20 ESSENTIALS FOR A THOROUGHLY CHRISTIAN LIFE

June 17, 2023

 

I was challenged by a friend who listed a few of the basics of life ... the things you must do if you do nothing else. Here are my top 20 after 65 years of knowing Christ.

1. PASSION: Do whatever necessary to keep your love for Christ personal and vibrant.

2. WORD: Read the word to experience Christ, and record what you're seeing and hearing from Him EVERY SINGLE DAY.

3. PRAYER: Pray without ceasing, all the time about everything. Learn how to pray. Ask Jesus to teach you and walk with men who talk to God. Don't stop until you know how to enter into His presence and really commune with Him.

4. FAMILY: Love and disciple your family (your first church). Have as many children as you can (seriously) and disciple them well. They are your legacy.

5. CHURCH: Love the church for whom Christ died. Seek its health and purity and growth.

6. CLEAR CONSCIENCE: Maintain a clear conscience always between God and man. Keep the roof off and the walls down. Confess your sins quickly and keep short accounts.

7. FORGIVENESS: Always forgive, regardless of who's responsible for the hurt.

8. GOSPEL SHARING: Share Christ, boldly, with everyone possible. You never know whose heart is ready or if your witness may help cultivate the ground of their heart ... and their eternity is at stake.

9. OBEDIENCE: Obey Christ instantly. There's never any value in delayed obedience.

10. HOLY SPIRIT: Always seek to be filled/controlled by the Holy Spirit who lives within you. Apart from Christ, you can do nothing.

11. FAITH: Realize that every experience and moment of your life is about faith ... you are either depending on Christ or trying to do it by yourself. The last plan NEVER works. And only faith glorifies God.

12. GOD-INITIATION: Do everything by God-initiation. Simply follow the illumination of His Word and the promptings of His Spirit.

13. HUMILITY: Stay humble. Learn the art of self-forgetfulness. Pride is the foundation of every sin. (This battle will likely continue all the way to the end.)

14. WORRY: Resist worry by resting on the promises of God's Word and casting your burdens on Him in prayer.

15. SPIRITUAL WARFARE: Remember, you have a constant enemy. Learn his schemes and cut him off through spiritual warfare praying.

16. MULTIPLICATION: Learn the power of multiplication. Don't just make disciples—make disciple-makers. Don't just plant churches—plant church-planting churches. This will explode the kingdom exponentially.

17. KINGDOM: Be kingdom minded. Don't be so high-minded about your little work or the minute particulars of what you believe about peripheral issues, but live for the greater work of God's kingdom, helping and celebrating all those doing the same. There are a lot of people doing great things in God’s kingdom. Thankfully they’re all not like you. God loves this variety.

18. MAN-FEARING: Fear no man. Love them, learn from them, but never let men determine your direction. Remember that you have an audience of ONE. Men’s opinions mean little at the end of the day … only God’s.

19. FRIENDSHIPS: Pay the price to develop deep friendships. History is transformed among friends. And your friendships will carry your life in your later days. And you must BE a good friend to have good friends.

20. HEAVEN! Keep your eyes on heaven ... all the time. Not just for the future, but right now through prayer. It is where reality is. It is where the Father is, and our life becomes centered and peace restored. It's where we're headed in just a moment. It's where we can truly live because of Christ. It's what this life is all about.

 

---

---

Also in Graceful Truth