“Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 3:18a
“Out with the old and in with the new” is the cry of New Year’s Eve. It’s really a good thought if you think about it. Last year is in the past and you can’t change it, but next year has not yet been so you can do quite a bit about that which is yet to come! While thinking and planning for 2017 make your Spiritual Disciplines a priority.
Spiritual disciplines are behaviors that shape your spiritual growth and enable you to become more like Christ. They develop our inner being by hastening our transformation from sinner to saint. These disciplines are habits that prepare our hearts to let God’s grace change us for the good. At salvation the Holy Spirit began a work in us that is leading us away from selfish sinful behavior towards selfless God like behavior. By intentionally making changes to our routines we can create new habits that will allow God’s grace to renew our thinking which will shape our future behavior.
Here are a few Spiritual Disciplines you may choose to develop this New Year:
1) Solitude with God – pull back from the fast paced world of distractions and focus your time on the One who created you and loves you most, Jesus. Schedule time for Him daily.
2) Memorization of Scripture – by putting God’s Word in your heart you will find substantial time during your day to meditate on the Scripture that you have imprinted on your brain. The more you have committed to memory the more the Spirit will reveal to you by His grace.
3) Abstain from any activity that is keeping you from finding rest in God – (tobacco, porn, food, alcohol, etc.) anything that brings comfort to our soul that is not of God is an idol.
4) Pray through your day before your day starts - by the Spirit and the Word, God will impart wisdom that you need for today before today happens, but it requires that you go to Him in prayer before you actually engage in your day.
5) Fasting from food – throughout the Bible you read of those who sought the Lord through fasting. In order to go without food your body will require your mind to focus on your source of strength that comes not from yourself but God. Fasting brings urgency to prayer and it allows you to see the answers to many prayers are a very short length of time.
Develop disciplines in 2017 and you will end the year much more like Christ than you began. You will also feel much better about who you are as a person. God loves you and so do I.
