Discipline isn’t a bad thing but it’s not everything. There’s nothing wrong with having set times where we meet with God or in having a Bible reading plan. But let’s not think spiritual disciplines are an end in themselves.
Jesus didn’t say the greatest commandment was to pray 30 minutes a day or to read two chapters a day.
No, he said it was to love God and love others with all our heart.
God’s desire is that we become laid down lovers. Meaning that we lay down our lives in love. When this happens we will want to be with God. We will want to read the Bible. We will want to worship and adore Him. Our have to’s will become want to’s.
But what if you don’t want to spend time with God? How do you get from practicing spiritual disciplines to the place where you crave the presence of God more than anything else? I’m not about to give you some pat answer but I will submit an idea to you.
There’s Something About Worship
The more we are around God’s presence the more we desire Him. I don’t think the reason we lack desire is because God is not desirable – it’s because we don’t know (experientially) how good He actually is. We’ve heard and we confess that He is good but until we taste and see for ourselves we will not want more of Him.
When I talk about worship I’m talking about drawing near to God in our spirits. Remember Jesus said that true worshipers will worship in spirit and in truth. Our spirit is the part of us that connects with God. Our soul can ponder, learn, and teach about God but it’s only in our spirit that we actually know and worship Him.
Worship in Truth
You know what’s so refreshing? Just being honest with God. He already knows, so why not just be honest with Him? If we’d rather spend time watching a movie or on Facebook then simply tell Him. But don’t ignore or lie to Him. God isn’t after lip service, I believe He appreciates it when we are real with Him.
Jesus said to worship in spirit and in truth. Think about King David. Here was a man who told God what was on His heart. He didn’t sugarcoat or hold anything back. He just spilt his guts before the Lord and in his realness he encountered the living God.
Feel free to share any stories about your have to’s becoming want to’s.
Remember, we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony.
About Josh Monen
Josh is a Christian entrepreneur who lives in Central Texas with his wife and 4 kids.
Leave a Reply