The Key To Desire God’s Word And Prayer

Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

Psalm 1:1–2 ESV

Have you ever spent seasons where getting into the Bible felt more like drudgery than delight?

Where you felt guilty, because you knew you should be studying God’s word every day, but you simply never felt like doing it?

If so, you’re not alone. Hundreds of our readers recently participated in a survey for us (thank you!). And about 16 percent said that their biggest struggle in their devotional life was a lack of desire to “read the Bible and pray.”

This certainly isn’t something to feel guilty about. Instead, it’s a reality a lot of us face. But what if it could be different?

Imagine this…

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God Makes Leaders

On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him just as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.
(Joshua 4:14

The entire nation of Israel lined the banks of the Jordan River. It was time to cross into the Promised Land. However, the river was flowing high, as it flooded during harvest season (Joshua 3:15). So with the river engorged and moving swiftly, Joshua barked orders for the priests to carry the ark of the covenant about half-a-mile in front of the people. God’s presence dwelt there and would lead them. And He promised that when the soles of the priests’ feet dipped into the river, the water would immediately stop flowing.

The scene that followed was incredible—and should sound incredibly familiar.

The priests went ahead as planned, and upstream, the waters began to roll back on themselves. A waterfall cascaded in reverse, defying gravity and hurdling toward the clouds. A tower of water rose ever higher as an entire nation walked across a bone-dry riverbed.

Today’s text comes just after

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The Practice Of Self-Discipline

But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

1 Corinthians 9:27 ESV

The experts say it takes twenty one days to form a habit.

After reading this, you may think, “Just 21 days of waking up early to read my Bible and then it will be easy!” Many others have thought that way too, but it doesn’t work like that.

Spiritual self-discipline isn’t a pursuit that we simply force into habit; for if that were the case, there would be little need for the Holy Spirit in our lives. Remember Galatians 5 then, self-control is a fruit of the Spirit.

We wouldn’t have it without the Spirit as it His gifting and work in us. This realization begs the question then: How do we become more self-disciplined in our spiritual lives?

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