When my wife and I were contemplating having a second child, we contacted our insurance agent and told him to add maternity coverage to our policy. He said he would do it, and we remember being told at one point that the extra policy rider was in place. Imagine our surprise when she got pregnant, and we discovered we didn’t have maternity coverage.
There’s a great lesson here: The best time to buy insurance is BEFORE you need it!
- You don’t buy auto insurance after you rear-end someone.
- You don’t buy flood insurance after heavy rains fill your basement with water.
- You don’t get health insurance after you have a heart attack.
- And you don’t get maternity insurance after you get pregnant.
The same principle applies to our spiritual lives. The best time to get spiritual insurance is before you need it. We should prepare for a spiritual crisis BEFORE we experience it.
In Psalm 32, David reflects upon his sin with Bathsheba. While he emphasizes the blessing of forgiveness, he also owned up to his moral failure. In verse 6 he says, “Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to you in a time when you may be found. Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach them” (Psalm 32.6). He said to prepare for the floodwaters of temptation BEFORE they arrive.
There are three disciplines every Christian should know and practice. They act as insurance against temptation. They are Bible study, prayer, and worship.
Bible study lets us read about men and women who properly dealt with temptation. The Bible also exposes us to powerful spiritual principles. Psalm 119.11 says, “Your word I have treasured in my heart that I may not sin against you.”
Prayer lets us confess our weaknesses to God and ask for his help. Jesus said every day we should ask our Father to, “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6.13).
Finally, worship gives us a forum in which we can encourage one another. The writer of Hebrews said, “…let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (Hebrews 10.24-25).
The best way to avoid spiritual failure is spiritual insurance in the form of Bible study, prayer, and worship so that we can successfully fight our daily temptations. Make sure you’re covered.