From the book: A Reason to Pray at Book: A Reason to Pray Mountainview

“Mark, I told this low point in David’s life only to show you that he wasn’t some super, flawless saint. He had some severe issues to deal with and to get right. The point is … even though David drove himself into the ditch of sin, he didn’t stay there. He sought forgiveness and reconciliation with the Lord. Being full of mercy, the Lord forgave him and restored the joy of his salvation.”

“… David went from a broken man to a man who couldn’t be broken. You, Mark, can be that kind of a man. A man of God, faithful and true!”

In order to grow in your walk with the Lord, you’ll need to have a desire to:

  • mature in your knowledge of the Lord;
  • mature in your daily experiential walk with the Lord; and
  • mature in how you react or respond when you wander and fall.

Think about the last time you recognized your wandering heart. What steps did you take to reconcile your wandering heart?

  • Did you take God’s faithful love for granted?
  • Did you run back to God quickly or take your time?

This is a layer for spiritual growth, building a constant reminder of the dependence that we have on the person and work of Jesus Christ. Growing up comes from growing down—down off a pedestal of self-worth and reliance. A genuine love for the Father, the Son, and the Spirit never stops nurturing a humble heart and a seeking heart. I agree with Paul Washer who stated,

“Evidence that you truly repented and sought Christ, is that you are still repenting and seeking Christ.”

When we blow it, and we do blow it, we remain a child of God, but as with any relationship that suffers unfaithfulness, there needs to be reconciliation. A mature relationship with the Father moves quickly to reconcile.

Besides a desire towards God, in order to grow in your relationship and walk with the Lord … you’ll also need confidence in:

  • the Lord’s desire to walk in fellowship with you;
  • the Lord’s desire to lead you in knowing Him; and
  • the Lord’s desire and ability to restore when you wander and fall.

In the novel, Mark Terrell wanted to restore his walk with the Lord and grow, but he lacked confidence and trust in God’s desires toward him. As a person learns God desire’s and steps into the work of Christ, he will learn how to be “a man who couldn’t be broken.” But what does that actually mean?

To be a person who cannot be broken is not a person who never falls. Let’s be honest, we all blow it and sin.  The phrase-“a man who couldn’t be broken” describes a person who falls … BUT … who turns back to God. This is a person who doesn’t run from the Lord when he has fallen, but looks to the Lord for restoration. This is a person who acknowledges his fall, or his voluntary jump into sin, but confesses as King David did in Psalm 51:

For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You (Psalm 86:5).

Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).

It is because of Jesus that we can have confidence in our relationship with the Father even though we are like a clay vessel covered with cracks and chipped from top to bottom. Our confidence is not in our condition and/or our inabilities, but in Jesus and His accomplishments. With confidence in our Savior we move forward and learn to walk with the Father. We can enter a secret place of prayer with the Father without the weight of guilt and shame.

Proverbs 24:16  — For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity.

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