Beyond Mediocrity Blog

(Image courtesy of https://media.licdn.com.) I grew up in a Christian home.  My parents took my siblings and I to Sunday school, church, and lots of church events.  My dad led family devotions with us at the table after supper and on Saturday morning after breakfast.  As I grew older, the responsibility and discipline of spending time with God shifted from my parents to me, and I began to read and study on my own, drive myself to youth group, and get involved in church events more independently.  I didn't smoke, drink, or "hook up" with girls because I knew those things were not what a Christian should do.  From the outside, I'll bet the majority of people thought I was a good, happy Christian. But I could not fool myself and I could not fool God.

(Image courtesy of http://www.focusonthefamily.com.) A few months ago, I entered into a new season of life: I became a dad .  Along with becoming a dad came the responsibility to train and teach my family in the way of righteousness.  It is important for dad's to take their role as spiritual leader of the home seriously and be intentional about fulfilling the duty. Discipleship is an important duty for the father to lead intentionally.  Discipleship is the term used to define Jesus' command to "make disciples" (Matthew 28:18-20).  Making disciples means "baptizing others in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them all that God commands" (Matthew 28:18-20).

(Image courtesy of http://www.shadesofgrace.org.) At different times throughout my life, God has given me a prayer to pray.  Each one of these prayers has led me to a deeper and fuller knowledge of the one true God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent (John 17:3). Here are the prayers the faithful Lord gave me to pray, listed chronologically as I went from justification to further sanctification (and, indeed, am still being sanctified until the day my Savior appears in all His glory!):