Here
is some stuff Christians should stop doing:
1. Telling people “I’ll pray for you” without actually praying for
them.
Guilty
as charged. I can’t think of anybody who hasn’t done this at one time or
another. And while most of us don’t actually mean to forget, it’s probably best
that we just set aside time on the spot to pray for people. Are we really so
busy that we can’t stop and pray for someone’s needs? We need to make sure we
are fulfilling our duties as Christians and actually follow through with them.
One prayer could be the tipping point to someone coming to know the love of
God. Don’t miss the opportunity to speak life into someone because you don’t
think you have time.
2. Attending Church on Sunday, but ignoring God’s voice the rest
of the week.
Ouch!
This one stings a little. Many of us get in the habit of making God just
another addition to our weekly check-list, but the reality is that our entire
lives should revolve around him. God deserves #1 priority in each of our lives,
and to treat him any differently would go against the foundations of
the Christian faith. Evaluate the way you are spending your time, money
and energy. If you want to see a change in your life then you need to begin
giving God the place of honor he deserves. Stop treating God like the last kid
picked in doge-ball.
3. Praying for God’s provision when we have yet to use what he has
already provided.
Way
too many of us tend to treat God like a personal genie. Prayer was given to us
as an open line of communication between us and God, but the harsh reality is
that way too many of us try to use it like a drive-thru at a
fast-food restaurant. You don’t get to pick and choose the way God
provides, but you do get the opportunity to trust his plan and have faith in
his promises. I can’t begin to explain how many times I’ve ignored God’s
provision because it wasn’t wrapped the way I intended it to be. Every time we
purposely ignore God’s provision, we are indirectly telling him, “I
don’t trust your plan.”
4. Trying to be so relevant that we actually hurt the message of
Jesus.
There
is nothing wrong with trying to be relevant, but we need to understand that
there is a BOLD line between being trendy, and then completely
disfiguring the message of Jesus. We can’t expect to bring any change to the
world when we don’t look any different from it. I’m a firm believer that Jesus
came to reclaim culture and not abolish it, but this doesn’t mean we need to
water down His message so that it’s easier to swallow.
5. Telling people that “God will never give you anything you
can’t handle.”
Why
should we stop saying this? Because it’s a lie. … We’ve completely twisted 1 Corinthians 10:13, as this verse
is pointing toward temptation, and even then it states God will be there if
things get too tough. The reality is that God just might give us things we
can’t handle so that we will gaze toward him for the extra help. Mind blowing
right? Realize that not everything is going to go the way you plan, think or
hope. Sometimes stuff is going to hit the fan, and in order for you to get
through it, you are going to NEED to rely on God’s comfort, peace and
understanding. We weren’t meant to do life alone.
Jarrid Wilson
Jarrid Wilson is a husband, pastor and author relentlessly
sharing the love of Jesus.
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