3 Factors Essential For A Fruitful Everyday Christian Life (2)

DAILY VITAMIN
- 3 Factors Essential For A Fruitful Everyday Christian Life (2)
"Run from anything that gives you the evil thoughts that young men often have, but stay close to anything that makes you want to do right. Have faith and love, and enjoy the companionship of those who love the Lord and have pure hearts." (2 Timothy 2:22 TLB)
     Last time, we considered the first important factor for being fruitful every day of our lives as Christians, now we'll look at the last two:
2. Keep a Clean Mind Always: The scripture says to the defiled all things are defiled, but to the pure all things are pure (Titus 1:15). Our experiences are a product of our mentality. You can't have a rich Christian life with a poor mentality. They are beyond related. Little wonder why Jesus said that a good man out of the good treasures of the heart brings forth good things (Matthew 12:35). That is, like they say, you can't give what you don't have. In practical terms, for example, you will never live free of the critical spirit until your mind has been transformed. We criticize, condemn, and curse first because our thought regarding the subject is vile, and not clearly because the subject in question is vile. And so Paul showed us a way out. Romans 12:2 says "Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you]." (AMP). As much as we have the Holy Spirit to help us, it still requires a conscious effort. The foregoing scripture tells us so. It speaks of submitting ourselves not to the regular patterns of human character, but to the standard of God's Word. In other words, He's telling us that if for instance someone betrays us, the first thing we would humanly consider doing is getting bitter and seeking revenge, but He wants us to do the exact opposite. And do you know why? Because what defiles a man aren't the things he encounters or the things that are done against him, but the reactions that spring out of him (Mark 7:15). A clean mind is equivalent to clean actions and reactions - in thoughts and in deeds; and this in return is an assurance that we'd always be pleasing the Lord. And so He urges us to be renewed in our mind also now that our spirits have been regenerated in Christ (see Ephesians 4:22-24).
3. Stay Firm In Faith: In life, there will always be a lot of reasons to quit believing God, but unless you've got your feet on a solid foundation, you might be blown away. And how do we get on this solid foundation that keeps us immovable? By fueling our faith in God every day through the Word. 1 Corinthians 15:55 says "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable ,always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord". Don't focus on the things that presently aren't in line with what you expected to happen, rather focus on the reliability of the God who spoke them to you. Remember, any tree that can't withstand the winter won't be bearing fruit in spring. And your faith is how you withstand (Ephesians 6:16). These fiery darts may come in form of challenges, circumstantial mishappenings, or even pandemics as the entire world is currently experiencing; however you must stay strong in faith. It is how we overcome the many shenanigans occurring in the world (1 John 5:4). This is paramount because your faith determines your attitude; your words; and your responses. People need to find hope by the way you act and react; it's why God calls you a light - you are sent to create a way of escape from all the darkness (Matthew 5:14-16). Hence, you must brace yourself for this responsibility and opportunity to exercise your association with the God-kind. This call is to every Christian out there; it is just not enough to preach the need to have faith, you must have faith- because that's the only way to truly live.
     Conclusively, if we do this every day, I'm pretty confident we'd be growing in the nature and application of our Christ likeness. These are the things Jesus did; and if we will only keep doing what He did, then we'd eventually end up living how He lived. Remember, we are simply living the life of Christ on the earth. So, don't just have these fruits in you, now that you know what you should be doing, display them for the world to see and benefit from. It is what Christ practiced, and it's what He wants you practicing every day of your life.

Confession:
I have been appointed and ordained by God to bear fruits. I have been strengthened to stay strong in my devotion to Him in spirit, body and soul. I have the Spirit of Christ in me to fulfill it, and in the Name of Jesus I shall fulfill it. Amen