The Art of Spiritual Well Being

It was the day of my dad’s open-heart surgery when I received a prophecy that would come true 12 years later.  The heart surgeon met with my brother and me and described the surgery.  He then said something that I will never forget.  “You boys are next.  There is nothing you can do to avoid it.  You can’t deny the genes you were given.”  He then went on to tell us this story.  “I have a great friend and colleague who is an avid cyclist.  After one of his rides, he wasn’t feeling well.  He demanded I give him a heart cath in light of his family history.  I thought he was crazy!  I did it, and he ended up with bypass surgery.”  

 

After hearing those words I walked away with a choice.  I could either live life however I wanted, enjoy Little Debbies and fried food seeing I was destined to die anyway or try to beat the odds.  I opted for the latter. Did it keep me from a heart attack, no, but it did save my life when my day came.  

 

Spiritually life is the same way.  Paul is much like my Dad’s surgeon when he said, “All that live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”  Does that mean we should just live it up any way we want knowing our doomsday is coming?  No, we should work on our spiritual well-being so when it comes we survive and do not get destroyed.  

 

It’s amazing when one goes through a health crisis how many “doctors” and “nutritionalist" are out there wanting to help and offer advice.  Obviously, they believe in their products and procedures, and some might even financially benefit from them!  I recently read a post about a friend whose wife was diagnosed with cancer. After he informed everyone on their decision about treatments he then said something like this: “Understand this is the direction we have decided to go, and any other ideas for us you might have please do not share them.”  

 

I don’t think people mean to come across in a negative way, and I honestly believe they want to help, but when the whole nation chips in with their thoughts and ideas it can be and is overwhelming.  

 

Bottom line is, I need to do what works best for me.  If McDonald's french fries is the only thing I can eat without causing me pain and agony bring on the basket of fries!  If it's blueberries and protein shakes so be it.  If it is an infusion every 8 weeks then I’ll open my schedule up for these appointments.  

 

I must do what works for me and what will give me life and health in the long haul.  

 

When it comes to our spiritual health we tend to do the same thing.  We have attributed God’s blessing to certain ways we have done things.  Due to the results, we tend to promote the method instead of the means.  

 

That is the reason why there are so many books on prayer.  There is no one way.  We can pray like Daniel and see results.  We can pray 2 Chronicles 7:14 every day at 7:14 and see results.  We can pray the prayer of Jabez…well…I’ll stop there.  God does not honor one prayer over another because of the time we pray it, or if we eat The Daniel’s diet or Domino’s pizza after we pray.   

 

The truth is, much like our physical health, what works for us is not the answer for all.  There is no right or wrong way to help yourself spiritually.  There is no secret book or program for you to buy that will bless you or your family in a special way.  There is no pastor or evangelist that can give you the secrets of spiritual success so you never struggle again.  It just does not exist.  

 

So my encouragement to you today is to pray.  Read.  Spend time with your Savior.  There is only one way to know Him (Phil. 3:10) and that is to spend time with Him!  

 

But as assistant pastors one thing I think we lack is an appreciation and realization of exactly how powerful prayer is and necessary for our current ministry.  

 

There are two reasons why prayer is so important at this stage of the game for our assistant pastors.  1) Prayer changes things.  2) Prayer changes you.  

 

As assistants, we tend to put our focus on others and ministry.  We are in a hero mode many times wanting to solve problems, pick up pieces that are left behind, and do all we can to shine.  We are quick to brag on how many hours we work a week, but I have yet to have an assistant brag to me about the number of hours he prays. Do you think God is looking at how you punch the time clock or stop the clock in the prayer closet?

 

It is not until we realize what we can accomplish for God and ourselves by prayer, that we will find breakthroughs in our lives and ministries.  

 

Alright Treg, if there is no secret recipe or divine design, what do I need to do to pray?  First, allow me to give you some practical advice.

 

1.  Find a place to pray.

 

2.  Find a particular time to pray.

 

3.  Have a plan to pray.  

 

Set up a plan!  Here is a sample to get you started.

 

Monday-Missions

Tuesday-Terrific people in my life (friends)

Wednesday-Witness (Pastors local and global)

Thursday-Taken request from Wednesday

Friday- Family (extended, immediate is every day by name).

Saturday-Summit Ridge (my neighborhood)

Sunday-Sermon, the Spirit, and strength to preach the Scripture.