My friend, Heidi Keller, shared with me an email she wrote a sister in Christ. I asked her to allow me to share it on my blog.
This, my friends, is disciple-making!
The Lord uses someone to point Heidi to God’s Word and help her understand how to live that Word. Heidi turns around and points someone else to God’s Word as she teaches them what she learned. And hopefully, that person teaches someone else, who then teaches someone else, and so on.
Disciple-makers making disciple-makers, according to The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).
In the email, Heidi shares what she read in her devotional one morning, and the discussion she had with her disciple-maker the evening before.
Dear Sister,
And now, little children, abide in him,
so that when he appears we may have confidence
and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.
1 John 2:28 ESV
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain,
where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf.
Hebrews 6:19-20a NIV
Sarah Young, in “Jesus Calling” reminds us that while our minds will indeed wander from God, we can control how far our minds wander from Him. She then talks about God being the center of your consciousness and illustrates that with an anchor and its purpose for a boat. She talks about “feeling that inner tug” that tells you to return to God when you wander a short distance away from Him.
I don’t know about you, but I have felt this tug my entire life as a follower of Christ. At times, I have disregarded it. Other times, I have repented and allowed the tug to pull me back in. That tug, of course, is the work of the Holy Spirit in my heart to bring me back to Himself.
I am learning that it is not a matter of finally coming to that point in my life when I have it together and remain consistent in the Word and my time with God. It is and always will be a struggle, but we must not lose heart as Galatians 6:9 tells us.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says (James 1:22 NIV).
I’ve been meeting with a Disciple-Maker/Biblical Counselor and Bible Study Teacher whom I met a few weeks ago. Recently we were talking about, ya know, life. I said that I know I need to give Him more of my time to be in the Word. All Christians know that, right?
She responded, “If you really know something, you do it.” It’s as plain as that!
I went on to tell her that I have prayed that I would make time with Him daily and that I would have a burning desire for Him. As much as I believe He will answer those prayers, my friend reminded me that we all have to make choices with our actions. We are to act on what we know. We will continue to struggle to set apart that time with the Lord for the rest of our lives, but we have no excuse of being too busy, too tired, too sinful, or too prideful to not make it our number one priority. It is easy to procrastinate or wait for a sign from God that gives us a budge, but we must be steadfast and make Him our focus by acting now.
So remember what you have received and heard;
and keep it, and repent.
Therefore if you do not wake up,
I will come like a thief, and you will not know
at what hour I will come to you.
Revelation 3:3 NASB
My disciple-maker asked about how many minutes on average I spend with God and in Scripture in a day. I answered truthfully, “5 minutes.” I realized that although I listen to sermons and my Bible app fairly often, I have used that as a cop out to actually being still and in the Presence of the Lord. She asked me a challenging question, “If you were trying to get to know someone you had just met, would 5 minutes a day be enough time to get to know them?”
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
(Psalm 119:105 NIV).
Being consistently disciplined to daily fulfill a task is one of the hardest things for me, and I think most of us can relate. But if I know I need to draw close to my anchor, Jesus Christ, through His Word, then I will act upon that and stop making excuses. I pray we will learn to be diligent in this task and not let the distractions of this world entice us and drag us away.
We will fail at times, yes—but now is the time to act.
Take the helmet of salvation
and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:17 NIV
My soul is weary with sorrow;
strengthen me according to your word.
Psalm 119:28 NIV
As Believers in Christ, we are all at different places in our spiritual walks, for there is a season for everything. I’m not implying that some Christians aren’t being called to have daily time with the Lord. I also don’t want to come across as if I am on an impulsive high for Jesus and act as if I have it all figured out. I tell you this as an encouragement to you (Acts 4:20), and because I love you.
What is God teaching you through His Word?
MY GUEST BLOGGER:
Heidi Keller is majoring in Industrial and Systems Engineering at Auburn University. During the school year, she leads a bible study at the development center in Auburn, where she meets with and teaches the Gospel to juvenile girls ages 12-18. She is very involved at her college and strives to use her leadership roles to be a light for Christ to her fellow students. She does not know where her path is going to take her after her May 2016 graduation, yet she is excited and willing to go wherever the Lord calls her.
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