Pathways Press.com

MEDITATION:

Written by Steve Brown, a contemporary teacher, radio broadcaster, and founder of keylife.org.

The Christian life, following Christ’s example, is not so much a life of acting but of being. We are called to abide in Christ in exactly the same way Christ abides in the Father… We go to great lengths to get away from the principle that the Christian life means abiding in Christ in the same way Christ abides in the Father. We try harder and do more. We go to conferences. We read the Bible and pray a little more. We go to church every time the door is open. And then we think everything will be fine. It won’t because that’s not the way God ordained for us to walk with him. He sent his Son to reconcile us to himself and to give us an example of how to turn salvation into sanctification. If you want to be obedient to God, abide in Christ. Don’t go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, don’t do something religious like getting baptized in water shipped directly from the river Jordan, and don’t wear another religious trinket or read another religious book. Listen, if you want to be obedient to God, get close to Jesus. That’s it. To abide in Christ is simply to stay close to him through his Word and his presence. It means you have to give time to the effort. It means you have to exclude other things. It means you simply have to stay close to him. We want everything yesterday. We want everything instantly…and hardly anything worth anything comes instantly. It took time for you to develop your really close friendships. A good marriage doesn’t just happen after you say, “I do.” A good marriage takes years to develop. The same is true for a relationship with Christ. You can’t abide with someone without talking to him, listening to him, or being a friend to his friends. The same is true for Christ. Prayer, the Scriptures, and fellowship are essential tools for being with Christ.  Growth comes from abiding in Christ in the same way he abided in the Father. We don’t abide in him by growing. That’s why so many of us are frustrated in our walk with Christ. A Christian doesn’t do good things in order to be a Christian. A Christian does good things because he or she is a Christian. Stay close to Christ and then you’ll be surprised at the growth. His gift to you for just being with him is that he makes you more and more like him.

PRAYER:

Written by Burt Ghezzi is a contemporary author and speaker.

O Holy Spirit, I want to know you more and love you more. Draw me into your presence and reveal yourself to me.