“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).

Starting things is easy. Finishing things is hard.

Starting is exciting. Nearing the end is exciting. It’s the in-between part that is so dang hard.

How many diets, exercise regimen, books, programs have we started? How many have we finished?

The problem is the middle part. The middle part is dreadfully boring. It’s wearisome. It’s tiring. It gets to be so routine. So, what are we to do in the middle part? That’s where almost every one of us finds ourselves in the journey of faith. What do we do in the middle part?

We all want to finish well. We want to be able to say, like the Apostle Paul, “I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith.”

There are two perspectives needed to do this:

• When things get hard, boring, wearisome, tiring, remember why you got started. Remember what your life was like before you got started. Remember the motivation, the hopes, the longings that made you start to begin with.
• Secondly, when things get hard, remember the ending. Remember what awaits you. Remember why you’re doing what you’re doing. Choose what you want most over what you want now. Remember how you want your life story to end.

It is these two perspectives that will help you to keep on keeping on in the middle part of your faith journey.

• Remember why you started
• Remember how you want your life story to end

Keep at it. There is no other life than the life of a disciple that is worth living.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts” (Colossians 3:15).

What an odd phrase.

What does it mean to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts?

First, I didn’t know I had such power. Second, what does it mean to let the peace of Christ rule in my heart when there is only chaos and uncertainty?

The Greek is helpful.

The Greek literally reads “and the peace of Christ, let rule in the hearts of you.”

While in the English we have two words, “let rule” in the Greek that is one word. The Greek word that is translated as “let rule” means to act as an umpire, to arbitrate, to make the call. The word is used when you have a situation where there are opposing views, you are to let this rule, act as the umpire, to arbitrate, to make the call.

When we look at the world and there only seems to be pain, chaos, and uncertainty, we are to turn to the peace of Christ and let that rule, arbitrate, and make the call.

This word “let rule” is written in the 3rd person present imperative active voice. Here’s what that means:

• Present tense – ongoing action, never ending. Not a one time event
• Imperative – a command, not only good advice
• Active voice – you must choose to allow this to happen

You can prevent God’s peace from ruling in your hearts. We do that when we only focus on the problems and neglect to see the myriad of ways in which God is at work in our world. The headlines of our news programs and newspaper will never report it but everyday:

• Husband loves and cherishes his wife and children
• Wife loves and honors her husband and children
• a Christian goes out of his/her way to show grace to a neighbor going through a hard time
• Small group leader prays for and calls one of the people in their small group
• a neighbor picks up the trash that got dumped in the neighbor’s yard
• Someone bakes a batch of cookies to give to his/her pastor!!!
• Someone checks in with a friend they haven’t heard from in months

There are thousands upon thousands of acts that never get reported. But it doesn’t mean that isn’t happening.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts…”

You do this by choosing to let Christ’s peace rule, arbitrate, make the call about the world we live in. Don’t let the devil fool you into thinking that only the devil’s at work.

God is at work all around you. You reading this truth is proof.

Have a great day and be a blessing to the people around you!

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35).

Jesus prayed regularly.

We all know we should as well. So, if we want to get started in the exercise of praying every day, how would one go about it?

There are many ways to pray regularly. Today, I will share with you how I organize my prayer life.

First, I journal my prayers. I write them out. I don’t type. I write them down on paper with pen. The reason I do this is because of the pace. I can’t write as quickly as I type, and certainly not as quickly as I think. The exercise of writing forces me to slow down, slow down my thoughts, slow down my breathing. It is this slowing down that often leads to clarity. Too often, thoughts are rushing at me. Writing thoughts and prayer down forces me to slow down and organize my thoughts.

Second, I divide up my prayers to the following:

• Rejoice – I start my prayer by thanking God. I tell God everything I am thankful for. It’s amazing how starting the day with gratitude has a way of shaping the entire day for gratitude.
• Repent – I confess my sins. I confess my pride. It’s a daily cleansing. I need it because I am a repeat sinner.
• Request – This is where I ask God for his help. I divide up my requests in the following way:
  • Monday – World, missionaries, and friends abroad
  • Tuesday – Family, Helen, Karis, Kaitlin, Kailey, and Kaleb. My parents, Helen’s mom. My sister and her family
  • Wednesday – Friends
  • Thursday – Little Church and Lakewood Grace
  • Friday – Our elders and deacons
  • Saturday – For our staff
  • Sunday – For the weekend services
• Reflect – This is where I write down thoughts and reflections throughout the day.

The whole process normally takes me about thirty to forty-five minutes. You don’t have to pray as long as that. But you do need to pray. Take as long and as short as you need.

This is what works for me. You can try it out for yourself. The main thing is to find a system that works for you.

I will tell you that you will have to work at it. It won’t just happen. You will have to be intentional in carving out the time and space to make it work. However you organize your prayer life, the main thing is to pray every day. Pray like you mean it!