The Sin Of Unbelief

Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters.  Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God.  You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God.

—Hebrews 3:12-13 (NLT)

Heavenly Father,

At the center of all that You have called on me to do is Your call to me to believe You.

Help me to understand that my unbelief is a great sin—which is revealed in me both by what I do and what I fail to do, every day that I live.

Help me to remember that unbelief—failing to believe You—is the foundation upon which all the evil in my heart stands—and that the enemy always seeks to destroy me by deceiving me into distrusting You.

Help me to see that, if I persist in continuing in this sin of unbelief, my heart will become hardened and I will turn away from You—the true and living God.

Help me to warn myself, as I warn others, not to be deceived into foolishly accepting that faith failures are somehow less than the great sins that they really are in our lives.

Give me the wisdom to repent quickly of my unbelief and ask for Your forgiveness, mercy, grace and strength—as I take another direction, running hard, pressing forward to get it right, seeking to truly believe You are who You claim to be and You can do what You claim You can do.

Grant me the wisdom to continue to seek out the fellowship of other believers and spend time talking about our mutual faith, remembering Your faithfulness to us—so that our faith may be strengthened and our tendency to sin through unbelief might be diminished.

At the center of all that You have called on me to do is Your call to me to believe You.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Examining My Way

For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ.  They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.

—Philippians 3:18-19 (NLT)

Heavenly Father,

Throughout every day, in every moment, may I examine the way I conduct myself in life here on earth—that I might not be found to be an enemy of the cross of Christ.

I don’t want to be that guy who having been given the opportunity to embrace everything that the cross of Christ has purchased for him, foolishly and thoughtlessly turns down a path that brings sure destruction to his joy, his peace, his purpose and even his very life.

I don’t want to be that guy who allows his appetite for the deceitful pleasures of this world to rule over him—who makes the desires of his flesh an idol, serving his own will, seeking to satisfy his lust for more by chasing after his own plans and only submitting himself to his own desires, making them the object of his worship.

I don’t want to be that guy who, being so deceived, brags about his sin, as if it were not sin at all—or the one who admits there is sin in his life, but makes light of the sin, as if it were not a stench in the nostrils of a Holy God.

I don’t want to be that guy whose thoughts are consumed with the pursuit of the ultimately empty and unsatisfying things of this life—who misses the fullness of life that was purchased for him and freely offered to him that he might simply receive it.

I want to be that guy who carefully considers his way, chooses to submit his will to Yours, resists temptation and flees from sin, and seeks with his whole heart a life hidden in Christ.

Throughout every day, in every moment, may I examine the way I conduct myself in life here on earth—that I might not be found to be an enemy of the cross of Christ.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

More Abundant Life

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

—John 10:10 (NKJV)

 “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!”

—Deuteronomy 30:19 (NLT)

Heavenly Father,

Grant me the wisdom and discernment that I need this day to make right choices—choices that will lead me back to that abundantly rich and fully satisfying life with You, which You always intended for me to have from the beginning.

Help me not to buy into the hidden lies of the enemy whose only purpose is to keep me from having that which is rightfully mine—to keep me from returning to the fullness of life that was bought back for me through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, my Savior.

Give me the strength of mind to boldly expose the lies that the enemy would speak into my head in an attempt to steal truth from me, kill my hope, and destroy my calling. 

And help me just as boldly to replace his lies with Your Truth—by trusting in and speaking out the Word which You have placed within my recreated heart by Your Spirit.

Help me to understand that the choice between “life and death, between blessings and curses” is mine to make—that Your encouragement is that I would “choose life,” so that I and my descendants might truly live in the all the fullness that a life lived in Christ can bring, though the choice remains mine.

Thank You that I don’t have to live in an empty and unsatisfying “less-than” life—because I can choose to truly live an abundant life overflowing with joy, peace, purpose, meaning, and love.

Grant me the wisdom and discernment that I need this day to make right choices—choices that will lead me back to that abundantly rich and fully satisfying life with You, which You always intended for me to have from the beginning.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.