Cultivating A Christian Life That Works

“I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” ― Psalm 16:8. 

Your alarm goes off and you hit the ground running. You grab a cup of coffee, slam down some breakfast, and scramble out the door for another day of breathless, non-stop activity. School, family, work, friends, Facebook—all of them demand your time and attention. By the time the day is done, you’re lucky if you’ve spared a thought or two for more heavenly things, let alone gotten through the evening without retreating completely into your phone.

Does this sound familiar? Our culture is obsessed with busyness, and no one is immune. Most people fall into the trap of believing my productivity determines my worth…or worse, that I really can’t spare the time or the mental energy cultivating a Christ-centered life. Living a Christ-centered life is the goal of every Christian, but it is a lot easier to talk about than to live. Because no matter how well-intentioned we are, a lot of other things compete with Christ for center stage in our lives. 

A Christ-centered life begins with realizing that the source of everything we are is the Lord. He created us, He authors our story, and every blessing that we receive comes from Him. James 1:17 tells us that “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens…” Additionally, Christ is the source of our daily righteousness. We simply cannot live up to biblical standards on our own; but in Christ, we have everything we need for godly living. “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.” (2 Peter 1:3).

We want Christ to be known, honored, worshipped, and obeyed, so we submit every other attainable goal to Him. Our decisions are no longer controlled by selfish desires, but instead, we shift our focus to Christ and what He desires. Our battle with self is one that will continue as long as we live in these earthly bodies. That’s why Paul tells us to “throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted” and to “Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.” (Ephesians 4:22; 4:24).

A Christ-centered life is fueled by a love for the Savior. And we learn to know Jesus more intimately through reading, praying, and spending time in His presence. As Christ increases in our mind and heart, we’ll discover that our self-focus decreases and He becomes the delight of our lives; lives which will be better for it.  

What matters is that you love Him, serve Him, and enjoy the joy of your salvation today.  Christ will care for your tomorrows. Isn’t it amazing that when the person of Christ is in full focus, centrally located in our hearts and minds, everything starts to make sense?  

Discussion Questions:

1. What stands in the way of deepening your relationship with Jesus?  
2. What can you do this week to begin to overcome those obstacles?