The #1 Reason to Learn to Live a Godly Life

TO BE READY. That is the number one reason to live a godly life in advance. If we would choose otherwise, and many people do, and most ashamedly some Christians do, we would compromise on our preparedness to think, say, and do what must be done. Let us make no mistake; Jesus requires us to be in a state of readiness. This is what being Christian is all about.

And this fact is not more practically known than by the need to think the right thing, to say the right thing, and to do the right thing, in the moment. Since none of us is perfect, we will get the occasional thing wrong. We are not characterised by the odd slip, but by the responses we normally make.

When we have trained ourselves in the Lord’s ways, by the obedience of diligent discipline, receiving God’s chastising when we have needed it, we are readier than we would have been if we hadn’t worked so hard on character refinement.

Let us understand this: we must get onto the front foot; now is the time; we have no time to waste. The opportunities of discipleship are clear and clarified for all of us.

The Final Test of our Godliness

It all boils down to what we think, say, and do – everything.

What may seem an oversimplification is a polarising fact of life. If we know we will think, say, and do the wrong things why don’t we right them now whilst we can? Nobody needs to be ashamed. If we know, beforehand, that we will be expected to deliver the right thoughts, words, and actions, we have now to prepare.

The final test of our godliness is how we respond in the moment.

We have now and now is all we have. We need nothing else and we should settle for nothing else. If we don’t use such a poignant moment to prepare, we will fail the tests more consistently as they come.

When we think of all those who would be relying on us, we must draw motivation to do what can only be done beforehand.

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All of life comes down to what we think, say, and do. If, by our thoughts, words, and actions, we can rise above temptation we will know that we have placed godly integrity at the pinnacle. That’s discipleship. Preparedness is the only thing we can do now to be ready for the unknown future.

© 2013 S. J. Wickham.