"What is good... but to do justly, and to love mercy, and
to walk humbly with thy God?" Micah 6:8
The greatest need of modern Christianity is to walk with God in prayer, every day, and through-out each day! What Satan and sin had separated in the garden (Genesis 3), must never be allowed to happen again in the life of the born-again child of God!
Adam's Privilege
Adam and Eve had known what it was to "walk with the Lord" of the universe, discussing everything in their heart, and hearing His words of praise! There was nothing like it! According to the Bible, God immensely enjoyed that daily personal fellowship with man (Proverbs 15:8). From the moment of creation, Adam had not known separation from his Creator. Everything that Adam saw, was God's handiwork, and it all proved just how great God was - and most of all, just how important each day spent with this unfathomable Being was.
The High Cost of Sin
But all that God had started with, was ruined by Satan's deceit. Genesis 3 describes Satan as he sought to convince Eve that God had been holding-out on His creation - that they really weren't having all the joy they deserved. Satan twisted God's words to make it seem like Adam and Eve had nothing unless they had access to the one tree in the garden that was not to be eaten from. Satan lured Eve, and then Adam, to rebel against God. And when sin took over the lives of that first couple, God's fellowship was gone.
Reconciliation!
But that is not the end of the story, because God took two innocent lambs, and killed them right before Adam and Eve's eyes. The skins of those animals were now to be worn instead of foolish fig leaves. It was the only way to reconcile for their sin - the blood of an innocent lamb, in the place of a guilty sinner (Leviticus 17:11).
This reconciliation brought forgiveness, and permitted Adam and Eve once again to have direct access and fellowship with God. But it needed their commitment.
Making Priority
You see, Satan still works to deceive - especially Christians. He labours to get a Christian too busy to pray; too worried to lean upon Christ; too impatient to wait upon God's timing; too bitter to desire God's will; and too broke to enjoy God's blessings! Think about it - if a Christian fails at this point, he is doomed to fail everywhere in his Christian life! If God is not our rest, Satan will gladly substitute something else!
The Christian, who has been reconciled back to His great Creator by the Saviour, MUST make their walk with God THE priority in life! God deserves no less! No matter what your schedule, your family, or your body tells you! Your body may be tired, but your walk with God is your strength! Your family may need your time, but without daily help from God, they will never get it from you! Your schedule may be over-stretched, but you will never begin to get it under control until Christ is at the TOP of the list! The very first commandment is that we are to have no other gods before the Lord (Exodus 20:3)! Nothing is to get more important than the pre-eminence of the Lord Jesus! Truly this is easier said than done, but then again, it must be done!
Instinctive Thankfulness
The mark of truly walking with the Lord is an attitude of "instinctive thankfulness" - where you automatically reflect appreciation back to God for everything you are going through. Just take a moment and discover all that God does for you, and through you. Realize that without Him, you are nothing (John 15:5). This is the basis for contentment, and true appreciation (Hebrews 13:5,6).
A Serious Walk
To walk with God, means more than just praying. It means depending upon Him for your needs as they arise, targeting each need, each disappointment, each victory, and taking them to the Lord in confident prayer. This kind of prayer, starts in the morning, and basically never stops - you carry on the conversation and communion with your Lord throughout the day. You trust that when you have done your best, and can do no more, then He will bless!
What God has commanded the Christian to do is get serious about Him being glorified through our lives. God is looking for a channel to show Himself mighty through... "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." 2Chronicles 16:9. Is your heart "perfect" towards God? God desires to answer prayer, but not "flippant" (sarcastic) prayer. He yearns to be exalted by our commitment to walk with Him, and completely trust Him at all times by faith!
Walking By Faith
"For we
walk by faith, not by sight" (2Corinthians
5:7). To walk by faith is to walk according to the instructions
given in the Bible (Romans 10:17). A Christian's faith is not blind, but
clearly laid-out in the Scriptures. Faith is trusting God's word above our own
experiences, and even our doubts! To walk by faith means to trust not on the
things that we see, but to rest firmly on the things God has promised in His
word. "God cannot lie." (Titus 1:2)
An Honest and Open Heart
One of the most important ingredients to an effective Christian's prayer life is openness - God wants you to be "real" with Him. To walk with God means that the two of you walk together through the day, sharing and enjoying each step together.
To do this means freely expressing your heart's feelings (good or bad) with the only Person who is always "touched with the feeling of our infirmities" (Hebrews 4:15).
Forget Vain Repetition (Matthew 6:7)
Make sure that your prayer is as you would speak to a real person - don't keep mentioning God's name over and over as you pray. And above all, don't repeat yourself as if God is deaf. He hates repetition.
Two-Way Communication
Finally, don't dominate the conversation. Let the Lord "speak" back to you - Hear His voice (listen to His word), and listen in your spirit to His will (Romans 8:16). Learn to be quiet and still in your heart, resting in God's presence. That's when you will know the joy that Adam and Eve had back in the garden, and that's when your "walk" will be your strength! &