Do This More & More

This morning, I'm sitting at Panera drinking coffee and reading 1 Thessalonians 4. The one thing that sticks out to me in this chapter is Paul's encouragement and challenge for the "brothers" to "do this more and more." Now, you may be sitting there thinking to yourself, "Self, what is Paul encouraging and challenging the 'brothers' to 'do more and more.' What is the 'this' he speaks of?" Well, I'm glad you are asking yourself these questions. You know, I really hope you didn't ask those questions out loud, as the people around you may look at you as if you're nuts because you are sitting there saying, "Self, what is..."

Well, in this chapter, Paul is reminding the "brothers" of the way they are to live. He encourages them to continue living the way they have been instructed to live. He also challenges them, pointing out how well they have been doing living the life Christ calls us to, and urges them to follow and live in this way "more and more." It's sort of the, "You're doing really well! Now, do it more and more and better and better" kind of thing.

This is an important reminder for those of us following Christ. Sometimes, it's tempting to become content in the way we are following Him. We go to church, we're in a small group, we pray multiple times each week, we even crack open our Bible! These things are all extremely good! Yet, I think Paul would encourage us to do this more and more! I think he would encourage us and challenge us to get more involved in our walk. It's more than just how we do the "church" stuff, but it's how we lead our daily lives as well. Are we taking a stand for Christ in every facet of our lives? This is what Paul is encouraging and challenging the Thessalonians in. He is commending them for what they are doing and how they are carrying themselves in particular areas and tries to push them to take that next step.

What is your next step? What do you need to be doing more and more? If you're going to church, Bible study, spending time in prayer and personal Bible study, maybe God is leading you to find new ways to serve, new ways to grow. Maybe God is calling you to be more vocal about your faith in the work place...Maybe God is calling you to get crazy and step out of the boat and, by faith, walk to Him (yeah, I know that's pulling from another story, but I think it applies here).

Well, I pray that as we all go through this life trying our best to follow Christ and live how He intended for us to live that we will all look for ways to "do so more and more."