We were never meant to do life on our own and as God’s children, He promises his Spirit to help and to strengthen us. Here are some practical tips for how to keep your assurance and joy.
1. Practice the Presence of God
Jesus has promised to always be with you. Learn to hear his voice and experience his presence in the midst of whatever you are doing in life. The presence of God with you isn’t just some theological theory. It’s an experiential reality with which God wants to bless you.
2. Live in Prayer
Learn to pray, not just as a ritual or something to be done in set hours, but as a way of living. If you are practicing the presence of God, make it your goal to have your mind in communion with him wherever you are and whatever you’re are doing. Prayer doesn’t have to be long and it shouldn’t be practiced. It is just talking to God. Jesus often talked with his heavenly Father with very brief statements, even while he was speaking with other people.
3. Focus on Jesus and the Cross
Make sure that your faith and experience is always centred on the person on Christ and on what he has done for you at the Cross. Never allow anything to replace this as the core of your existence. If you keep your life centred on the Cross, you will be protected from both many errors and disappointments.
4. Depend on God for Your Identity
Refuse to listen to the voices that tell you that you are not good enough and that you are unworthy to be loved. Depend on what God has done for you and what he says about you as the basis of your identity. This may sound easy, but I know that it can be a very difficult thing to do, because we have been trained to draw our identity from other sources.
5. Learn to Love the Word of God
Learn to love the Bible as the Word of God for your life. Hold fast to its revelation of Jesus, and to the promises that God has given you for your life. A real love for the Word of God will only exist when that love is based on the Author of the Word first.
6. Learn to Practice Gratitude
Learn to dethrone selfishness from your life by regularly disciplining yourself to practice gratitude towards God and towards others. Keeping a gratitude journal may help.
7. Find Joy in Serving Others
Remember that Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. Our carnal nature tells us to find joy in being served, but true is found when we serve others. As you learn to do this in your own life, you are learning to be a true follower of Jesus.
Article supplied with thanks to Dr Eliezer Gonzalez.
About the Author: Dr Eli Gonzalez is the Senior Pastor of Good News Unlimited and the presenter of the Unlimited radio spots, and The Big Question.
Featured image: Photo by Allef Vinicius on Unsplash
