On Being Prodded

It's been awhile since my last post. Between orientation weekend for my East Asia mission trip (woohoo!), a mission trip to New Orleans, going to Secret Church at Brook Hills (7 hours with David Platt teaching--it was phenomenal), and Easter, I've been spread a little thin. But I'm back now, trying to get back into blogging. I got my computer fixed, I'm back into a somewhat normal schedule, and I'm ready to rejoin the blogging world.

It's kind of weird getting back into something from which you've taken a break. For instance, a friend of mine and I started working out just over a month ago. Because of spring break and all that, we weren't able to work out during last week. Today, we're going to start back up, and I'll be honest---I'm dreading it. I guess it's laziness. I just cannot get myself psyched back up to work out today.

That's why I have a work out partner. If I had tried to work out on my own for the past month, I probably wouldn't have made it a week before stopping. Thankfully, though, Robby has helped push me. It's nice having a work out buddy. Not only do we keep each other accountable for showing up to work out, we push each other in the gym. It's very beneficial.

How many times do we try to work out on our own spiritually and fail? How many times do we attempt to start reading our Bible more, or begin a journal, or schedule a regular quiet time only to stop doing it after about a week?

There are a variety of reasons why we cannot fulfill our spiritual commitments, primarily stemming from laziness, apathy, selfishness, and lack of discipline. However, I've found that one of the best ways to persevere in spiritual disciplines is with the help of a spiritual partner. We all need accountability and encouragement. We were never meant to walk this spiritual journey on our own.

We each have our own responsibilities and relationships with the Lord. Sometimes, though, we just need a little prodding to keep us moving in the right direction.

Encourage your brothers and sisters in Christ to faithfully continue their spiritual journey, and be willing to be prodded when they call you out on something, too.

Keeping up an effective spiritual discipline "work out" isn't always easy or comfortable, but it is necessary, and we need to do whatever it takes to maintain it, even if that requires a kick in the pants every now and then.