It’s hard to believe that ½ of the year is now gone. Rather than worry about days past, though, let’s focus on preparing for the rest of the year. Use this list as a spiritual checkup to evaluate your walk, and then let us know how we might pray for you.
- Are you reading the Bible daily? If you adopted an annual reading plan at the beginning of the year, is your reading up to date? If not, take time this week to caught up. You might choose, if necessary, to adjust your plan – but still read daily. If you did not adopt a plan in January, pick a strategy for rest of the year.
- Are you praying daily? Are you praying regularly and recurrently (1 Thess. 5:17)? Do you pray for those in authority, including government and church leaders (1 Tim. 2:2)? Are you praying by name for other believers to speak the gospel boldly and clearly (Eph. 6:18-20, Col. 4:2-4)? Do you pray for your enemies (Matt. 5:44)?
- How often have you shared the gospel this year? Is the gospel so striking to you that you cannot keep it to yourself? Have you reached beyond the church world to develop gospel-centered relationships with unbelievers? For what non-believers are you praying as Paul did (Rom. 10:1)? Ask God to increase your burden for lost people (Rom. 9:1-3) throughout the remainder of this year.
- Are you faithfully fighting sin in your life? Be honest – have you experienced victory over sin this year? Is there a sin that continually haunts you even though you’ve sought to overcome it? If so, what steps do you still need to take this year? Confess that sin to someone? Seek accountability? Simply repent?
- What scriptures have you memorized this year? Do you echo the desire of the psalmist: “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to You” (Psalm 19:14)? Based on your memorization of God’s Word this year, would I conclude that you treasure God’s Word in your heart (Psalm 119:9-11)?
- Are you serving faithfully in a local church? The church is much more than a place to attend; it is a family that loves us and provokes us to good works (Heb. 10:24). Through the first half of 2014, have you used your spiritual gifts as a member of a local body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:1-11, 1 Pet. 4:10)? Are you supporting His work financially? Commit today to invest yourself in God’s church throughout the rest of the year.
- Are you exhibiting the work of the flesh or the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:19-23)? Here, allow the Word to guide your self-evaluation: “Now the works of the flesh are obvious:sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy,drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. . . . But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,gentleness, self-control.” Which traits most characterize your life today?
- Who is walking more with God because of your influence this year? That is, are you making disciples? Have you purposefully pointed away from self to direct others to follow the Son of God (John 1:29)? Or, to ask the question in the negative, is there anyone who walks less with God today because of your example and influence this year?
- What steps have you taken to spread the gospel to the nations? The Great Commission is a global calling (Matt. 28:18-20), even for those not called to go to the nations full-time. Have you intentionally studied about God’s work around the world this year? Are you praying for missionaries by name? Are you fully open to taking a mission trip this year or next?
- How would your family assess you as a family member and a believer this year? Those who live with us are most equipped to evaluate our spiritual walk. If I were to ask your family about your walk with God, what would they say? Would they say your life – all of it, including behind the scenes – models Christ? If not, decide today what steps you will take the next six months.
Regardless of what you learn in this evaluation, God is a God of new beginnings (2 Cor. 5:17) – which means you may recommit yourself to Him today. How might we pray for you as He grants you a start to the second part of this year?
I am retiring and ending 20 years of service in behavioral health with the state of SC. I will be going back into the pastorate full time at Calvary Baptist Church in Clinton, SC. Pray that God will use me and Calvary to reach our lost community and city.
Thanks for all you do for the Kingdom of God!
Just prayed for you, Leland. Blessings on your new work.
#10: Fully open to taking a mission trip this year.
Mission work is a long-term committment. There is a reason why it took the missionaries to Africa and Asia, of the eighteenth and nineteenth century a minimum of ten years to make their first convert. Those reasons haven’t changed.
Visit the missionaries you financially support. But don’t delude yourself into thinking you will do anything that is benificial in either the short term, or the long term.
Building _new_ _physical_ infrastructure might be worthwhile, for the long term.
Painting a building is simple diverting critical resources from a more important project that you, as an outsider, is completely unable to do.
Good thoughts, Jonathon. Thank you.
#6. I was faithful in this area for just under 20 years, but after my Grandpa died in July 2012…I brought my Gram (who has had Alzheimer’s since 2004) to my home in Illinois to care for her. Gram has had multiple setbacks and is bedridden and on inhome Hospice care. I work fulltime, and my schedule at church became very hard to keep up with, so I had to pull back. I haven’t been able to attend church because I, along with my Mom…care for Gram. Gram recently had a severe stroke, and lost her speech, and the right side of her body. I MISS my church, but I can’t be there these days because I am caring for my 87 year old Gram.
Thanks, Pamela. I hope you’re connected enough with a congregation that you can receive ministry from them even though you cannot always gather with them for worship.
My walk with The Lord according to the questions…flat out sucks…gee maybe I shouldn’t even call myself a Christian since it mean little Christ or some say Christ like
I don’t think that this list evaluates whether you should or shouldn’t call yourself a Christian. Look at it this way. If there are things on this list that you can improve on, then try to take the opportunity to improve on them. You don’t even have to do all at the same time. You can pick one and work on that for a while. We are all on a spiritual journey. Personally, I can improve on all of the above and a few I am not even doing at all. Don’t try to be perfect…just do what you can. We are all a work in progress. Be blessed and hold you head up. God love you and will use you at whatever stage you are in. 🙂
Im doing pretty bad with those questions. Good thing its Jesus righteousness and not mine which saves!
I think the above questions are really helpful in seeing what steps I can take to better position myself to grow in my love for God and to be used by God in loving others. Thank you for that.
But I can’t help but look at this list of questions and think that it seems a bit too focused on outward actions. This isn’t an attack on the (helpful) questions above, but it would be refreshing to also hear questions – if what I’m doing is checking up on the state of my soul – like, “are you coming to better understand who God is?” or “are you finding genuine rest in the love, mercy and patience of God?” or “are you coming to enjoy and desire God more?”
I’ve noticed the tendency in myself to focus too much on my performance, on what I’m doing, rather than on enjoying God and delighting in His character. Without wanting to project that here, it seems like these questions could potentially reflect or point to a similar human-centered focus. Regardless, thanks for giving me food for thought, prayer and action.