"What Are You Doing?"

"Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest." Joshua 1:7

A lady came to me for prayer the other day. Her request was to get closer to the Lord. As I started to pray the Holy Spirit impressed me to ask her a question. I asked her if she was reading her Bible and praying, and was she doing it everyday. Her answer was no that she wasn't and she began to weep.

Human nature wants everything to come to us easily without any effort on our parts. Even when it comes to spiritual things we want them imparted into our lives by some supernatural one time event. We want a spiritual "quick fix", we want the short cuts, we want God to just "zap" us and instantly, miraculously we'll have it.

It doesn't happen that way. There are things that we must do ourselves. For example, if you want to get closer to the Lord you have to spend time in His presence. If you want to be blessed financially you have to give. If you want to prosper then obey the commandments. If you are in need, seek first the kingdom of God. If you are in want, then fear the Lord and give Him the reverence and rightful place in your life that He deserves. When the disciples asked Jesus why they could not cast the devil out of the man's son, His reply was that they had unbelief, then He told them that it happens by prayer and fasting. He had already empowered them to cast out devils but He didn't just place His hand on them and "boom" there they had it. He told them to go do something themselves- fast and pray.

God's word is full of conditions. He tells us in verse after verse that "if we will", "then He will". You can stand in every prayer line, you can be anointed with so much oil that it drips off your head, you can have hands laid on you seven days a week. But if you aren't doing your part, then some things just aren't going to happen. Just because someone lays hands on you and "imparts" some "gift" doesn't mean that is the beginning and the end of it. You have to stir up the gift that is within you, you have to yield yourself to God, you have to seek Him, you have to grow in grace and knowledge. You have to do it, and you have to keep on doing it.

Have a great day. Stop trying to get a spiritual "quick fix" and start doing what you need to be doing.

For further reading:
Matthew 6:33
James 4:2
Deut. 11:13,14, 22,23
Matthew 21:21
Matthew 16:19
Matthew 5:3-9