{"id":228,"date":"2017-04-05T11:24:28","date_gmt":"2017-04-05T11:24:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/nextsteps\/?p=228"},"modified":"2017-04-05T11:24:28","modified_gmt":"2017-04-05T11:24:28","slug":"228","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/nextsteps\/2017\/04\/228.html","title":{"rendered":"4 Guardrails That Keep You From Drifting Away From Your Faith"},"content":{"rendered":"
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We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.<\/em>\u00a0Hebrews 2:1<\/p>\n

If you’ve ever hit those warning strips on the side of the road, then you realize just how easy it is to drift away from safety. The writer of Hebrews makes the same warning, encouraging us as Christians to be sure not to drift away from the faith we hold so dear. The scary thing is just how easy it is to find ourselves far away from God and our faith. Here are four\u00a0guardrails that keep you from drifting away from your faith:<\/p>\n

1). Time in the Word.<\/strong> There is no substitute for this. Every day, when you spend time reading, contemplating, studying, memorizing and rejoicing in God’s Word, you’re setting your mind on things above. You’re reminding yourself of what’s eternal and what’s temporary. You’re setting an anchor for your life so that when the winds of life attempt to steer you off course, you can only drift so far. There is no substitute for you getting in the Word on a consistent basis.<\/p>\n

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,<\/em><\/span>\u00a0<\/sup>so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.<\/em> 2 Timothy 3:16-17<\/span><\/p>\n

2). Corporate Worship.<\/strong> With the advancement of technology Christians are able to watch their favorite preacher from the comfort of their own living room and listen to their favorite worship music from their own phone. But there is something supernatural that happens when the people of God gather together to worship, something that cannot be fully duplicated on the individual basis. The reason Christians have been gathering together in groups for centuries is because it is foundational to the health and vibrancy of our faith. Let us not forsake that.<\/p>\n

Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds,<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/sup>not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another\u2014and all the more as you see the Day approaching.<\/em> Hebrews 10:24-25<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Serve Others Through Your Spiritual Gift.<\/strong> If you want to maintain focus and freshness in your relationship with Jesus, you need to come to the point where you’ve discovered your spiritual gifts and you’re in a position where you exercise them on a regular basis. These gifts are literally gifts from the Holy Spirit for your development and for the strengthening of the church. When you exercise your gift (discover yours here<\/a>), the Holy Spirit is working in and through you, which does nothing but strengthen your faith.<\/p>\n

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,<\/span> to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up<\/span> <\/em>until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.<\/em> Ephesians 4:11-13<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Tell Someone About Jesus.<\/strong> Perhaps the greatest way to increase your faith is to share it with someone else. If there’s someone you love and you declare that love publicly for all the world to hear, it only increases your love and affection for that person. In the same way, when you go public with your faith, you remind yourself why you love the faith to begin with. Tell your Jesus story to a friend. Invite a co-worker to church with you. When you share your faith, your faith gets stronger.<\/p>\n

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.<\/em> Acts 1:8<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.\u00a0Hebrews 2:1 If you’ve ever hit those warning strips on the side of the road, then you realize just how easy it is to drift away from safety. The writer of Hebrews makes the same warning,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":607,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[116,11,115],"class_list":["post-228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-next-steps","tag-drift","tag-faith","tag-guardrails"],"yoast_head":"\n4 Guardrails That Keep You From Drifting Away From Your Faith - Next Steps<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you've ever hit the warning strips on the side of the road, you know how easy it is to drift. 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