There are three main steps to growing in your faith and impacting your world for Christ.
1. God’s Word will help you grow in your faith.
The Bible is a living document that will influence and speak to everything in your life. I just finished my 40th time reading through the Bible from cover to cover. I read through it every year and have different patterns of reading over time.
For example, you might use a 3/2 system (3 Old Testament chapters and 2 New Testament chapters per day), read chronologically, or straight through Genesis to Revelation, etc.
When reading the Scriptures, you can use a yellow marking pencil that does not bleed through the page. Keep a pen next to you to make any notes in the columns next to verses that interest or speak to you.
If you mark it as a “one-star” verse, tell one person about it that day. If you put two stars, then tell two people about it that day. I even have an 11-star verse: Acts 20:24!!! Underline verses that challenge you and put question marks beside the verses that confuse you. Call a friend who would know how to help you grow in your faith when you get enough question marks.
Treat your Bible like it is a love letter from God.
I would not disregard a love letter from my wife, so how much more regard should I have for a love letter from God? One way to connect with Scripture and help you remember is to use all five senses as you read: actually see, smell, touch, hear, and taste the Bible stories. In other words, imagine you are there where things are happening. There are also ways to listen to Scripture when you are driving.
Here are a few verses that show the power of the Word of God to help us grow in our faith and impact the world for Jesus.
- Hebrews 4:12 says the Word of God is living and active, sharper than a two-edged sword. (great weapon!).
- In Matthew 4:1-11, Jesus had just finished fasting for 40 days and the devil came to tempt Him. The three temptations were very serious. Jesus quoted three Bible verses to counterattack the temptations.
- Psalm 119:9-11 says that the Word of God helps us keep our way pure. If we hide the Word of God in our hearts, then we will not sin against God.
- Psalm 19:7-10 sums up saying that the Word of God makes wise the simple.
- Psalm 119:105 says the Word of God lights our path. A daily time in the Word of God will help you grow in your faith and impact your world for Christ.
2. Praising and worshipping God will help you grow in your faith.
Find a few rocks and put them in strategic places you will see each day. Every time you see a rock, pick it up and listen to it. Then remember the verse Luke 19:40, where Jesus says that if the people will not praise Him then the rocks and the trees will. As the song says, “There ain’t no rock gonna cry in my place!”
A simple index card reminder also helps. Write “7 X” on index cards and set them around in different places. Every time you see the 7 X, pause and remember Psalm 119:164 which says: “Seven times a day, oh Lord, I praise You for Your wonderful Law.”
Saturate your day with worship music. It is easier to repent of sins when we are worshipping the Lord. Get your praise on, and it will help you grow in your faith and impact your world for Christ.
3. A healthy prayer life will help you grow in your faith.
The first target in warfare is usually the communication towers. If you knock out the communication between headquarters and the front line, then there will be great confusion. It makes sense that the enemy would want to knock out our prayer life.
There are many types of prayer in Scripture. The first is your “prayer closet.” One method is to pray through concentric circles. The biggest circle is praise of God. Pray through all His names. The next smaller circle is praying for missions and missionaries that you know throughout the world. Next, pray for our nation and the ministries throughout. After this, pray for your state, then friends, family, and lastly yourself.
You can also use reminders to help you with 1 Thessalonians 5:17 prayer as you grow in your faith, praying without ceasing. Praying without ceasing does not mean to pray continually without stopping, but rather to pray in spurts as if you have a chronic cough. You can use tangible items as reminders of prayer.
- Prayer Cup – Write someone’s name on a cup and when you drink out of that cup, pray for that person.
- Prayer Hat – Every time you put on certain hats, pray for people whose names you have written on the inside.
- WBIP – Watch beeps, then pray.
- BRIP – Bell rings, then pray.
- Siren – Every time you hear a siren, pray for the person in the accident.
- Prayer shoes – When you put on certain shoes, then pray for the person you attach to or whose name you write in those shoes.
- Business cards in Bible – Put several business cards in your Bible and every time one falls out, pray for that person.
- Fuzzy dice – Hang something from your rearview mirror (like fuzzy dice) and every time you see it, pray for the person it reminds you of.
- Toothbrush – Every time you brush your teeth, pray for a specific person or group. There are so many ways you can remind yourself to be praying continually throughout your day!
His Word, praise, and prayer are three powerful weapons that God has made available to us.
If you grow in relationship with the living and active Word of God, make praise and worship a routine part of your life and commit yourself to prayer, you will grow in your faith and impact our world for Christ.
