By: Pastor Jarren Rogers

“We never grow closer to God when we just live life. It takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness.” –Francis Chan

This is a good start.

You’re reading a devotional. You want to seek God through the reading of His word and you’re ready to spend time with your mind and heart centered on Him. It’s a good start.

But it doesn’t end here. Our relationship with God has to continue on every day – never ceasing.

Sometimes we treat God like a magazine. We pick Him up when we are bored. We passively flip through Him when we are standing in line at the grocery store. We stumble upon Him when he comes in the mail and then throw him on the coffee table to gather dust.

All in all, we only read those magazines on our own time. We only interact with God when it’s convenient for us and, just like our time with magazines, our time with God is a small portion of our day.

Our interaction with God doesn’t have to come in bits and pieces. It can be continuous.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you (1 Thess. 5:16-18).

Our rejoicing, our thanksgiving, and our prayers should go on without ceasing.

Praying without ceasing may seem impossible. But I think that prayer isn’t necessarily a conversation with God. It may not even be something that we do consciously.

I think that it’s an attitude – an attitude of love, humility, and openness. It is a sensitivity to what the Holy Spirit is speaking to us and a mindset of thanksgiving that takes nothing for granted but attributes every good thing to God (James 1:17).

This is a good start.

Keep going. And going. And going.

Don’t stop.

Parents: Explain to your kids the importance of spiritual practices like prayer and devotions. Join in these practices with your whole family and watch as God works in and through every family member as all of you seek after him.