Hearing God's Voice FirstSample

People start each new year with the best of intentions. Whether they’re setting out to get in shape or to learn a new language, they have high hopes. But by February disappointment and defeat have set in. They give up.

The same is true with our goals for Bible reading. We pick out a plan and then...around three weeks in...oops...missed a few days. And we decide to maybe give it another shot next year.

I think this is about more than just failed New Year’s resolutions. I think we’ve set unreal expectations for God’s Word.

My generation straddled the way the world used to be and the way the world is now. By that I mean, we’re the generation that remembers life before the internet and has experienced life after. We know about global communication, and we know what it was like not to have that.

One of the things this has bred into the internet generation is an expectation of instant gratification. Everything happens now. I can have anything I want right now.

Whether you’re aware of it or not, all of us are susceptible to that mindset. We get used to the immediacy of our world and get frustrated when we don’t get things quickly.

I have to wonder how much of that has crept into our spiritual lives. Especially when it comes to how much are we willing to invest in our spiritual development. We want to see instant results. And we’re ready to give up if we don’t.

Endurance isn’t easy to develop. It isn’t something we can accomplish quickly. It takes effort and time. Endurance in our spiritual lives means making a long-term commitment. It means taking the time, day after day, to make the Word of God a fundamental part of our life.

PRAYER: Lord, give me the strength to persevere, spending time in your Word consistently and allowing it to change my heart and life. Fill me with the stamina I need to run the race You have marked out for me.