UNLOCKING THE SECRET TO LASTING TRANSFORMATION
DID MY PRAYER REALLY WORK?
Have you ever had a moment after you said the salvation prayer where you’ve found yourself discouraged because you’ve woken up feeling the same inclination to fall into your sin nature? Maybe, you’ve questioned “Am I really saved” or “Did the prayer I prayed really “work”?” I often see new Believers question their salvation because they don’t immediately feel the redemptive power of God surge through their being or the temptations of the past disappear immediately.
Now let me be clear, I am not saying that radical transformations don’t happen in an instant. We see examples of this all throughout the Bible from Saul to Zacchaeus, or the woman at the well and the parable of the prodigal son – these are all stories of radical transformation. But, I’d like to propose the problem doesn’t lie in feeling tempted by sin necessarily, it lies in feeling tempted to “clean up” our lives in our own strength because the truth is that none of us have the power to save ourselves. Romans 6 – 8 says that your old man is dead and you have been raised with Christ as a brand new creation. So, regardless of how you feel, the work has been done, and the price has been paid.
I recently sat down for a conversation with my good friend, evangelist and founder of
1 Hope 4 America,
Tom Crandall. When I asked Tom how important discipleship is, he responded with the statement, “How important is it for a child to have a parent? It is essential.” True discipleship is meant to empower people to be transformed into the image of their Creator, but religion redefines the terms, conforming people into replicas of their leaders. Religion takes God’s mighty men and makes them artifacts in a museum, while true discipleship solidifies the call of God on our life when someone sees the gold and pulls it out of us.
THE POWER OF DISCIPLESHIP
I want to encourage you today to consider who you are being discipled by. What or who is influencing your faith journey? Secondly, who can you pour into? Who around you needs someone to speak into their life and help shape the masterpiece they are destined to be.
