It has been our experience over the years that those who have devoted themselves to some “core practices” tend to grow, and those who do not, experience difficulties as they walk out their faith in Christ. When the Bible describes the earliest believers, it says that they all “ devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals, and to prayer.” (Acts 2:42 NLT) Today we might say it this way, “They read their Bibles to know God’s will, gather as a congregation to worship, meet in small groups to encourage one another’s growth and pray continually.” That merely describes their life together. Beyond that, they supported the apostles so they could continue on with the work of ministering the Word (Acts 6:2).

So if you want to know how to start, we see that the Bible encourages us with 5 Core Practices so that we grow in our faith.

1.    Consistently Attend Weekend Community Ps 26:12 NLT, Ps 111:1 NLT, Rev 2:1, 8 NLT The church means gathering. The church is not the church at all until it gathers together as a result of being summoned by Christ. It is at the Weekend Community that we renew our allegiance, devotion, worship and adoration to Christ.

2.    Consistently Attend Home Community Acts 2:46 NLT Acts 5:42 NLT Christianity is not an individual sport; it is a community one. We grow together, we stand together; our prayers are responded to by God as we pray together. We inherit our destiny, receive forgiveness, healing and restoration – together.

3.    Consistently Practice Daily Bible Reading and Prayer Ps 130:6-7 NLT, Josh 1:8 NLT, Mt 7:7- NLT, 2 Tim 3:16 NLT At Living Hope we have a daily reading and journaling plan which we call our Devotional Experience. It consists of reading a chapter, writing down any insight the Lord has given us from what we have read, and writing a short prayer that asks for God’s help in applying the insight He has revealed to us. Finally, we seek to share what we have learned with others.  

4.    Consistently Tithe Lev 27:30 NLT, Mal 3:10 NLT, Heb 7:6-8 NLT In giving, we relinquish our control and ownership over all our possessions, we claim Christ as the Lord over all and we declare our complete confidence in God’s Word as we give and render support to those who He has called to teach us.

5.    Consistently Invite Others to Christ Mk 16:15 NLT It is our highest commission to invite those unfamiliar with Christ to enter His life. We are called to bear witness to his life with the power of the Holy Spirit. It is our greatest longing to include those distant from God into our heart, to invite them to know Christ and then to invest in their lives as they come to know Him.