I don’t know about you but I’m good at making excuses not to do things, it could be tech assignments, making plans or even doing my laundry. I’m also good at complaining when these things aren’t done for me. Then I remember its my own doing and responsibility. I feel this sometimes when it comes to my devotional life. As a Christian, one of the most important things we can do to serve God is to pray consistently and read his word. That’s how we become closer to him, that’s how we change and that’s how we grow in faith. I have struggled many times to devote consistently, being carried away by the things of the word. My phone, watching TV, working. Sometimes when I’m asking things off of God and I don’t get the response I want, I get frustrated. But just like how I’m good at making excuses, I remember its me who has to devote that time to God. I used to pray asking God to bring me closer to him, but recently stopped when I realised its me that has to devote to him. Jesus works in mysterious ways, but at the end of the day he isn’t going to pick up the bible for us and ready it to us. Its our responsibility.
The past few weeks we had the pastors of the church telling us all their testimonies, but one thing that really stood out to me was that in all their testimonies, the one thing they devoted to God was their time. That’s when they grew closer to him, that’s when they saw change and that’s when they grew in faith. I know after a long day of work it may not be the most important thing on our minds, but when I remember that precious shed blood poured out on calvary for my transgressions and sins, I remember that time he spent for our wrongdoing (Matthew 27:50), yet I can’t devote even half an hour in his presence? Second Peter chapter 3 vs 17 to 18 says, “You therefore beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away by the error of the wicked, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ”. I love the ending of this verse saying to “Grow in grace”. Reading Gods word should be a devotional way to serve him, but it also helps us ourselves. The Holy Spirit loves his people unconditionally, but it is a two-way path.
One of the most accurate examples I can think of when describing a relationship with God is like a plant. Plants don’t grow over night; plants need water and sunshine. You don’t plant a seed and expect it to tun into a tree overnight. The same is with the Lord and us. Instead, we don’t need sunshine, we need devotion. We don’t need watered every day, we need the word of Christ. That’s how we grow. And no, not overnight, but slowly overtime like a tree, we can grow in the grace of Jesus.