In this day and age, there seems to be a rise in the number of people claiming to be a Christian. In fact, The Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary reported that the number of Christians in the world edged past 2.5 billion in 2019. That is a lot of Christians! However, mixed up in this number, we find individuals who say they are committed to Jesus yet their lifestyles and their actions disagree.
These individuals are treading above the water. They're in the shallow waters, to afraid to go deeper. To call yourself a Christian means to commit every area of your life to Jesus. It means going all in. It means submerging yourself - descending below the surface. It means going deeper.
But how do you go deeper? How do you get rid of the floaties? How do you stop treading water and just dive in? How? You start seeking a relationship with God.
#1 Going Deeper in Prayer
Prayer is how we communicate with God. Communication is essential in any relationship. Imagine if I only talked to my husband when I needed something, or if all I did was say his name over and over again. What if every time I talked to him I recited the same words? What if it was always about me and about what I needed? What if I only talked to him when others were around?
We want a relationship with God. We expect Him to be there for us. We expect Him to fulfill His part of the relationship, but many times we do little to nurture the relationship. Going deeper is more than saying a quick blessing over our food. It's more than the mental pleading we do right before a test. It's more than whispering a few words so we can check it off our to-do list. Going all in means altar building prayer. Prayer where we don't care if God ever answers a need again - we just want His presence.
Quarantine wasn't too bad. We established some things. A lot of our homes became a House of Prayer. We had prayer meetings. Families were united in prayer. We learned that we didn't need to wait until Sunday to enter into His presence - we could do it in our living room or bedroom.
#2 Going Deeper in God's Word
The Bible is God's Word. The words inside were breathed from the very mouth of God. He speaks to us through the Bible. Here are some tips when reading the Bible that has helped me:
- Read it regularly. Read it everyday. Don't just skim thru to check it off your Bible Reading Plan.
- Think about what you read.
- Write down any questions you may have so you can later ask someone who is grounded in Truth.
- Look up any words you don't know the meaning of.
- Ask God for understanding.
- Memorize scriptures and passages.
"Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee."
This book is our sword. This is how we fight the enemy. But, how can we recognize the lies of the devil if we don't know the truth? How do we know the truth?
John 17:17
"Sanctify them through thy truth: thy Word is truth."
The Bible is truth! That's why it is important to study God's Word and have it in our hearts.
7. Apply what you read in your life.
Read James 1:22-25.
Hearing and knowing the Word of God is essential, but it is useless if you don't apply it. James compares it to a man looking in a mirror and then forgetting what kind of man he was. Imagine you are having dinner with someone you really like or maybe it's an important business dinner. The dinner is going great and while waiting for dessert, you decide to go to the bathroom to freshen up. You go to the sink to wash your hands and as you look in the mirror, you notice a huge piece of spinach stuck in your teeth and ranch dressing on your chin. You are horrified! Your date saw you like this. You gave him/her a big cheesy smile as you got up! Your heart drops. Then you shrug, turn away from the mirror, and head back to the table.
Sounds ridiculous, right? But we do the same thing spiritually. We read the Bible and our eyes are opened. Disgusted, we see what a mess we are, but we shake our heads and close the Bible. Our spiritual appearance is forgotten.I was just like that person. Many times the preacher would preach and I would feel conviction. I would go to the altar and pray until I felt better and then continue on with life unchanged.
On the outside, I looked like I had it all together, but on the inside, I was dry bones. I was barely treading water, to scared to go any deeper. I did not have a relationship with God. I had no prayer life. I only read my Bible to say I read it in a year. I am so thankful that God began to again deal with me. And this time, instead of walking away from the mirror, I decided to do something about what I saw. I grew tired of being surface level, so I dove in.
I am always amazed when I think about how the Creator of the universe, the One who spoke this world into existence, the God who formed me with His own hands and then breathed His breath inside of me wants to have a relationship with me. Who am I? I'm just one insignificant person among 7.8 billion people, yet He still wants time with me. He wants time with you. He wants to have a relationship with you and I hope this encourages you to go deeper.
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