I am a fan of the group Casting Crowns and was listening to “Slow Fade”, when the lyrics struck a chord with my heart:
It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself awayPeople never crumble in a day
It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade
You don’t become overweight in a day, you don’t get out of shape in a day, and you do not become spiritually lifeless in a day. It is a slow fade. Sometimes the spiritual fade is the hardest to see. Having troubling buttoning the jeans pretty clearly reveals the dietary issues. Puffing after a flight of stairs is a good sign of conditioning lapses. But the spiritual fade can be easy to overlook. C.S.Lewis wrote that “the safest road to hell is the gradual one - the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.”
So, how can I avoid the slow fade? One way is not allowing my road to be without signposts and milestones. Those signposts and milestones are found in God’s Word and I must keep them in my sight daily. Not reading the Bible each day is the surest way to begin my personal slow fade.
1"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:1-5
Jesus is saying that He is the true vine and if we are joined to Him we will produce fruit. It does not say we might produce fruit. It does not say we could produce fruit if our circumstances are right. Doesn’t say we will occasionally bear fruit. Jesus says that if we remain in Him we will produce fruit. A gardener knows that a vine may not produce for a season because of disease or bad conditions. But if that vine continues to be barren it is worthless and must be removed.
How do you produce the fruit that Jesus is describing? I say that you must abide in Jesus. What does it mean to abide? The simplest explanation is that our relationship with Christ is an unbroken connection. It is not a one-time or weekly or monthly or even yearly synchronization with Jesus. It is a moment by moment awareness of our connection to Christ. That connection to Him allows the fruit of the spirit to be a part of who we are. Paul describes what can be ours in his letter to the Galatians.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5: 22-23
By remaining in an unbroken connection with Christ we can begin to take on His character and produce that kind of fruit. And realizing that the only way to produce this fruit is being connected to Christ can help stop the slow fade.
The lyrics of the song Slow Fade contain another valuable truth. We are always closer to the slow fade than we realize and we are not as strong as we imagine.
The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking
I have experienced the slow fade more times than I would like to admit. I did not crumble in a day. When it happens again it will not be in a day. And Jesus has provided a way that I do not need to suffer the slow fade. My role is to stay connected.
It also says in Psalm 1:
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. 2 But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. 3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.
4 But not the wicked! They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind. 5 They will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. 6 For the Lord watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.
So we have found yourself out of contact with God or you are thinking that you’re in a slow fade. We can I do to get back on track? Well we need to start new habits. Sounds easy enough, right? I will tell you that it will take an effort, but it will be worth it in the long run.
To begin to get back on track or to get on track and start a new, we need to start new habits. The essence of starting new behavior is to devote 15 minutes a day to the formation of any habit you wish to establish, do this faithfully for 21 days, and try to do it the same time each day. By the fourth week, it will be harder not to engage in the new behavior than it would be to continue doing it. After 6 months, it will become part of your character.
For me to get into reading the Bible and studying God’s word took a great effort. [I am a slow learner] Anyway, I thought by reading the Bible would be a good start, but I found this difficult at times. So I decided to try to study topical studies, where I would try to find everyday situations that I came across and then think of Bible verses that would apply. I would then start writing these thoughts into devotionals.
It also helped that I got involved with a men’s Monday morning Bible study at Hardee’s. We take turns bringing a devotional and this helped me dig even deeper. Then in the fall of 2007 I felt like I was being led to do daily bible verse via email. This became my main focus, as I felt I was reading a Bible verse/study to my family every day.
Then Jayne bought me an IPOD for Christmas 2007 and I use this as another tool for my daily Bible Study. I subscribe to several Pod casts and listen to 3-4 sermons each day on my commute to work.
Just recently I started this Blog as another tool to continue my studies and share the Word. I guess looking back at this past 2 years I have realized that I am producing the fruit.
But, the devil is always there trying to get me to get into another slow fade. He will tell me to quit and put thoughts of doubt in my head. When I must take a few days off, I almost hear, go ahead quit, no one is really reading these and they take so much time. That’s how the Slow Fade starts. I pray everyday that God would keep me in His word and to keep the devil at bay.
I stepped on the scale the other day and I did have to go buy a larger size jean this week, so I guess it’s time to get back to the gym.
It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself awayPeople never crumble in a day
It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade
You don’t become overweight in a day, you don’t get out of shape in a day, and you do not become spiritually lifeless in a day. It is a slow fade. Sometimes the spiritual fade is the hardest to see. Having troubling buttoning the jeans pretty clearly reveals the dietary issues. Puffing after a flight of stairs is a good sign of conditioning lapses. But the spiritual fade can be easy to overlook. C.S.Lewis wrote that “the safest road to hell is the gradual one - the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.”
So, how can I avoid the slow fade? One way is not allowing my road to be without signposts and milestones. Those signposts and milestones are found in God’s Word and I must keep them in my sight daily. Not reading the Bible each day is the surest way to begin my personal slow fade.
1"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:1-5
Jesus is saying that He is the true vine and if we are joined to Him we will produce fruit. It does not say we might produce fruit. It does not say we could produce fruit if our circumstances are right. Doesn’t say we will occasionally bear fruit. Jesus says that if we remain in Him we will produce fruit. A gardener knows that a vine may not produce for a season because of disease or bad conditions. But if that vine continues to be barren it is worthless and must be removed.
How do you produce the fruit that Jesus is describing? I say that you must abide in Jesus. What does it mean to abide? The simplest explanation is that our relationship with Christ is an unbroken connection. It is not a one-time or weekly or monthly or even yearly synchronization with Jesus. It is a moment by moment awareness of our connection to Christ. That connection to Him allows the fruit of the spirit to be a part of who we are. Paul describes what can be ours in his letter to the Galatians.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5: 22-23
By remaining in an unbroken connection with Christ we can begin to take on His character and produce that kind of fruit. And realizing that the only way to produce this fruit is being connected to Christ can help stop the slow fade.
The lyrics of the song Slow Fade contain another valuable truth. We are always closer to the slow fade than we realize and we are not as strong as we imagine.
The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking
I have experienced the slow fade more times than I would like to admit. I did not crumble in a day. When it happens again it will not be in a day. And Jesus has provided a way that I do not need to suffer the slow fade. My role is to stay connected.
It also says in Psalm 1:
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. 2 But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. 3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.
4 But not the wicked! They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind. 5 They will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. 6 For the Lord watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.
So we have found yourself out of contact with God or you are thinking that you’re in a slow fade. We can I do to get back on track? Well we need to start new habits. Sounds easy enough, right? I will tell you that it will take an effort, but it will be worth it in the long run.
To begin to get back on track or to get on track and start a new, we need to start new habits. The essence of starting new behavior is to devote 15 minutes a day to the formation of any habit you wish to establish, do this faithfully for 21 days, and try to do it the same time each day. By the fourth week, it will be harder not to engage in the new behavior than it would be to continue doing it. After 6 months, it will become part of your character.
For me to get into reading the Bible and studying God’s word took a great effort. [I am a slow learner] Anyway, I thought by reading the Bible would be a good start, but I found this difficult at times. So I decided to try to study topical studies, where I would try to find everyday situations that I came across and then think of Bible verses that would apply. I would then start writing these thoughts into devotionals.
It also helped that I got involved with a men’s Monday morning Bible study at Hardee’s. We take turns bringing a devotional and this helped me dig even deeper. Then in the fall of 2007 I felt like I was being led to do daily bible verse via email. This became my main focus, as I felt I was reading a Bible verse/study to my family every day.
Then Jayne bought me an IPOD for Christmas 2007 and I use this as another tool for my daily Bible Study. I subscribe to several Pod casts and listen to 3-4 sermons each day on my commute to work.
Just recently I started this Blog as another tool to continue my studies and share the Word. I guess looking back at this past 2 years I have realized that I am producing the fruit.
But, the devil is always there trying to get me to get into another slow fade. He will tell me to quit and put thoughts of doubt in my head. When I must take a few days off, I almost hear, go ahead quit, no one is really reading these and they take so much time. That’s how the Slow Fade starts. I pray everyday that God would keep me in His word and to keep the devil at bay.
I stepped on the scale the other day and I did have to go buy a larger size jean this week, so I guess it’s time to get back to the gym.
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