Making Changes that Stick

⁵ “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. ⁶ And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. ⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. ⁸ And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Luke 8:5-8 ESV

My Prayer -

Great and Mighty Father God - How often do I hear your word and it strikes a chord in me?  It makes me want to do better; makes me intend to do better; makes me plan on better living my life according to your word.

However, soon after I leave the protected time of church services and morning devotionals, I go back to old behaviors, too-human behaviors, behaviors that are of this world and not of You.

Too often I live my life like that seed "that fell among thorns" - allowing the cares of the day to choke out my intentions to put You first and to turn to You in all things.  I forget to walk as a disciple of Christ and to love all of my neighbors - not just those I like.  How quickly I let the frustrations of life determine how I will react to situations - forgetting to ask myself, "what would Jesus do" and instead charging ahead with a less than loving heart.  

Father - I am sorry for these lapses.   I want to be one of the seeds that "fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold" and I need your help to do this.  You are good and merciful, and your love is everlasting!  With faith that it has already been done, I ask your forgiveness and for your help to follow more closely the path to which You have called me.  Send your Holy Spirit to guide and give me direction.  Teach me to discipline myself in the ways of Christ that I will be a better example of life in Him and a light for those around me pointing the way to You.

I love you and I lift my prayers in the name of Christ Jesus - my Savior and Redeemer.  Amen.

My Reflection -

This is just one example of why having evening devotional time is so important.  If morning devotions prepare me for the day by seating God's word in my heart, evening devotions give me the opportunity to return to His word and reflect on the activities of the day.  They give me a chance to think about what went well and how I could have done better.  Most importantly, they allow me to set aside more time to stand in God's presence asking Him to search my heart and showing me how and where I need to improve.

Building my walk as a disciple of Christ is not a "one and done" action, and it is not something that I can float through.  It takes constant effort, planning, and forethought.  It is no coincidence that the words "disciple" and "discipline" both spring from the latin root "discere", which means "to learn".  I am having to learn to become more self-disciplined and more intentional about being a disciple. 

Self-discipline does not come naturally to me so this is not going to be easy.  But it is going to be so worth it!