Welcome to Hustle in Faith. This podcast is dedicated to helping you find your trail to a happier healthier you by discussing topics regarding Christianity, health & wellness, beauty & so much more! I’m your host Tosha Johnson.
This is Episode 86. This is part 4, the last part of our series called “What is the extraordinary life series?” So be sure to go back and listen to the previous episodes. Also check out the prayer journal I created that inspired this series called Prayer and Gratitude Journal for Women of Faith: A 3 Month Guide to Prayer and Gratitude that is available for sale on Amazon.
Prayer and Gratitude Journal for Women of Faith
Prayer and Gratitude Journal for Men of Faith
Prayer & Gratitude Journal for Adults & Teens
In today’s episode, we’re going to discuss how we can go about implementing these attributes into our lives so we can finally live an extraordinary life. By now, I’m sure you understand that you can’t achieve this without reading and meditating on the word of God.
All we need to do is focus on building up our relationship with Christ. We can accomplish this by doing the following:
Spend time with God
In order to have a close-knit relationship with someone, we have to get to know them. We accomplish this feat by spending quality as well as quantity time with the person we want to know. The same applies to our relationship with God. The only way to get to know God and how He operates in and throughout our life is by getting to know Him. We accomplish this feat by daily reading and meditating on His word.
We have to intentionally prioritize our schedule so we can spend quality as well as quantity time with Him. Finding time to spend with God isn’t going to “magically” happen. We must diligently put forth the effort to put Him first in our lives. For example, I’m a morning person. I make sure to schedule anything that is important to me during the morning hours. Anything that requires my undivided attention is scheduled during this time frame.
I wake up at 5am so I can make sure I have enough time to do Bible study before I go to work. Yes, I do fail on some days, but for the most part, I try to keep this schedule. Studying the Bible first thing in the morning gives me the right frame of mind so I can deal with whatever obstacles I will encounter working in a secular environment.
God’s Word sets the tone for my day. I noticed if I don’t do Bible study in the morning, I usually do not get a chance to do it later. Throughout the day, the cares of this world fill my mind with so many other things that it hinders me from spending quality time in the word of God.
My point is, if you are serious about getting to know God, we must build up our relationship with Christ. We do this by daily dedicating quality and quantity time to the word of God. Again, in order to get to know someone, we must spend time with them. Reading and meditating on the word of God is how we spend time with God. This type of action confirms that we truly want a relationship with Him.
Trust Him
Trust can only occur after we get to know someone. As I stated before, in order to get to know someone, we must spend quality as well as quantity time with them. All of which will help us to build a relationship of trust. The same concept applies to our relationship with God. In order to trust God, we need to spend time daily reading and meditating on His Word so that we can get to know Him.
Only through the word of God can we build up a relationship with God whereby we will completely trust Him in all aspects of our lives. Such a relationship is what the Bible calls walking by faith (2 Cor 5: 7). It was this type of relationship that gave Abraham the confidence he needed to completely trust God (Proverbs 3:4-6). As a result of his trust, Abraham did not lean onto his own understanding when God told him to sacrifice Isacc the promised son.
This type of faithful relationship is what God is trying to build with us today. In order to have this type of relationship, we must be willing to spend time and energy getting to know God. We do this by daily reading and meditating on His word. Think about a relationship from a human perspective.
In order to trust anyone, we need to determine what type of character this person possesses. We must determine if this person is worthy of our time and loyalty. In order to answer questions like these we need to make time to get to know the person we are seeking to place our trust in. This is what Abraham did with God. Abraham spent quality and quantity time with God so that he could get to know God.
Today, we can do the same. God’s Word is how we get to know God and His Character. In doing so, we too can develop a relationship with God that transcends time.
Remove toxic people and behavior from your life
The cliche “Misery loves company” is very real. If someone is not adding value to your life and constantly causing you to feel frustrated and stressed, they are not worth your time and energy. Regardless of what title a person holds in your life (i.e. mother, father, sister, friend, etc.), if they aren’t behaving the way that they should (according to their title), then you need to leave them alone. Satan is notorious for using our family and friends against us.
Satan knows that the best way to derail our relationship with God is through our family, friends, etc. Satan, knows that most people want to obtain the favor and recognition of their family and friends; therefore, he tries to make us choose our association with these people over God. In other words, Satan uses our family, friends, etc. against us.
This is why you cannot focus on titles such as someone being our brother, sister, mom, father, friend, etc. If that person is NOT behaving correctly, according to Christ’s standard, then we are to remove them from our life. Many of us fail to realize that evil communication corrupts good morals; even when it is coming from loved ones. In situations where someone is clearly trying to corrupt us, we need to remove this toxic person and their sinful behavior from our life.
Are we taking time to listen to a friend that is hurting, helping someone who is less fortunate get food to eat, etc. Doing things like this will inevitably leave those who are benefitting from your kindness to see why you are helping them. Many people talk a good game, but actually putting actions behind those words is what differentiates and demonstrates that we are truly a Christian.
Living an extraordinary life is not an easy feat, but I hope you can tell from this series that it’s worth the fight. I thoroughly hope that you have enjoyed this series. Again, if you’re looking for a way to track your journey, be sure to check out the Prayer Journal I created. It’s a fantastic way for you to see how far you have come in your quest to gain the faith you need to start accessing the blessings God has in store for you.
I write in this journal EVERY day in order to keep track of my faith and quest to gain a better relationship with God. In doing so, I’m able to see which of His attributes I am lacking so I can make adjustments to my life and get back on track.
I really hope you take time to purchase this journal. I like having a journal because oftentimes we think that God isn’t listening to our prayers based on how long it has been for Him to answer our prayers. With a prayer and gratitude journal you can track all the blessings and prayer requests that were answered. In doing so we will develop a better relationship with God.
Thanks so much for listening to today’s episode. Don’t forget to download the free goal setting planner and grateful notes on the website. If you enjoy Hustle in Faith’s content, please consider becoming a supporter by donating to help offset the cost of producing this show.
Be sure to connect with us on Facebook and Pinterest. Remember, if you’re everything to everyone then you risk being no one. You never know who will inspire, see you in the next episode!
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