Consistency
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. John 15:4
Insight
I was talking to a friend of mine early in January, and we discussed New Year's resolutions. She asked me what my word was for the year, and I explained that I had chosen “consistency.” And I know you might be thinking exactly what she thought, "Well, what do you want to be consistent in?" I looked at her and responded, "Everything." She chuckled but then realized the look of seriousness on my face. She was confused about how broad my answer was and how confident I seemed in responding to her. But is this not so true? We have to be consistent in every purposeful thing that we do. I believe that consistency emphasizes our faith and allows our roots to grow deeper, whether in our walk with God or in our day-to-day personal life.
A great way to practice consistency is to take time to abide. If you are unfamiliar with this word, to abide is to endure without yielding, continue in a place, and remain stable. Abiding is spending time with the Lord daily. What many of us do instead is stop in for a quick chat with God when it's convenient for ourselves, then disappear until we need Him again. But, what we do not understand is that God is not just wanting us to come and chill in proximity to Him; He desires you to come and abide in His presence.
As you are taking time to discover your word for this year or figuring out what the word you chose means, I encourage you to take time and abide in God's presence. I learned more last year about my word by being in the Lord's presence than by listening to as many sermons or podcasts about my specific word as I could fit into my schedule. After trying so hard to search for my word in all of my hard times or mistakes, I learned that the more I grew to know the Lord and his plan for my life, the more I began to see how many places in my life He was already implementing it into my everyday actions and circumstances.
Consistency is the avenue to a close relationship with God in our spiritual and everyday lives. Consistency in our time with God starts with simple changes, but those simple changes can make a significant impact. Consistency brings us closer to the father, and what better place to be?
James 4:8 says, "Come near to God and He will come near to you." I want to challenge you with this. Consistency is not found in how much scripture you can read or how much knowledge you can grasp about your word but in the commitment to regularly spend time in God's presence. What we do forms who we become. If this is true, we must recognize what is forming us, evaluate the trajectory, adjust the action, and become disciplined through consistency.
Reflection
Are you in a spot where you are as close to God as you would like?
How can you be in His presence consistently?
Prayer
God I pray that You posture my heart in the way of consistency. May I learn to fully dwell and abide in Your presence daily and guide me this year to be disciplined with my One Word so that my faith can be rooted deeper. In Your name, Jesus. Amen.
Anna Claire Jaski, Communication Resident of Overflow, wrote today's devotional.