“Human nature tends toward inertia, and must have a stimulant; people to help and encourage them, and tools to help them to succeed in their mission.” (Dawson Trotman)
Dawson Trotman, the founder of the Navigator ministry, stated this human spiritual need very accurately. We do not get stronger and more spiritual without help. We tend to “run down,” rather than “up”. How many of us have been inspired at a Church or conference, and feel that we are finally on the right track and will never slow down, only to quickly find that the temptations of life are still there, and must be fought daily.
He gave us a clear answer. We need other Christians to encourage and challenge us to trust God and keep on the “course”. I look back over many years as a Christian and see that God has greatly used other believers in my life to “see” God’s truth and encouraged me to believe and trust Him. When I first received Christ as my Savior in the Army, I thought that I didn’t need anyone else. I made many mistakes and failures until I learned the importance of finding a good church and uniting strongly with others.
The second need is to discover “tools” or to develop right habits to stay close to God daily, and seek to obey His Word in every area of life. We will look at some of these helps in this booklet.
“I am the Vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me (close to me) and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)