Dedicated to Devotion

Jeremiah 33:3 NKJV

³ ‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’

Word for the Journey

How do we know the Lord loves us? How do we know what is written in the Bible applies to us? How do we move from unbelief to belief?

These questions can surface repeatedly throughout our Christian walk. I’ve noticed this not only in myself in the past but also in others; for some people, these questions come up quite often.

As I minister and disciple, I’ve recently sought the Lord on how I can help others move from that place. The place where belief is there in some ways, but not in others. The place where they read the Bible, but applying and believing it is little. The place where identity in Christ is missing, but is desperately needed.

Then this question came in response:

How’s your prayer life?

Well… how do we move from thinking that someone loves us to knowing that someone loves us to believing that someone loves us? To think, know, and believe somebody loves us is a process we go through as we spend time with them. My daughter doesn’t have to wonder if I love her. I spend time with her, show her, discipline her when needed, and take care of and provide for her. She thinks, knows, and believes I love her through my dedication and the time I spend with her. However, the neighbor’s kid next door doesn’t think I love him. He doesn’t know me. The same goes for us as we spend time with the Father in prayer and devotion. To gain confidence in who we are, who He is, and the Word, we must intentionally dedicate time with Him.

Though “believing” and “knowing” overlap, they’re not exactly the same. The difference in knowing and believing is this:

• Believing (faith) = trusting and relying on God and His Word

• Knowing = deep, personal, often experiential understanding of God and His truth

Both believing and knowing are important, but believing is of greater importance. Belief (faith) in Jesus Christ and the Word is the foundation of Christianity.

Believing

Hebrews 11:1 NKJV

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Belief often comes before full understanding, and that’s ok. Even when we don’t know everything, we can still choose to trust God and His Word. In contrast, unbelief often surfaces when we feel we must fully understand or see the whole picture before we can trust. This causes us to doubt that His Word is true. When we become fixated on what we don’t understand, faith struggles to take root in our hearts. We counter this by consistently spending time with the Lord in prayer and daily devotion, allowing Him to deepen our trust and understanding.

Knowing

Paul prayed this:

Ephesians 3:14-19 NKJV

¹⁴ For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵ from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, ¹⁶ that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, ¹⁷ that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸ may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— ¹⁹ to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

The love he speaks of is for us and far surpasses the earthly love we know and express. It isn’t something we can fully understand through logic. It is agape love- the unconditional, never-changing, sacrificial love. Paul prayed that we, as believers, would be strengthened by the Spirit and that the love of Christ would fill our hearts completely.

We cannot truly comprehend or receive this love without first accepting Jesus, then spending time with Him—in prayer and in the Word. Would you marry someone, then, months later, stop talking to them, yet get upset that you don’t know them and that they don’t speak to you?

How’s your prayer life? 

We can know and understand these truths fully, but only by receiving them by the Spirit. These are spiritual truths, not earthly logic. The Father’s love is a spiritual love, not an earthly one. His love runs deep, just as Paul described, and we need His spirit to comprehend it. He loves us so much that He formed us in our mother’s womb. He loves us so much that He sent His Son to die for us so that we might live. He loves us so much that He gave us a manual—66 books that declare His promises, impart wisdom, bring deliverance, and in one way or another reveal His love. He loves us so much that we are still here, living and breathing today. We must by faith receive wisdom and love from the Lord. To do this, we must spend time with Him in prayer and devotion.

Many questions are arising now…. How do we respond to what’s happening now in this nation? How do we receive the answers we need? How do we know the Lord loves us and move from unbelief to faith in God? How do we know the Lord loves us? How do we know what is written in the Bible applies to us? How do we move from unbelief to belief?

How’s your prayer life?

In Matthew 6:5-15, Jesus gave us a model for prayer. He said “When you pray” 3 times in that passage. He did not say “If you pray”. Jeremiah 33:3 applies to us. The Lord is saying, “Call upon me, and I will show you great and mighty things.” He will answer all your questions and give wisdom and guidance by His Spirit. But to receive this, we must be dedicated to devotion unto the Lord.

It is time to engage with the Father now more than ever. We cannot pray for 5 minutes in a 24-hour timeframe, only pick up our Bibles when we go to church, and then expect to have complete faith in Christ and the Word given to us.

Prayer should be a lifestyle, and devotion should be the posture of our hearts. It should be our intentional, constant commitment to the Lord. Just as a child becomes sure of a parent’s love through time spent together, we grow from merely thinking to truly knowing and believing that God loves us by spending time with Him in prayer and in His Word.

I heard a minister say recently, “If you can think, you can pray.”

I want to encourage us to take a broader step into spending time talking with the Father. Prayer and devotion help us move from unbelief to genuine faith and assurance of God’s love. It is the answer to all the questions because Jesus and the Word are enough. Our loving response to God’s faithfulness should be seen through our active dedication to devotion- more time with Him equals greater faith!

I pray we all make the decision to grow in devotion to the Lord- in prayer and in faith. I pray that we become dedicated to devotion and that prayer becomes a lifestyle for us and our households. I pray we understand the importance of knowing and believing, but the greater importance of believing. This Christian walk is by faith, so I pray we do as we so often quote and know… let us walk by faith, not by sight, in Jesus Name.

Encouragement for the Journey

Philipians 4:6-7 NLT

⁶ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

1 Kings 8:61 AMP

⁶¹ Therefore, your hearts are to be wholly devoted to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as [you are doing] today.”