When Practice Doesn't Make You Perfect...

In our Sunday morning service, our pastor told us a story about a graduation he attended recently. A young man was praying for his class and it was obvious that he was extremely nervous and having a difficult time expressing himself. At the end of his prayer, he bungled what he was trying to say, and made what was an unintentionally profound statement. What he meant to say was, “Lord help us to practice what we believe.”

What he actually said was, “Lord help us to believe what we practice.”

Think about that for a second – really think about it.

How easy is it to “practice” religion? You go to church. You read your Bible. You attend Bible studies. You may refrain from drinking. Or smoking. Or doing drugs. Or speeding. You might try to refrain from gossiping or using profanity. You may even have all the right “lingo” down. You give money to your church. You volunteer your time and your service.

Yet when it comes right down to it, in your heart of hearts, you know you are just “going through the motions.”

You might be like me. When I was a young girl, I recognized the sin in my life and knew that I was hopeless on my own. I accepted the sacrifice that Christ made on my behalf and became a follower of Him. But over the years my passion has waned. I fight daily against a lukewarm faith and apathy in my walk with Christ.

Or perhaps you have never even taken that first step. Maybe you’ve been “practicing” religion without any kind of belief behind it. You need to recognize that no amount of good works can win you favor in God’s eyes – it’s only by believing in Jesus’ perfect life and the death he died in your place that you can be free from your burden of sin. You can't earn it, no matter how hard you try.

In either situation, God will not be glorified by our simply “going through the motions”.

May we truly believe what we practice and give Him all the glory.