4Ds

The Desire, Determination & Discipline to remain Devoted to God, is the key to a successful spiritual life. - Kueh

I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord. - 1 Corinthians 7:35

To live a spiritual life in Christ is never an easy task in this present world where the pressure of the society is ever tempting us to sin. But thanks be to God for giving us His Son, Jesus, so that we may die to sin and be alive in Christ Jesus.

The key to living a successful spiritual life is summed up in four simple words, which I call the "4-Ds". They are:

1.   Desire.

2.   Determination.

3.   Discipline.

4.   Devotion.

     DESIRE: The desire to follow God and His command.

Firstly, we must always have the desire to live in righteousness in accordance to God's command and His will for us, and also the desire to break away from sin.

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to Him as an instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. - Romans 6: 12 - 14

The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. - 1 John 2:17

Keep God's commands is what counts. - 1 Corinthians 7:19

We must remember that we have died to sins and is now alive in Christ Jesus. To keep our Spirit's fire burning, we must constantly let God come into the picture in our daily life and not coming to Him only when you have the time or in trouble. Our God must occupy first place before all else! Do not treat God as if He is your servant and have to do your biddings. It should be the other way round!

How often do you have the Lord Jesus in your thoughts in a single day? An hour? Two? Or every minute of it?

The amount of time you spend with the Lord will determine your degree of desire for God. If your focus is more for the world, coming to the Lord only when you feel the needs, then you are not giving your life to God but running it your own way. But if you are spiritually focus at all times, giving every minute of your life to Him, you will infact give thanks to God for everything that happened to your day, be it good or bad, and for being by your side protecting and blessing you through His Spirit. The more time you spend with the Lord, the more your desire for Him will grow!

Spending time with the Lord simply means that you are willing to share everything with Him. Like: Have you ever share a joke with Him? A thought perhaps? Or, even sharing with Him over what you have just seen? My point here is that we should learn to make Jesus your best personal friend! Share everything with Him. Time spends on the Lord is time well-spent. It is very fruitful and your desire will grow.

     DETERMINATION: The determination to remain faithful.

The determination to remain faithful to God in any circumstances, giving thanks to Him at all times, is another key factor in living a spiritual life in Christ Jesus.

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. - 1 Thessalonians 5:16 - 18

It is very easy for us to be faithful during good times but when trouble arises, our faith often falters.

The common question of : "God, why must this happened to me?" or "God, why are you doing this to me?" The abundant questions of 'Why' are questions of our doubt in God. This is a sign of not having confidence in Him!

We may never know the reason why certain unfortunate incidents have befallen on us but if we trust Him, we should not let these deter us from living a Christ-like life. But we should all the more be determined to persevere on in Christ Jesus, who has not promised us a smooth and protected life but one that will also be filled with troubles.

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." - John 16:33

That's right. Take heart! Jesus has overcome the world for us and all the troubles in it too. Take every trials as a test of our perseverance and our faith. Do not complain. Do not lament. But rather seek the Lord for peace and help.

    DISCIPLINE: The discipline to persevere in all circumstances.

We must also learn to be discipline in Christ Jesus. At all times, we must not let Satan has a foothold on us and draw us away from God. The ability to discipline oneself in enduring hardships and temptations is another key factor to a successful spiritual living.

Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No-one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs - he wants to please his commanding officer. - 2 Timothy 2:3 - 4

Blessed is the man who persevers under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that god has promised to those who love Him - James 1:12

Learn to live our lives like that of a disciplined soldier of Christ Jesus and not let the temptations of this world draw us away from Him. Whatever we do, do it in the name of the Lord Jesus so that our heavenly Father will be pleased with us and reward us for our perseverance and discipline in remaining faithful to Him.

     DEVOTION: The unconditional and complete devotion to God.

Our devotion for God must be unconditional and complete, both in body and in spirit. By devotion it simply means that we must do whatever God's commands are.

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. - Colossians 4:2

Devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers - 1 Timothy 4: 13 & 16

Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order that they may provide for daily necessities and not live unproductive lives. - Titus 3:14

So as God most dearly loved children, we should devote ourselves; to loving God; to building up our faith; to reading the Bible; to doing what we have learnt from the Bible; to prayer; to spreading the Word and to everything that is good and right. All these must be done with love, which covers everything.

Now these 3 remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - 1 Corinthians 13:13

Therefore let our work be done by faith, our labour prompted by love and our endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, so as to achieve a more spiritual living in Him.

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