not yet believe or have not yet heard of the good news that Jesus is the only way you'll see heaven (John 14:6). So how do we prepare to do this? How do any of us prepare our hearts and minds for sharing the Gospel with our neighbors or coworkers? By keeping our spiritual bodies intact and healthy. How do we do this?
Prayer: We do not receive because we do not ask. Now please don't confuse that point. The goal of prayer is NOT selfishly asking for things that our heart desires. But how will you ever have the strength and courage to talk to the ones you love about the Gospel if you never ask God for those things? When was the last time you prayed for the power to share the Gospel? When was the last time you asked God to give you the opportunity to share with someone the beauty of scripture? Prayer is an essential part of keeping our spiritual bodies functioning.
Spending time in Scripture: Time spent in the Bible is invaluable as a Christian. It increases our wisdom and reading the very words of God draws us closer to Him. Why then would we expect to have answers for people who are curious about God and Christianity if we don't spend any time reading and meditating through the holy Bible? It contains every answer we need. It is breathed out by God, profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness, that every man of God may be complete and equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
There are plenty of other things we should be doing as Christians. Fasting, mission work, and being under the preaching of the word are all things we are commanded in scripture to do. However, there is an important point to be made. These aren't just good things to do or rules that we have to follow so we can cross them off our checklist so that we get to heaven. The believer should WANT to do these things because a true believer is obedient to scripture and understands the necessity of practicing spiritual disciplines. We aren't trying to do enough good things. None of us are capable of doing anything apart from the power of Christ. We are expecting great things from God as we attempt great things for God.
-Jordan