Shane was a college lacrosse goalie who was playing on our Fellowship of Christian Athletes lacrosse team in Vail, Colorado. During the tournament, God got ahold of Shane, and I remember being with him when he surrendered his life to Jesus. After the trip, I invited Shane to meet weekly for discipleship over breakfast.

One morning after two months of meeting, he was waiting for me at the restaurant with a big grin on his face. Before I could even sit down, Shane said loudly so I and other people in the restaurant could hear, “I figured it out! I figured it out!” Shane was practically over the table with his Bible wide open. He got right in my face, and with one hand under his open Bible and the other hand literally slapping the pages of his open Bible, Shane said these exact words with his face one inch from the open Bible: “I figured it out. I realized this week that if I do not get my face in the Book, I am dead meat! I GOTTA GET MY FACE IN THE BOOK!”

Someone who gets their “face in the Book” is someone who has a passionate personal pursuit of Jesus. In 1 John 2:6, we are encouraged not to just profess Jesus, but to live as Jesus did. This biblical challenge encourages us to grow spiritually first. You can’t give away what you don’t have. Your public impact on others is directly related to your private walk with Jesus.

As followers of Jesus, we need to focus on two things—pursuing and abiding. Pursuing is engaging God daily, no matter what and connecting with Almighty God each day. When you come to the understanding that the most vital part of the day is before God in worship and study, you will experience breakthrough. Therefore, it becomes a non-negotiable. There is an internal drive to practice spiritual disciplines and an unrelenting drive to pursue God. Abiding is the sustaining, day-to-day walking with Jesus.

The characteristics of a fully devoted follower of Christ:

• Engages God daily
• Reads and meditates on the Word
• Prays and listens
• Worships and pursues

We must do whatever it takes to pursue God daily and get our face in the Book. If we don’t, our lives will be impacted. If we do, our lives will be impacted. In the first scenario, the impact will be that we will be dead meat. In the second, we will have abundant life.

Get your face in the Book daily. It’s not just checking the box and going through the motions. It is an intentional pursuit of God. Start today. Pursue and abide daily.