Live as if God and you were the only ones in the world.
This inspired me to give everything for God; so after fully surrendering myself to God, for Him to take away my sin, I let go of everything that wasn't Him, out of love for Him. I began to live as if He and I were the only ones in the world. Sometimes I saw myself before Him as a guilty criminal at the feet of his judge; at other times, I saw Him in my heart as my Father and God.
I worshipped Him as often as possible, keeping my mind in His holy presence, and bringing it back whenever I found it had strayed from Him. I experienced significant discomfort in this practice, yet I persisted despite all the challenges, without causing myself distress when my mind involuntarily wandered. I made this my mission as much throughout the day as during the designated prayer times. At every moment, every hour, every minute, even amidst my busiest times, I pushed away everything from my mind that could interrupt my thoughts of God.
For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father!" The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God's children, and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
How do I respond when I drift from God's presence—anxiously or peacefully?
What is interrupting my thoughts of God? How can I bring those concerns to God?
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Scripture quotations are from the Christian Standard Bible®, © 2017 Holman Bible Publishers.
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