Yesterday we looked at the prayer offered by the men from Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh in the middle of a battle:

God delivered the Hagrites and all their allies into their hands, because they cried out to him during the battle. He answered their prayers, because they trusted in him. (1 Chronicles 5.20, NIV)

But they didn’t just pray, they had trained!

The Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh had 44,760 men ready for military service—able-bodied men who could handle shield and sword, who could use a bow, and who were trained for battle. (1 Chronicles 5.18, NIV

“…able-bodied men who could handle shield and sword, who could use a bow, and who were trained for battle.” And how does one become “able to handle shield and sword”? How does one become proficient with a bow? Answer: by training! And if you think back to the Olympic athletes, what does training look like?

The simple things that lead to success are all easy to do. They’re also just as easy not to do. – Jim Rohn

And this brings us back to my friend Mike and the difficulty he is having just helping his men get into the habit of daily time with God. If we know what to do, why don’t we do it?

• We don’t start small enough. When I teach time with God, I always encourage folks to start with just 10 – 15 minutes. I’ve had some people balk: “Only 15 minutes?! I should be doing an hour!!” My response is always, “God would rather you give him 15 minutes than NOT give him an hour.”

• We don’t see far enough Growth takes time, but growth does occur over time. A lot of folks quit when they’re not making progress as fast as they want.

[Jesus] also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. (Mark 4.26 – 28, NIV)

• We don’t want to. You will not want to do something until you’ve first done it when you didn’t want to. (compare Hebrews 12.11)

• We just don’t!

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on… (Philippians 3.12 – 14, NIV)

Do the work! Easy to do…easy not to do:

Keep up with your daily time with God; practice the one thing that will improve your relationship with someone; practice one thing for physical fitness; put sermons into practice…

David said to Solomon, be strong, and do the work! (1 Chronicles 28.10)