One incredibly helpful discipline is to create simple methods of reminding yourself that Christ is with you right now. The very God of the universe is with us in our best and worst moments, and we often don’t even realize it. The problem is that we’re incredibly forgetful. Not only is Jesus with us at every moment, but He dwells inside of us through the Spirit. By making it a habit to invite Jesus into your daily activities and experiences, you remind yourself of your reliance on Him. If you’re feeling frustrated or anxious, ask the Lord to strengthen and empower you. And while it’s a good idea to have a set time in the morning to pray, it’s also vital that we make prayer a completely natural part of our everyday life.Īs you go throughout your day, try responding to events by turning them into quick little prayers. Paul encourages the church at Thessalonica to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Memorize passages like Philippians 2:1-11 or Colossians 1:15-23.Īll of Scripture is God-breathed and profitable (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and it all ultimately points to Jesus, but it can help to specifically focus on reorienting yourself around the ministry and message of Jesus. If you’re going through a period where you’re trying to know and love Jesus better, read portions of Scripture that focus on who He is and what He came to do. It makes sense that if we want to get closer to Jesus, we’ll spend time reading the Bible. You knew this suggestion was coming, right? God communicates His love, character, and plan to us in His Word. If you want to fall deeper in love with Jesus, it makes sense to spend time with people who share the same desire. We pick up on a lot of the same attitudes and inclinations of the people around us. Good company encourages better character. If Paul’s right that “bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33), then the inverse is true, too. And we catch it by spending time around people who radiate a sincere love for the Lord. When we feel our affection for Jesus waning, we need to remember that love is much easier caught than taught. Healthy Christian community is an encouraging and life-giving discipline. Why? So that “we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24-25). The author of Hebrews encourages his readers not to give up meeting together. Surround yourself with others who love Jesus We’ve put together 15 disciplines and practices that can help ensure that Jesus remains your first love. He stops being the focus of our ardor, and we never realize it’s happened. But over time other passions begin to take His place. If the issue was as simple as loving or not loving Jesus, that would be one thing. The danger isn’t that we simply fall out of love with Jesus. He congratulates them for their discernment with leaders and the way they’ve endured hardships, but then He says these words, “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first” (Revelation 2:4). In the second chapter of Revelation, Jesus addresses the church of Ephesus.
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