“This morning’s faith will never do for this noon. The faith of this noon will never do for suppertime. The faith of suppertime will never do for the time of going to bed. The faith of midnight will never do for the next morning. Thank God for the reality for which we were created, a moment-by-moment communication with God Himself.
Francis Schaeffer
We should indeed be thankful because the moment-by-moment quality brings the whole thing to the size which we are, as God has made us.This being the case, it is obvious that there is no mechanical solution to true spirituality or the true Christian life. Anything that has the mark of the mechanical upon it is a mistake. It is not possible to say, read so many chapters of the Bible every day, and you will have this much sanctification. It is not possible to say, pray so long every day, and you will have a certain amount of sanctification. It is not possible to add the two together and to say, you will have this big a piece of sanctification. This is a purely mechanical solution, and denies the whole Christian position.
For the fact is that the Christian life, true spirituality, can never have a mechanical solution. The real solution is being cast up into the moment-by-moment communion, personal communion, with God Himself, and letting Chris’s truth flow through me through the agency of the Holy Spirit.”
Reflection:
It is good for us to establish certain disciplines in our Christian life, such as reading God’s Word, praying, and regularly gathering with God’s people. However, there is no prescribed rule for when or how often we must complete these tasks. God has given us the Lord’s Day as a regular rhythm, but our walk with God should be more relational and organic than merely practical and prescribed.
If we find ourselves treating Christianity as a checklist of duties, we’ve already lost sight of its essence. At its heart, Christianity is about union and communion with Christ.
Just as our physical appetite guides how we feed ourselves, our hunger for Christ should drive our pursuit of Him. And just as our relationships flourish through the enjoyment of time with friends and family, our relationship with Christ should grow in the same way. Certainly, we’ll notice when our relationship feels dry. The path back isn’t about checking more boxes or engineering our lives around religious routines, but about cultivating a moment-by-moment enjoyment and dependence on Christ. Sometimes the disciplines will serve that end, but they must never become the end themselves.
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