Prayer Guide: Day 2

“Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness.” Titus 1:1

In Titus 1:1 as the apostle Paul begins his writing in the letter to Titus, he announces his mission to further the faith of believers and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness. He says this even before his actual greeting so if you’re not careful you can breeze by it without catching the significance of his statement.

When I was an infant in my faith I had active sin in my life that I honestly had no idea was sin.  I had believed Jesus was the Son of God, I knew I was a sinner in need of a savior and I placed my trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of my sins overall but when it came to daily living, in ignorance I had sinful behaviors that I just wasn’t aware were sinful.

Once I started reading the Bible I began learning what God considers sin.  It was right there in front of me plain as day and undeniable.  God’s word does that, it illuminates everything.  It brings to light sin and truth all at the same time.  What I noticed is that some sins were very easy to remove from my life while others became a process of repentance.  But the knowledge of truth set my heart and mind in a different direction that then led to different behaviors.  Now to be sure, the Christian life is not to be boiled down to behavior modification. God forbid!  But that is a byproduct of a life fully surrendered to Jesus.  As we seek to know God and allow his word to transform our hearts and renew our minds we also begin to desire what he desires for us. That’s the definition of godliness, the practice of conforming to the wishes of God.

If that’s your desire, be encouraged because God has given us his word to lead us into all godliness.  As we gain knowledge of the truth, learning what is sin and what isn’t, the Holy Spirit brings conviction without condemnation.  Our heavenly Father meets us where we are and in his kindness leads us to repentance so that we may walk in his ways.

Personal Prayer Focus

Do you lack knowledge of the truth?  Are you unaware of what much of the Bible teaches?  None of us was born knowing anything about truth and godliness.  We must seek and ask to find the truth.  Ask the Lord today to give you a desire for truth and godliness; a desire to know his Word.  Ask him to begin teaching you his ways and producing godly thoughts in your heart and mind so you will be molded into his likeness, looking less like you and more like Jesus.

West Ridge Church Prayer Focus

Pray for our Sunday services to be blessed and anointed by God as our Worship and Creative Arts Teams seek to put Jesus on display.