Consistency
Perhaps one of the hardest things in the Christian life is consistency. Life is full of ups and downs for all of us. Our circumstances are constantly changing and each day is filled with its own fresh new challenges. With all this change going on around us, it is no surprise that so many of us struggle to maintain consistency in our walks with God.
One day we wake up full of energy and enthusiasm ready to read the Bible and spend time with God in prayer. The next day though, we can’t be bothered to get up, have no motivation for spiritual things, and might just say a short prayer on our way out the door to work or college.
Sadly, the reality of the inconsistencies in our walks with God lead many of us to end up feeling guilty or ashamed of our walk with God. Everyone says that we must read our Bible and pray everyday if we want to be a “proper Christian� and so we end up feeling like a second-class Christian who God is thoroughly disappointed with. This is not healthy! And this is not how God sees us.
We must never forget that God is pleased with us and loves us…no matter what. NOTHING can separate us from the love of God. God doesn’t want us to only read the Bible because that is what “proper Christiansâ€ÂÂ? do. And He certainly doesn’t want us feeling guilty because we are struggling to muster up enthusiasm for reading the Bible.
Of course, that is not to say that we don’t need to choose to be disciplined in reading the Bible. We do. But our motivation for reading the Bible should be based upon a desire to know God more and not and doing what “proper Christians� do.
And I believe that when our motivations for reading the Bible are right, we will actually find that our consistency will improve and there will be less ups and downs. God wants to speak to us through the Bible and I want to try and hear everything that He wants to say so that I can know Him more intimately.
