Ideas on what we do to STAND FIRM in the Lord
Hey everyone! I just wanted to ask people their thoughts on what works for them in Standing Firm in the Lord. We have been talking about what we believe...and what Spiritual Disciplines are. But what do we use on a daily basis to keep us rooted in Christ, focused on God. Examples I use: Dedicated time in the morning (wake up early) to read the Bible, write a particular verse that stuck out to me on an index card and put it in my pocket with my phone or keys, so I keep feeling it and remembering that verse--to meditate on it throughout the day. These are just some examples, have any more? If you want to see a more detailed thought on this, go check out my blog (it is linked on this page). For our hope is in the Lord!
posted by RobMcFarren at 12/19/2005 12:19:00 PM
5 Comments:
One of the most important things we can do is pray. In this area, we all fall short, for the Bible actually commands us to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17)!! At the very least, we should begin and end our days with prayer. If we cannot manage this, God is probably not the most important thing in our lives.
Also, I put hours everyday into theological study and debate. This is certainly not practical for most people, but the lesson is still the same: devote yourself to reading the Bible and other edifying works of the Church, and sharpen your faith every time you get a chance. While definately secondary to prayer, it should nonetheless form an indespensible part of our lives.
Finally, a big problem we have in the western world is focus. We are surrounded by distractions of the world, things that take our focus off God. So, yo counter this, we must fight to put our mind back on God. Little prayers throughout the day, icons to remind us of what our purpose is, and meditation on Scripture are all effacious in keeping our busy lives focused on God. It is meaningless to give a few hours of our week to God and then forget Him. Christianity is not a religion, but a lifestyle, a 24/7 commitment, and we must never forget that.
-Bizzlebin (Jeremiah)
Most of you know that Dara and I use journals to help us stay focused with our Spiritual Disciplines. Guys organize their tools, ladies organize their recipe books - but do we have organization to our spiritual lives???
So, we have goals that we set for ourselves, and then every month we do an assessment to review how we are doing. If anyone would like to see the form we use, I would be glad to email it to you. Also, if anyone would like some accountability, you could fill out the report and email it back to us and we could encourage you in your spiritual growth. Just a thought.
So here are some thoughts of where I am at with the various disciplines. This is not something to copy, just some ideas to kick around.
Reading God's Word - I am a part of a Chronos group (if you are not part of one you need to be!). We strive to read around 25 chapters a week, in a repetitive fashion. (ie we read Philippians 6 times in a week since it has 4 chapters.) The goal is not to read – the goal is to hear from God.
Studying God’s Word – I have been working my way through the Psalms for about 7 years now, but I’m almost done! I’m on Ps 147 now. I try to read a verse a day and come up with as many applications as possible from one verse. Then the next day I review what I have learned from the thoughts.
Memorizing God’s Word – Ha. My goal has been to memorize a verse every other day, but I have not been quite hitting the mark there. When I get a section memorized, I review it every day for two weeks, then every week for two years. That should cement it in there pretty good.
Meditating on God’s Word – Every day I have a different chapter or section that I get to go over and over. It is powerful to communicate with God in the very words that he first gave to us!
Petition – How else do we get to see God specifically working if we do not specifically ask? In the mornings, I review my day, and write down some requests based on what is happening that day. Then the next day I look back to see how God has been working.
Intercession – How much we pray for others probably says a lot about where we are at spiritually, don’t you think? We people ask me to pray about something, I try to write it down before I forget. Then I pray for 3 months (once a week) about what was going on. The best part is following up with people later, and asking them how God worked it out. People are always amazed that I have been praying!
Fasting – I do a 24 hour juice fast once a week. I want to do better about giving God extra time during the fast, but the business of life way too often intrudes. I believe that if we can deny ourselves in the small things (food), then we will be that much more able to deny ourselves in the big things (sin).
Listening to God – There are probably many ways to do this. One of the best that I have found is to just open up my Bible, read a passage, and ask God to reveal the truth of the passage to me. It is crucial that I have a pencil and paper ready to write down what god shows me.
Personal Worship – I read a psalm each morning, worshipping God through each verse. It takes focus, but it is so good to be reminded each morning of how big God is, and how small I am.
Yes, by now you have probably figured out that this all takes a bit of time. The only way that I have found so far to make it all work (on top of family and ministry and everything else that needs to get done) is if I multi task. I fix lunch and review my memory verses. I drive and pray (sometimes I drive and read – don’t tell anyone!). I have the Bible on audio, so sometimes I listen to my Chronos chapters while exercising. Whatever it takes to “pray without ceasing.”
You might also have concluded that this looks like a lot of work! Well, you would be right. But I have yet to find something that is worthwhile that does not take a lot of work. Isn’t there an old saying, “The highway to Hell is paved with good intentions?”
May God bless your adventure. Jesus paid the ultimate price for your FREEDOM. What are you going to do with it?
"Christianity is not a religion, but a lifestyle, a 24/7 commitment, and we must never forget that."
Exactly. I think this is something that we all need to understand...and why I am interested in the ways that people are making it a lifestyle, the ways they Stand Firm.
I completely agree, wholeheartedly, with everything said. But let me throw out this question? Ok, so we should pray, we should study, meditate, etc. But what if right now we don't? What are those things, those little ways that we can draw ourselves into the type of relationship that we are discussing here. The dedication to prayer is vital, as both Jeremiah and Wade mentioned. But what if we don't pray enough right now? How would we go about disciplining ourselves to pray, and pray effectively? I think that there are so many different ways, and each person is different. BUT, the ideas are out there with other people...and as Iron sharpens Iron, so we should sharpen one another. And this is an idea.
"But what if we don't pray enough right now? How would we go about disciplining ourselves to pray, and pray effectively?"
Well, there is order in everything. Note that while Jesus told the rich man to sell everything he had and give it to the poor, He only told the adulterous woman to repent. Are there different standards? Certainly not! But each person is at a different level, and needs something different. Saint John Climacus actually went through the trouble of writing about all of this in his book "The Ladder of Divine Ascent." Here are the 30 steps, in brief:
Step 1. On renunciation of the world
Step 2. On detachment
Step 3. On exile or pilgrimage
Step 4. On blessed and ever-memorable obedience
Step 5. On painstaking and true repentance
Step 6. On remembrance of death
Step 7. On joy-making mourning
Step 8. On freedom from anger and on meekness
Step 9. On remembrance of wrongs
Step 10. On slander or calumny
Step 11. On talkativeness and silence
Step 12. On lying
Step 13. On despondency
Step 14. On that clamorous mistress, the stomach
Step 15. On incorruptible purity and chastity
Step 16. On love or money, or avarice
Step 17. On non-possessiveness (that hastens one Heavenwards)
Step 18. On insensibility
Step 19. On sleep, prayer, and psalmody with the brotherhood
Step 20. On bodily vigil and how to use it to obtain spiritual vigil.
Step 21. On unmanly and puerile cowardice
Step 22. On the many forms of vainglory
Step 23. On mad pride and unclean blasphemous thoughts
Step 24. On meekness, simplicity and guilelessness
Step 25. On the destroyer of passions, most sublime humility
Step 26. On discernment of thoughts, passions and virtues
Step 27. On holy stillness of body and soul
Step 28. On holy and blessed prayer
Step 29. Concerning Heaven on earth, or Godlike dispassion and perfection
Step 30. Concerning the linking together of the supreme trinity among the virtues
Notice unceasing prayer is at Step 28. This is because it is impossible to have without ataining the previous steps. The steps were not created because one is more important than the other, but because some preceed others. Too often, we want to get to the next "ridge" without taking the spiritual "hike." This is madness. We must follow the "map" laid out to us by the holy fathers who have already been there. They know the way.
So, to finally get to your question, one must follow the steps in order (and the above book is just a general guide, remember). If one is having trouble with prayer, they should look to see what prequisites they missed. Once that is accomplished, it's quite easy. As I mentioned earlier, morning and evening prayer are an integral part of a good prayer habit. (Remember that "normal" prayer and unceasing prayer are totally different. If one isn't praying unceasingly, they shouldn't worry about it. Lastly, DO NOT attempt unceasing prayer without having acheived all of the other steps, and being under CLOSE supervision, and permission, of someone who is experienced in unceasing prayer themselves! It will lead to prelest and deception.)
-Bizzlebin (Jeremiah)
I think I missed the point earlier...
To make it simple, we use our Journals. They have sections for the different disciplines, and it's easy to keep track of what is going on. Plus they offer accountability, as it is very easy to "see" if you have been staying on track or not. I would be happy to go through the journals with anyone, to show you how they can be a useful tool for you....
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