Hi Faith Travelers!
Happy Good Friday & Holy Week!
At this point, I think I can still say Happy New Year, given you haven’t heard from me since December 2024 :-)…
It has taken me quite some time to write this particular post since the beginning of January because, honestly speaking, I have not been exempt from trials in this season. In fact, many I know have also been going through their own set of trials, almost daily, since the start of the new year. But I will say this…God’s word never said we would have a life absent of trials, it did however say that He(God) would be with us through them (See Psalms 23:4).
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
Psalms 23:4
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Many think when they surrender their life to God and receive the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, that means life miraculously becomes problem free. (* Hits buzzer*… “Wrong!”) Well, your life does get better because you receive eternal life. However, satan, as the little “g” god of this world, will still attempt to attack (See John 10:10) believers to discourage, scare or slow them down from walking in the fullness of who God called them to be and what He has called them to do to advance the Kingdom of God. This is why it is said that this world we live in is a battlefield not a playground. We have to make a daily decision to stand for and on God’s word that gives us the instructions on how to fight back against the attacks of the enemy(satan).
Speaking of trials, let’s talk about 2025. I am sure this has been a peculiar year, so far, for most but God remains faithful through it all no matter what it looks like around us. As we stepped into this new season and era at the beginning of 2025, there is one word that the Lord God keeps reminding me that we all need to take heed to. That word is…ABIDE.
Abide means to remain, continue, obey or dwell. With that said, in 2025 and beyond, we need to remain in the Lord, keeping our connection to Him while continuing to trust and draw closer to the true and living God in every situation like never before. We need to walk in obedience, following the Lord’s instructions quickly and intentionally. And we need to dwell with the Lord just as His word says in Psalms 91:1.
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
Psalms 91:1
Why abide, you ask? Because apart from the Lord, we can do nothing. No matter how much you think you know, no matter the number of degrees you possess, how clever or talented you are or even how powerful you think you are on this earth. Apart from Jesus Christ, you can do nothing (See John 15:5). This is why it is important to stay connected and abide in the Lord. Parably speaking, if He is the vine and we are the branches and we are disconnected from Him, that means we are disconnected from the life source; the source of life filled with love, truth, purpose, faith, trust and abundance.
So how do we Abide?…
I am going to share 3 key ways to abide in the Lord…
- Learn God’s Ways & Character through Prayer and time in His Word
- Know that God loves you ( 1 John 4:12-16) and is waiting to hear from you, no matter the circumstance or baggage you are coming with in the moment
- He leaves the 99 to go after the 1 (If you are that one, He’s waiting for you with open arms- Matthew 18:10-14)
- Set intentional Daily Prayer time
- Prayer is just communication with God as if you are talking to a friend or a loving Father. (Matthew 6:5-15)
- This can be as long as you want or as short as time allows; as many times a day as you like
- Quote: “I don’t ever pray any longer than twenty minutes, but I never go twenty minutes without praying. ” -Smiths Wigglesworth
- Your prayer life is not measured in minutes. Prayer is a lifestyle.
- Understand and trust that the Lord hears your prayers wherever you are, even if you are in the car on the way to work (1 John 5:14-15)
- Read & Study God’s Word
- Pray for understanding and God given revelation before reading and studying the word of God so that your interpretation is true & sound
- If you are new to studying the word of God, start with the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John)
- Know that God loves you ( 1 John 4:12-16) and is waiting to hear from you, no matter the circumstance or baggage you are coming with in the moment
- Grow your relationship with the Lord (See Previous Blog on Intimacy [Closeness] with God )
- Spend time in God’s presence
- Uninterrupted time with the Father (God)
- This can include prayer, praise and worship or just quiet time listening to the Lord.
- Have 2-way communication with the Lord
- Listen twice as long as you pray
- Write down what you believe the Lord is saying so you can refer back to it to strengthen your trust in hearing God clearly
- Learn how God speaks to you
- Through His Word, through dreams, visions, inward knowing, a feeling(“Something told me…”)
- God is always speaking we just have to listen (John 14:26)
- Spend time in God’s presence
- Surrender to living your life for the Lord
- Love God and Love People (Matthew 22:37-39)
- The first and second greatest commandment
- Trust and Obey God (Proverbs 3:5-6)
- Trust God’s Word and be obedient in what the Lord is leading you to do (Jeremiah 29:11)
- Choose God’s way over your way (Isaiah 55:8-9)
- Turn away from evil and sin (Acts 3:19 ;1 John 1:9)
- Walk in the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)
- Have Faith (Hebrews 11:6)
- Faith is Heaven’s Currency
- Our faith moves the hand of God
- Love God and Love People (Matthew 22:37-39)
When we abide in the Lord, He abides in us; leading, guiding, protecting, and ordering our steps to and through the purpose and plan He has for our lives. When we submit to abiding in the Lord, it doesn’t matter what is going on in the world or how bad things get because we have the God who created the universe on our side. Rest in knowing that.
Until the next faith lesson…
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