It is getting hard to overestimate the importance of our personal relationship with God in these last days. I believe that a solid knowledge of Scripture and apologetics alone cannot protect us from the fiery darts of the wicked one.
Jesus said, "Watch and pray lest you fall into temptation." Since we are commanded to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17) to "abide in Jesus" (John 15:4) we cannot expect adequate protection from Satan and evil if we do not "draw near to God" so that "He will draw near to us".
It doesn't matter how much potential seems to be in a situation. For the believer, it is only through prayer and fellowship with God that any LASTING benefit can be obtained. We cannot trust people to help us reach our potential or fulfil our destiny in God, nor can we trust in our money (which really belongs to God anyway if we are His disciples). We must trust and obey God. Obedience to God helps us to stay on speaking terms with the Lord, and when we obey Him, we abide in Him, and He works in and through us and even for us in wonderful ways.
Prayerlessness is the great sin of the church today. It has at times been the sin of my own life. We simply cannot look to other Christians around us as a standard for our prayer life, for what it will take to "get by" in the eyes of God. No, we need to be passionately interested in drawing near to God. Otherwise we will forget who God is to us and how wonderful He is and then our hearts become relatively indifferent. We are in trouble once we have lost the desire for God's presence in our lives.
The only way we can express that intense love for the Lord is through spending as much time as we can in PRAYER. This includes praising God, meditating on His Word and waiting in silence before Him. Jesus, not personal entertainment, must be the focus of our hearts and minds in order for us to be spiritually secure in God.
A "mature Christian" who is
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