2) Pray Scripture. When I pray back the Word of God I am praying the will of God. Prayer is primarily not for me to submit my requests to God but to refocus my mind, heart and soul in alignment with His desires.
3) Pray BIG prayers! Pray bold, Kingdom changing prayers! Prayers that will help others and advance the Kingdom of God here on earth.
4) Remember, knowing Christ is not merely recognizing His name, it is an ongoing quest to fully embrace all of His character. To obey Him fully, to trust Him completely, and to love Him beyond measure. He is worthy of all my devotion, all of my attention, all of my talents, all of my resources, all of my passion, and all of my life. Let today be the day that I devote and surrender more of myself to God and own less of myself in the process.
5) God is not found just in the powerful, emotional, mountain-top moments of my life. In fact, God is primarily found in the mundane tasks, the day-to-day choices that either advance my heart closer to His or retreat further into my own kingdom. God is found in the silence, in the dusty, dirty tasks of life. He desires our long-term commitment, not our short-term allegiance. Jesus went out of His way to discourage people from following Him, always reminding them that the road would be tough and full of persecution. Only prayer and God's grace will sustain on this planet that is ruled by the Prince of the Air. Obedience is greater than sacrifice, and commitment is more valuable than emotion. God desires the complete devotion of my heart and He isn't satisfied with just my emotional responses. His desire is for complete control of my life, in the exciting and the dull.
6) Today look for ways to be kind and grateful. Try to really look into the eyes of the people I encounter today, to look for ways to help them in their pain and rejoice with them in their joys. Slow down. Less reliance on technology and more attention to personal encounters with the eternal souls that God created to love Him. Think beyond today. Try to worry less about tomorrow, and discard everything but the lessons of the past.
7) Guard my heart. It is so easy to get lost in the glamour of this world. We are bombarded with all of the pleasures of this life, delivered to our doorstep by devices we hold in our hands. Help me to filter what I hear, watch, and say through the desires of Jesus Christ, who lives in me and will guide me throughout my day. Help me to be aware of the present but also to remain linked to the eternal. If I err in my balance let it be on the side of the life I will live forever. This is truly a blink in the span of time and my life is but a mist and then it is gone. Let it be lived for His glory.
