The next dynamic of the spiritual life, which also falls under the heading of depending on the Lord, looks from the far horizon of the exalted Christ to the day-to-day details of our own unique callings. Here we determine the best course of action we need to take, in every area of our lives, if we are to gain the thing we most desire, a fuller and more fruitful life in the Lord.

We will have already begun to identify the kinds of things we must deny in order to make progress in this journey. Now we must prayerfully and thoughtfully determine which activities should fill our time, and which goals we must pursue in order to grow in the spiritual life. Moses prayed, “So teach us to number our days,/That we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90.12). This is what we also must do – determine the best course and the best practices to get us where we desire to be in the life of faith.

Here our dependence on the Lord overflows into the ways we demonstrate the spiritual life so as to reflect the Lord’s definition of what it means to follow Jesus.

The disciplines of life

In determining the best course for daily living the spiritual life we discipline the time and activities of our lives according to the priorities and in the power of our risen King. What disciplines does this involve?

First, of course, are the spiritual disciplines we need to practice in order to keep a proper focus and draw on the resources of Christ to sustain us in the life of faith. These include prayer, reading and meditating in Scripture, worship, fellowship with other believers, fasting and singing, and so forth. Each of us needs to determine a proper regimen of spiritual disciplines, one that will help to ensure that we make steady progress in the race God has set before us.

Second, we need to determine which should be the primary disciplines which will enable us to love our neighbor as ourselves. What do we need to do each day in order to get to know our neighbors, love and serve them, and make the most of every opportunity to share our faith in Christ with them? Unless we determine the specific actions and practices loving our neighbors will require, we’ll certainly never get around to fulfilling this most basic Christian duty.

Then there are disciplines related to the work God has given us to do. Whatever our work in the Lord’s Kingdom, it must be characterized by excellence, thoroughness, diligence, efficiency, and fruitfulness. Our work is not merely a “job.” The work we’ve been given to do is greater than the “job” at which we work, and all our work requires that we master the disciplines essential to glorifying God in this arena.

We must also master the disciplines of living together in the Body of Christ. Here it is above all crucial that each believer discover, develop, and deploy his or spiritual gifts for the edification of the entire community.

Last, we must master such provisional disciplines as will enable us to grow through temptations, trials, setbacks, failings, and the like. We need to learn how to recognize temptation, resist the devil, repent and be renewed in the Lord, and so forth. If we do not have these disciplines at the ready when the time comes we need them, we will struggle to make progress in the spiritual life.

Keep on growing

In all these disciplines we must determine ways that we need to grow in the Lord, improve our walk with Him, and make progress in bearing fruit for His glory. We can always improve our use of all the disciplines of the life of faith, and we must determine, day by day, that we will focus on Jesus and work to bring each area of our lives into line with Him.

The dynamic of determining the course God has set for us is extremely important, and we must monitor and improve it every day of our lives. We must know where we are heading, what the landmarks are that will indicate progress, and where we need to grow and change, if we are to seek the Lord’s help in running the particular race He has set down for each of us.

This again is a matter of prayer, of seeking the wisdom and counsel of others, and of trying new directions, seeking new objectives, and striving for new heights of growth and fruitfulness in the Lord.

The more determined we are in each of these areas, the stronger will be our dependence on the Lord Who has saved us.

Next steps

How many of the various disciplines mentioned in this article are you actually practicing as “unto the Lord”? Where do you need to improve? Ask a pastor or church leader to guide you in thinking about this.

Additional Resources

Download this week’s study, Dynamics of the Spirtual Life.

Sign up for ViewPoint Leaders Training and start your own ViewPoint discussion group.

The spiritual life begins and ends in the vision of Christ. T. M.’s book, Be Thou My Vision, provides a helpful series of meditations on the Lord in glory. It’s available by clicking here.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.