The successful pursuit of the Christian discipleship requires a positive, dynamic looking to the Lord every day of one's life. Time must be spent each day in prayer. The believer must meditate continually in the Bible—Old and New Testaments.

The disciple must gather together with other fervent disciples whenever possible. He must present his body as a living sacrifice to the Lord in order to prove God's will in personal holiness and in the exercise of the gifts and ministries given him by the Holy Spirit.

The saint must give himself to dedicated prayer and to an expectation and willingness to be used in the Lord's service even though many years go by without anything unusual taking place in his or her life. He must continue in this attitude of dedication and consecration every day until he passes from the earth. There is no retirement in the Kingdom of God.

Nothing short of such consistent seeking of the Lord is acceptable. The believer must give of himself to the Lord throughout his time on the earth if he expects to arrive at the Character of Christ and untroubled rest in Christ in God.

If we are not willing to let go of our striving to achieve our own glory it is impossible to grow in the Lord as we should. We will remain a spiritual dwarf.

Participation in the spirit of the world will stop us from entering the land of promise.

Indulging in the lusts of the flesh and soul will prevent our entering the land of promise.

Insisting on bringing glory to ourselves will keep us from attaining the rest of God. All things were finished in God's mind from the creation of the world. All our ambitious striving will serve only to prevent our resting in the wisdom and power of God as our foreordained destiny unfolds. We shall not be able to see the Shepherd as He leads us into the green pastures and quiet waters, the joyful inheritance that is our appointed place of rank and service in His Kingdom.

We notice, as we read the Scripture, that the Lord Jesus spent a great deal of time in prayer. The Lord Jesus lived and ministered while in constant prayer to the Father.

It is difficult to overstate the importance of prayer in moving from Adam to Christ.

The effect of prayer on our personal growth in Christ. God uses all kinds of pain, frustration, disappointment, the delay of our most intense desires, to form the Character of Christ in us and to teach us to cease from our own works, to rest in His eternal Life rather than to strive according to our own fears, desire for perfection, conscientiousness, and ambition to bring glory to ourselves.

The purpose of our pain is to bring us to God. The lessons of the wilderness often contain elements that severely test the believers's patience. Have you found this to be true?

To be continued.