IT BEGINS WITH YOU ~ PASTOR CHRIS OYAKHILOME.
Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend (Proverbs 27:17).
The Message translation of the theme verse says, “You use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17). Perhaps you’re concerned that your close friends, or others in your church, fellowship, cell or care-group aren’t as passionate about spiritual growth and God’s Word as they should be. You could even be the leader of such a group. The first place to begin is to check yourself, because hunger begets hunger. As the leader of the group, how rapacious is your appetite for the Word? How passionate are you about spiritual things?
Passion is palpable and infectious. What you’re hungry or passionate about, soon enough, will rub off on those around you. Haven’t you noticed that oftentimes, when people yawn, those around them may start yawning as well? Or once someone says, “I’m hungry”; others who are present and may also not have eaten, immediately become conscious of hunger.
If you have a ravenous appetite for God’s Word, those around you would cultivate the same hunger soon enough. Therefore, be the first to be on fire. Be the example of what you want to see in those you lead. Lead by example. For example, don’t just encourage them to pray; be a praying person yourself.
But if a pastor isn’t prayerful, and he’s calling for prayer meetings, he may be wasting his time, because those gatherings would be void of the Spirit. Copy Jesus, His devotion to the Scriptures, and to prayer. At a tender age, the Bible says He was in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening, and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and His answers (Luke 2:41-47).
The Bible also tells us, “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed” (Mark 1:35). In another instance, “…he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God” (Luke 6:12). So, it’s got to begin with you. Spiritual or numerical growth isn’t a mystery, a miracle or an accident. It’s the application of revealed principles and means.
CONFESSION
Dear Father, I’m excited to always follow Christ’s pattern, model and example in all that I do. I imitate His disposition to the Word and prayer. I act and talk like Jesus, for as He is, so am I in this world. I express the character of Christ. Hallelujah!
FURTHER STUDY
1 Peter 2:21-23; Ephesians 5:1; 1 Timothy 4:15 AMPC
1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:
2 Corinthians 10:1-18 & Proverbs 27-28
2 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Luke 22:14-23 & 1 Samuel 29
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