The Spectacular Day-to-Day of Abiding in Him

I heard someone say recently that what you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while!

The Word of God confirms that idea by saying we need to be renewed inwardly day by day—not Sunday to Sunday or conference to conference. 

In fact, it’s amazing how day by day adds up to year by year pretty quickly. So if you don’t like the life you’re living and want different results, you can’t keep doing the same things every day in the same ways over and over. 

You must renew, change, and transform! 

Every long-term goal begins with small daily habits that have a way of adding up. Don’t wait to start until you have it all figured out or you’ll never start. 

You can’t expect to arrive if you never begin. 

What if you really believed in your heart that you needed to be renewed day by day? How would life change for you? Andrew Wommack says, “You may not have arrived, but thank God you’ve left!”

I believe the Holy Spirit will help us learn to seize the day and live each day to the fullest and for His glory! When Jesus called us to be in a face-to-face relationship as true worshipers, He said we must worship in a certain way: in spirit and in truth. But how do we do this day by day? Most people think that worship is something done once a week in a church building, instead of realizing they are the building and God has called them into something that happens day by day!

One Hour

I recall that back in the 1980s, a well-known minister named Larry Lea released a teaching titled Could You Not Tarry One Hour? that soared in popularity. It was a great teaching, and his intent was to help people develop a more meaningful prayer life by spending the first hour of each day in a systematic prayer routine. This was primarily done by going through the Lord’s Prayer in segments with lots of scripture to pray out loud. 

The teaching was based on Matthew 26:40-41:

Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”      

Larry taught from this scripture, making the point that out of twenty-four hours in a day, believers should commit to one hour with God in prayer. Many people were helped tremendously in their prayer lives. But for some, including me, systematic turned into routine. The system was great, but as you will see, something “not so great” was happening in my heart.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He [Jesus] went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him. When they found Him, they said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You” (Mark 1:35-37).

Everyone was looking for me, too, but not for the same reasons! I was already a person of prayer, and in those early years I had studied prayer under Dick Eastman and several other teachers. So when this teaching came out, I was determined to give God my first hour of each day, come hell or high water! I remember how hard it was to wake up that early and start praying and make sense of what I was saying at first. I really did want to spend time with Jesus. I loved Him with my whole heart, and I was trying to tell Him that.

However, it wasn’t even ten minutes into my early morning hour when I started repeating random sentences or pieces of sentences that really didn’t make any sense. Then I didn’t even realize that I had fallen asleep—several times I woke up drooling. It was not pretty, but neither was my bedhead that early in the morning.

Here I was calling Jesus my best Friend and thanking Him for His love for me during my prayer, and the next minute I was asleep—not too different from the disciples, right? Then, one time, I thought I was really making progress because just like Jesus, everyone was looking for me—but not because I was praying, but because I was sleeping. I felt like a failure! I was trying so hard to love Jesus. I didn’t really know yet that I still needed to experience how much He loved me. I was trying so hard to do for Him that I was failing at being with Him. I had put myself under the law again!

I started to value more what I was trying so hard to do, rather than what Jesus had already done!

I got so frustrated with my prayer life that I half-heartedly tried to make a deal with Jesus by telling Him that we could both save ourselves a bunch of time, as I basically said the same thing every day. I told Him it would be a lot more effective if  I just recorded my hour of prayer on a cassette tape (it was the mid 1980s) and just played that cassette every morning. It was a pretty stupid idea, and I knew better than to try to make my relationship with Jesus some kind of “let’s make a deal, Jesus,” but I’m pretty sure I made Him laugh!

At least now I knew how the disciples must have felt when  Jesus asked why they couldn’t stay awake and pray for an hour. What was I going to do about a whole day if I couldn’t even do an hour? I felt like such a pitiful Christian. I mean, who can’t pray for a least an hour early in the morning!?

My spiritual time management was flawed. I was telling a close friend about my frustration, and he said, “I know what you mean; this dying thing is killing me!” We both laughed until we were crying! What really will kill you, however, is when you’ve made your life about living for God instead of living in Him. When the focus is on you, and you’re still trying to die all the time, what you’re not doing gets watered down with religion and law. Instead of doing because of how loved you are by God and that faith works by love, you do to prove that you have faith! Somehow my redeemed spirit knew, even if my mind didn’t get it yet, that life is about living—not dying.   I started to understand that my spirit was being renewed day to day!

For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:15-16 ESV).

Luke 11:2-3 says, “So He said to them, ‘When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name; Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day [or day by day] our daily bread.’” I told you there’s something about life that is so daily!

What if what we do every day really does matter and living this life in Christ in “our lifetime of time” happens day by day? What if we are missing something really big by living from convention to convention, from seminar to seminar, from event to event instead of from day to day?

Do you feel like you just don’t have enough hours in the day? I have felt that way many times. “If I just had more time,” we often say or hear said. Obviously, time management is an important topic, and there are many things we can do to have a more productive day. But did you know that  the major limitation is how we think about our time? If you have a positive attitude toward time, instead of contributing to the negative cycle of “not enough” and the lie of “lack,” you will find time as a friend instead of an enemy. Instead of trying to do everything quickly, what if we just did what we did well. If we make time our friend, we could say more often, “It is well with my soul.” Tick tock, tick tock. Sunrise, sunset.

Jesus brings value to every day, and the Word of God teaches us that there is a better covenant today with better promises, so there must be a better way to live and to worship. We get to live life in Him from day to day!

Living in Him

God, the Creator of the universe, sent His beloved Son to be born as a tiny baby, all in the fullness of time. Infinite became finite. Eternal became flesh. Deity became human. It was all for us!

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:25)

Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again’” (John 3:4-7)

Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21).

Which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:8-10).

Listen—if you are born again, your human spirit inside you is what was born again. Your human spirit is what makes you human; it is what makes you a created being. Being born again by the Spirit of God is what makes you a brand-new creation.

God has made the Kingdom of God available to you and placed it within you. Because you are now living in the Spirit, by the Spirit you really can do life in the Spirit. Your whole life can be lived to the glory of God, even in common every- day things—especially in common everyday things!

Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Living life in Christ is not just giving Him first place but letting Him be the center of our entire life. I finally began to discover why it had been so hard trying to live for Him; my own effort was exhausting. As I began learning how to live in Him, what seemed distant became present-tense and transformational.

For in Him we live and move and have our being(Acts 17:28).

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen (Romans  11:36).

I felt like God was letting me know there was a quality of life that He came to give believers now, while on earth! His presence is going to be amazing when we all get to heaven, no doubt, but the minute we are born again our eternity with Him has already begun. We don’t need to wait to live a quality life in Christ until we get to heaven. Being in Christ now is what gives us quality of life, not stuff!

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly (John 10:10). For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us (2 Corinthians 1:20).

In Christ, every promise is already a yes, and God has come to give us an amazing life now with heaven on earth, even in  the midst of trouble and heartache. Jesus said to be of good cheer! Jesus conquered the enemy and then gave us His victory so that we could live life as more than conquerors (John 16:33).

Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort [encourage] one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:12-13).

How can we encourage each other day by day if we don’t stay connected day by day? We have to come to a place where we see that God’s presence is always communicated through relationship.

Face to Face, Day by Day

Jesus came to show us the Father, and God wants an intimate relationship with us to where we are living in a communion of a face-to-face relationship because of spirit and truth. God has never even thought about being distant and not present. We never need to feel like we are bothering Him because of all the people He has to deal with, as if you just have a few minutes to get your time in with Him. Jesus brought you into a face-to-face intimacy with God as your heavenly Father. There is no more distance; nothing will ever separate you from His love and presence.

I remember when I was a kid, I anticipated reading the “funny paper” as we called it—the cartoon page of the newspaper. I especially like the cartoon created by Bil Keane called The Family Circus. Not only did he address daily life scenarios we all experience, but he often celebrated them. I still enjoy his life work even today. Bil is now credited with a quote that I remember reading years ago and still love: “Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery, today is a gift, that’s why it’s called the present.”

I love the idea of time being a gift! However, so many times I have been guilty of saying I don’t have enough time! But the truth is, we have the same number of hours per day that everyone in history had. There are 24 hours in every day, and life happens a day at a time—there’s something about life that’s so daily! It’s not that people like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, or even Albert Einstein had more time than you and  I do, but the time they spent had a huge impact on humanity for varied reasons, whether artistically, scientifically, or for whatever reason.

I remember in Tulsa when one of my fellow staff members at Grace Church said to me one day in a conversation, “There’s something about life that’s so daily.” I thought it was funny at the time, and we both laughed together at the obvious truth. But I have grown to appreciate the true depth and value of that statement. I have owned it for so many years, and I consider it mine now. It’s something that I share often because of the power of the message.

Years later, when I was serving on a different church staff, my senior pastor would often say about something unpleasant or difficult, “In twenty-four hours it’ll all be over.” That would often help him get through a tough situation. The day he shared it with me, I was going through a challenging circumstance. He told me that difficult circumstances are like storms. Storms come and go, and the best part about storms is that they never last forever. I’m still thankful for that down-home advice today!

As a worshiper, I began to think about how important this concept of “the daily” really is, and when I saw it confirmed in the Word of God, I knew there was something more the Lord was showing me.

Small Beginnings

My wife, Tracy, and I pioneered a church in the late 1990s. After a couple of years, there was one weekend when things had been particularly challenging, so we took a short retreat in the mountains at a huge retreat center. When we arrived, almost everyone who had been there for an event was in the process of leaving. We were the only ones at the center except for a couple of the on-site staff. It was great; the quiet was so refreshing and the alone time with each other was so needed.

We thought it would be fun to watch a video in the media room, so we put a movie in the VCR (remember those?) called What About Bob? It was a new movie at the time featuring Bill Murray, who played an obsessive-compulsive narcissistic patient of a self-involved psychiatrist named Dr. Leo Marvin,  played by Richard Dreyfuss. Bill Murray, “Bob,” lets Dr. Leo Marvin know right away, “I have problems!” Of course, the only help for him ever being normal is going to come from the brilliant mind of Dr. Leo Marvin.  Among many situations that go badly, Dr. Marvin plans to brag about his new book called Baby Steps on a morning news show. It all goes very wrong!

This was one of the funniest movies we had ever seen and we laughed so hard we nearly hurt ourselves! A merry heart was the medicine that we needed to help us experience refreshment and rest from some of the craziness of ministry life and pastoring. It helped us put things back in perspective, and the time together alone became a fun memory that we will always treasure.

But there really was something powerful about the idea of “baby steps” that the movie presented—the idea of just starting where you are and taking the first step. Then take the next step, baby steps, and start moving forward one step at a time. Even though it was a movie, the idea stuck with us.

This idea of baby steps or,  in other words,  small steps in this journey we call life is really how it works, which is probably why the movie was so funny to us. There really is something about life that’s so daily!

Great things come from small beginnings. Every great vision has a beginning. Lao-tzu, an ancient Chinese philosopher, is quoted as saying, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

From small beginnings come great things! The Bible declares in Zechariah 4:10: “For who has despised the day of small things?”

And after all, no one thought anything good could come out of Nazareth: “And Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see’” (John 1:46).

Bethlehem had a similar reputation. How could Someone who changed history be born in Bethlehem and come from such a small beginning? God delights in bringing big things from small beginnings!

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting (Micah 5:2).

God is timeless. He is not defined by time! He has always been and will always be. God is eternal from everlasting to everlasting. God created time for our benefit. There was no such thing as time before God created time, just like there was no such thing as light before God created light. The beginning was the beginning of matter, space, and time; but even before time, the great I AM, God Himself, was in eternity. He has always been! (See Genesis 1:1; Psalm 90:2.)

The Word stepped from eternity into time to bring us into eternity with Him. What amazing love! God has always existed in eternity and always will, but now because of the Word, Jesus, becoming flesh and living and dying for us, through His sacrifice He gave us the opportunity to become brand-new creations and live forever with Him! If we would just believe it and receive it. He stepped into time for us!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made (John 1:1-3).

Our eternity spiritually in Christ has already begun if we are disciples, followers of Jesus. We’re not human beings having a spiritual experience. We’re spiritual beings having a human experience—and it happens day by day.

Unbelievers are people made in the image of God as well.  If they do not receive what Jesus provides for them, deciding to go their own way instead of the Way, they will live forever, but separated from the love of God. They have rejected the only provision for their eternity with God.

That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation (Romans 10:9-10). Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new cre ation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new (2 Corinthians 5:17).

He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him (John 3:36).

It’s Just a Matter of Time

I’m a musician, and musicians know about “time signatures.” Every piece of music has a time signature that determines how the music is played. When we begin to really live life every day, celebrating the victories, rejoicing in the grace of God, learning how to be of good cheer and even counting it all joy by faith when it’s not in the natural, we start living life in a different time signature.

What if God has a time signature for us that is of the Spirit of God instead of the time signature of the world’s ways of fast and furious—a frenzy style that often leaves us empty and burned out? What if God has a tempo within His time signature that slows us down enough to actually value relationships and allow the presence of God to be experienced one on one in the day-to-day and not just from the platform from event to event? What if I can actually learn to live life in His time signature? What are the rhythms of grace?

So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12).

Give us day by day our daily bread (Luke 11:3).

There is something about life that is so daily. Life doesn’t happen in one moment—life happens one day at a time. I have heard it said that life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. I know it’s a bit of a cliché, but it’s so true!

I know God is the Giver of my life and my breath, but in terms of my heart God truly does take my breath away! I have been and still am so amazed, so astonished, so in awe of God and how He does this thing called life for us one practical day at a time.

This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I hope in Him!” (Lamentations 3:21-24)

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).

Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, the God of our salvation! (Psalm 68:19)

Sing to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day (Psalm 96:2).

From the rising of the sun to its going down the Lord’s name is to be praised (Psalm 113:3).

Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever (Psalm 145:2).

God created time for us, so He obviously knew we would be living this life one breath at a time—second to second, minute by minute, one day at a time. So He also knew that eternal life would start for us in time, not before time and not just after we physically die. We are in time, so we need to be on time by being present in the moment, listening to what the  Holy Spirit is saying, and being available. Live to give!

If you have been walking with God for a while, think back for a minute to when it started. It was just a matter of time before you found out how much God loved you. When you did, you wanted to not only give your heart in response to His love and grace to you, but you want to give your time now into whatever is important to His heart. In a day, you went from living life in one kingdom to another Kingdom, which was brand new to you, even though it was already there waiting for you. If life can’t happen on a daily basis, then it won’t happen on a weekly, monthly, or yearly basis!

Life is about the destination, contrary to what some people teach—because the destination is eternal life in heaven with Jesus. However, because eternal life begins with our beginning, how we live needs to become even more important, not just how long we live. The quality of our life here on the earth is a big deal to the heart of God, and it needs to be a big deal to us! We need to break through the toxic limiting ways of the world and live transformed! We need to be in it but not of it.

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world (John 16:33).

The Greek meaning for “tribulation” is stress, pressure, trouble—but as worshipers we can be of good cheer during this reality. Jesus’ life in us is greater than he that is in the world, and in the midst of our stuff, by the grace of God, we can have peace. Jesus gave to us His overcoming-the-world ability and His life in us is greater than the pressure that comes against us.

We don’t have to deny reality when things aren’t going well in order to live this Spirit-filled life! But on the other hand, we are not going to let our reality take a higher place in our heart than the Word of God. We identify with His Word and believe His report because it is the truth. The truth always trumps reality!

Jesus came to give us abundant life—which is not about us dreading every morning we get up with no purpose or direction. Life is not what we do while waiting to die! God created every day for us to rejoice and be glad in Him, regardless of our circumstances. Life is a journey, and God wants us to do whatever we do to His glory. That process of being and doing happens every day!

I believe we often miss the supernatural life of God in the small moments of our day because we are looking for something spectacular instead. What if we changed our perspective? Our God of wonders deeply loves us. Miracles are everywhere if we acknowledge Him in all our ways instead of being so self-absorbed; His love for us is the greatest miracle of all. God has always wanted an intimate relationship with us. Don’t miss the moment! Make memories in the land of promise instead of living in the land of regret, wishing we could finally get into the big time, whatever that means. Don’t wait for the big time. The big is in the small! The harvest is always in the seed!

Some dear friends of mine who are in a traveling music ministry were telling me about a conversation they had with a well-meaning lady who came up to them after an evening of worship and ministry and said to them, “Oh, it must be so awesome to be in the big time!” One of the team said to her, “Oh honey, anywhere you are is the big time if you are in the will of God.” Start now, start today!

Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is (Ephesians 5:14-17).