Devotional

What’s Your Go-To?

Ready 

“Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray.” - Mark 1:35

Set 

When the lacrosse game was on the line and a goal was needed for the team, I went to my go-to move: the inside roll dodge. It was the move I practiced thousands of times and executed in competition with great success. The inside roll dodge was the move I relied on when the pressure was high and a goal was needed. This go-to move allowed me to excel, perform my best, and contribute to the team.

Coaches, teams and players know about go-to moves and how it can impact a game. A player with a signature go-to move is a game-changer. The go-to move is so effective, that you have no chance of stopping them.

Every athlete has their go-to move, and every coach has their go-to play. If this is true for the sports world, then I believe it is especially true for the spiritual world. What is your go-to move that allows you to be your best for Christ?

My friend and leadership expert Dan Webster recently shared with me three spiritual go-to moves. These three moves are habits of renewal that can help you maximize your impact for Christ.

1.      Go-To Place

Where do you go every day to connect with God? My go-to place is the desk my grandfather gave me while I was in college. Thousands of times, the desk has been my place of refuge where I worship God daily through prayer, reading and writing. The desk has become my spiritual gym where I workout every day to produce spiritual sweat!

Where and when we engage God is essential to a vibrant Christian walk. In Mathew 6:6, Jesus says, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.” Different translations use closet, inner room or private room. Where is your go-to place? Find one and get there every day. It will change your life.  

2.      Go-To Passage

What passage gives you the greatest comfort and hope, direction and guidance? What verses are reviving your soul? We all need a fresh go-to passage. I am not talking about your daily devotional reading, but rather one passage that you keep coming back to because it speaks to you. Psalm 19 has been my go-to-passage for the past month.

What verses are you chewing on daily? A go-to passage can be the same for a week, a month or a year. In Colossians 3:16, Paul encourages us, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” Get a go-to passage that can bring you life daily.

3.      Go-To Person

Everybody needs at least one go-to person. You can call at 3:00 a.m., and they will show up at your doorstep. Isolation is the Christian’s silent enemy; however, key relationships can stop the sin of isolation. So many people I know have gone down in flames because they did not have someone to do life with.  Chuck Swindoll wrote, “Accountability includes opening one's life to a few carefully selected, trusted, loyal confidants who speak the truth—who have the right to examine, to question, to appraise and to give counsel.”

In Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, Solomon reminds us why we all need a go-to person: “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.” Jimmy Page, my friend of 25 years, is my person. Who is your go-to person? Find one immediately. They can literally save you. Most likely, you can do the same for them!

When we have a go-to place, passage and person, we are putting ourselves in the best possible position to be used by God in a powerful way. Allow these three spiritual go-to moves impact your life and others!

Go 
  1. WHERE is your go-to place? Ask the Lord where He wants to meet with you daily.
  2. WHAT is your go-to passage? Find a passage that ministers to you. Pray it, study it, and soak in it.
  3. WHO is your go-to person? Ask the Lord to reveal to you a person who you can be an open book with. Go to them and ask them to be your go-to person.
Workout 
  • Matthew 6:6-8
  • Colossians 3:12-17
  • Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Overtime 

“Father, I realize that You want the very best for me because of Your bottomless, unconditional love. In response to Your great love, I desire to have these three spiritual go-to moves in place. I ask for You to show me the right place where You want to meet with me daily; for the right passage that will give me direction and hope for this current season; and for the right person who I can do life with. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.”

Bible Reference: 
Mark 1:35
Matthew 6:6-8
Psalms 119:1-176
Colossians 3:12-17
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12