Life can be so busy! You work eight or more hours a day, come home to responsibilities, find time for exercise, socializing, important tasks, etc. At the end of the day it wouldn’t be a surprise if there was no time for quiet and introspection.

We’ve become so accustomed to busyness that when there is quiet, it can be frightening. I heard someone say that they have to have the television going on in the background at all times, even if they aren’t watching it, because the silence is unsettling.

Have you ever just turned everything off? Turn off the tv., the music, the white noise in the background. Take time for some serious introspection. Examine yourself.

The apostle Paul said in Philippians 3:7,8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ”.

Can you say that about your own life? Are you willing to count everything else in your life as loss or rubbish compared to the high value of knowing Christ? If you aren’t sure, ask God to show you where you need to change.

What is your relationship with God like? Is it close? Distant? Non-existent? Donald Whitney’s book, “Ten Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health” lists 10 questions we should ask ourselves. A few of those questions are:

–Do you Thirst for God?
In other words, do you love God will all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength?

–Are you governed increasingly by God’s word? Mr. Whitney stated in his book, “Do you find yourself inquiring—consciously–how the bible speaks to specific areas of life?”

–Do you still grieve over sin? Mr. Whitney stated, “The closer you get to Christ, the more you will hate sin”.

–Are you a quicker forgiver? Forgiveness is a hard test. But Jesus was clear that if we don’t forgive others, we can’t receive forgiveness. (Matthew 6:14,15)

I watched this video below recently and was reminded how important it is to examine ourselves.

2 Corinthians 13:5 says, “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?”

Paul Washer asks:

How do you know you are saved?

Do you tremble at God’s word or do you find loopholes around it?

He reminds us that we have assurance that we’re saved, not because we believed at one point in time, but because we still believe today. We have assurance not because we repented at one point in time, but because we continue to repent of sin today.

Contemplate whether or not you are saved. If you aren’t sure, read about The Path of Salvation.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/diegocupolo/3334244102/

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