Walk with the Lord. Pray. Read. Praise. Fellowship. Repeat.
Pray.
Pray silently or aloud. It doesn’t matter how you pray as long as you talk to God from your heart. The Lord wants a relationship with you. In prayer you can ask for His help. He loves you! At first you may feel untrusting, but the more you call out to Him, the more you will see He will always do what is best for you. Often answers to our prayers are not executed in the way or timing we might think they should be. We may even think we are doing it wrong, but we are not. His methods work together for good. Keep in continual conversation with Jesus during your day. You can be yourself with Him. He has known you all your life. He wants you to worry about nothing and pray about everything. He can handle it. He knows what you’re thinking anyway, but He wants to be invited in to help.
The Bible.
One of the most important things you can do is read the Bible daily. We suggest the NIV or ESV version to understand easily. Start with The New Testament and read through to Revelation. Reread it over and over, until you are proficient in it. Then tackle the Old Testament. Begin each morning before your feet hit the floor with thirty minutes of Bible reading. There is no specific amount of time one should read the Bible and yet, we often hear of people struggling until they make this a practice. Those in our group who don’t read the word each morning, often report depression, fear and anxiety as reading is spending time with God that brings faith and takes the place of all New Age practices. The Bible is restorative, washing, healing and brings peace and revelation (all noted in scripture). The Bible can be used, as Jesus used it, to ward off evil. Thus, the seen and unseen world will often prevent you from reading the word of God. If you can only read short bits at a time, begin with psalms. This isn’t legalism, it’s making the Lord a priority. Some wish to listen to the Bible instead of reading the word of God. We have found that those listening do not get the same results, as they get distracted or listen to the enunciation of the reader rather than having an intimate experience with the Lord.
Praise & worship.
When people use the word gratitude, who are they being grateful to? Worship is gratitude to our Creator. In the beginning the word worship can feel over the top. When God’s love becomes clear, it just feels great to thank Him. I know many of us have felt thankful that God spared our lives. So it made sense that worship meant thanksgiving. Share with Him whatever you can be thankful for and you will see it affect your situation. Sometimes one’s mood is so low that simple things like life, sight and smell are all the thanks we can muster. Sharing what you’re thankful to Him for thwarts the plans of darkness. Singing praises to Jesus alone and in assembly will lift you up while making demons flee by the power of His name.
Christian support.
Join a Bible believing church. Once you have named Jesus your Savior, you can pray to Him to help you find those that are supportive and on a similar path. Many with the Holy Spirit within will care about you with the love of Christ. No church or person is perfect and there is evil everywhere. Do not let that discourage you. In the Bible you will find that God wants you in a community or assembly, so that no sheep is left behind and that all have biblical support. A Christian Bible study and prayer group are wonderful ways to get close to God. Please beware of churches that distort The New Testament.
“For we walk by faith, not by sight.”
- 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV