Habits for Abiding Well

One of Satan's greatest strategies to sabotage your spiritual growth is distraction. When God is speaking, His Word is landing on your soft heart, and it's beginning to take root, that ancient serpent goes to work. He seeks to choke out the Word by pulling your attention away from God to the cares of this world. With all his limited might, he wants to keep sermons firmly on Sundays.

Jesus warned of this in the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13.

"And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.” Matthew 13:3-9 (ESV)

He explained the parable to his disciples moments later. His explanation of the thorny soil is profound: "As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful" (Matt 13:22).

Satan loves stealing sermons. Satan loves distracting devotion. Satan loves pulling your eyes to the pleasures of this world.

Which is why abiding is so important. Waking up every... single... day... and pulling our hearts back to King Jesus, His love, His Word, and His Kingdom. As we set our grip and our gaze on Him, holding fast and never letting go, He sustains us with all the life and nourishment our souls need to grow in godliness and bear fruit.

As you seek to keep your attention on Jesus, here are 3 quick daily habits for abiding to help you lift your gaze...

1. READ THE BIBLE! Nothing is more important than this! God's Word is the daily bread that our soul needs (Matt 4:4), living and active for convicting us of sin (Heb 4:12), and profitable for training us in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16). Wake up, and get your eyes on Jesus through His Word!

2. PRAY! Prayer is the soul speaking to God. It's our way to lift our heart to Him, remember His power, and seek His help for our needs. Nothing is a better barometer of your intimacy with Jesus than your prayer life. Set aside a few minutes, lift your heart, and pray. Not sure where to start? Use the Lords Prayer from Matthew 6:9-13.

3. WORSHIP! I have found great benefit in using worship music to help my heart give it's attention back to Jesus. In a distracting world, listening, thinking, and singing strong biblical lyrics is a great way to abide with Jesus. Here's a great playlist of some Songs to Abide to help you here.

In all of this, bring King Jesus your heart. The mechanics of abiding only work if your heart is in them!

Abide, family. Hold fast. Don't let go.

- Pastor Brian

This post is a follow-up to the sermon "Jesus is Coming. Get Ready!" preached by Pastor Brian Bone at Emmaus Church on Sunday, June 8, 2025. You can find the sermon on the Emmaus App, the Emmaus Church Podcast, or Youtube.