When is the last time you have experienced a let down in expectations? It could be as simple as not receiving the correct sandwich you ordered at a restaurant or as difficult as finding out the person you married turned out to be someone totally different from who you thought they were before the wedding. What makes things even more difficult is when we have certain expectations of God that, for whatever reason, go unmet. I want to talk specifically about the unmet expectations that come with offering countless prayers for someone we believe is without Christ, yet who seem to remain spiritually indifferent to the things of God. No matter what you do on their behalf or say to them, nothing changes.
If you have not yet experienced the A Life That Matters Live Event, you may be missing out on one of the greatest opportunities for encouragement that our ministry has to offer. Developed straight from Ron Hutchcraft's latest book release A Life That Matters, this event will give you the motivation and tools you need to effectively and immediately begin reaching the people you love and care about with the Gospel.
In the previous blogs we've discussed ways that our personal devotional life impacts our effectiveness in reaching people with the Gospel. Now let's talk about what it means to live with a clear heart before God and people. There are two things that will have immeasurable impact on your effectiveness as a witness for Christ - un-confessed personal sin and strained relationships with other people. Often they go hand in hand.
When I consider the words of the Apostle Paul in Acts 24:16 , "I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man," I'm immediately challenged to think about the verse's implications in my own life. Living with a conscience clear before God and the people in my life? That's quite a standard. But it's not impossible. Remember, Paul's desire was to "strive" to live that way. Perhaps for some of us, today is the day we need to make this our goal as we seek to live a life that matters. And here are some initial steps toward making that goal a reality.
In the previous blog we discussed the importance of spending meaningful time with God each day worshiping Him and receiving His divine guidance (a.k.a. marching orders) from His word. One part of personal worship that is often neglected or at best is added on as an "attachment" is focused prayer. For many of us, this is what our prayer life looks like on any given day and takes place only over meals: " Lord, thank you for this day and your many blessings. Bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies. Be with us today and keep us safe. Amen."
There was a time in my life when having a "quiet time" or "personal time for worship" was optional. Not any more. In fact, though I still have occasional days when I miss (thankfully much fewer and farther between than before), my goal is to not go even one day without having had this time with God first thing in the morning. Regrettably, I can speak from too many painful experiences when a missed quiet time has resulted in an open door for bad decision-making and missed opportunities to make a difference in the lives of others. And the more quiet times we neglect, the wider the door opens for personal failure.
When is the last time you have experienced a let down in expectations? It could be as simple as not receiving the correct sandwich you ordered at a restaurant or as difficult as finding out the person you married turned out to be someone totally different from who you thought they were before the wedding. What makes things even more difficult is when we have certain expectations of God that, for whatever reason, go unmet. I want to talk specifically about the unmet expectations that come with offering countless prayers for someone we believe is without Christ, yet who seem to remain 
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There was a time in my life when having a "quiet time" or "personal time for worship" was optional. Not any more. In fact, though I still have occasional days when I miss (thankfully much fewer and farther between than before), my goal is to not go even one day without having had this time with God first thing in the morning. Regrettably, I can speak from too many painful experiences when a missed quiet time has resulted in an open door for bad decision-making and missed opportunities to make a difference in the lives of others. And the more quiet times we neglect, the wider the door opens for personal failure.
