EXPRESSIONS OF FAITH
Acquiring spiritual discipline
By Russell Stephen Pang
Why do we Christians struggle in our daily walk? Why is there minimal desire to pray, to read the Bible, or to praise God? Yet we notice some believers practice these spiritual disciplines daily, so why don't we?
Our mind even questions if we truly believe. As doubt and guilt probe our conscience, our will resolves to do better, to do more. We reason better time management and more effort must surely be the solution.
After spending more time and effort on the spiritual disciplines, we find little joy. It all seems so perfunctory, almost legalistic.
What is wrong? Aren't we trying our best? Could we be doing something better? How can we get off this treadmill of frustration?
As we cry out to God, the Holy Spirit returns us to Calvary. He shows us the cross of Jesus and his blood. He explains that our Lord's triumph on Calvary not only took care of the penalty of sin but also the power of sin.
The Holy Spirit further shares that we must identify continually with Jesus, as the apostle Paul did when he wrote, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me. And the life I live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me."
So we confess that we have not been living the cross lifestyle, that we have been trying to do things our own way, in ways convenient for us. In short, we confess our sin and ask forgiveness. We express our desire to repent and to always be in Jesus' presence.
As we accept God's grace and our position in Jesus, the Holy Spirit gives us the desire to communicate with God through prayer, meditation, and bible study. We also have this strong desire to praise and worship God as it is being done in heaven.
What has happened is that the Holy Spirit has recalibra-ted our motivation of why we do what we do. By focusing solely on Jesus and our relationship with him, we now do spiritual disciplines because we want to, not because we have to.
Russell Stephen Pang, a former deacon, is a member of First Presbyterian Church.
Expressions of Faith is a column written individually by pastors, lay workers and other leaders of faith. If you want to contribute, e-mail faith@honoluluadvertiser.com or call 525-8036. Articles submitted to The Advertiser may be published or distributed in print, electronic or other forms.
