Today, I want to begin a conversation about consistency and the theme of consistency. The more I study and delve into this truth—this idea, this thought—the more overwhelmingly convincing it becomes to me that consistency is everything. It is not optional; it is not who you want to be one day, but who you are called and created to be. In fact, if you are created in the image of God, that means you are designed to be consistent. I want to talk to you about that today. There’s so much to unpack, and we will be exploring it over the next few weeks. However, I believe it will bless you.
I want to quickly offer a couple of thoughts about consistency. First and foremost, if you’re taking notes, write this down: consistency is the bridge between dream and reality. It is the bridge. Some of you, God has placed a dream in your heart or caused you to believe in something and put your hope in it; however, your reality does not align with the things God has called you to believe. Have you ever been there before? Perhaps you came to church or, since childhood, there was a word over your life that you’ve held onto. You’ve done your best to maintain that word, but you haven’t seen it manifest. I’m here to tell you that consistency will get you there, and God will show you how to be consistent. We’re going to discuss it, and it’s going to be really good. I can’t wait!
So, consistency is the bridge between dream and reality. Here’s another thought about consistency that I want you to understand: consistency is the evidence of maturity. It is also the pathway to mastery. When I say mastery, I am not suggesting you arrive at a place where you do not need anything else or won’t ever need to grow. That’s not what I mean. There are levels to this journey. Do me a favor—turn to your neighbor and say, «There are levels to this journey.» You must master life at a certain level in order to be promoted to the next level.
Consistency is the evidence of maturity. A one-hit wonder situation is not maturity; it’s not about doing something once or twice. That’s why the Bible talks about how we should not be like children tossed to and fro (that’s Ephesians 4). In the context of God discussing how we are to grow up and become something, he is saying that ultimately, when this growth happens, we won’t be tossed to and fro. We won’t be happy today and sad tomorrow—hello, somebody! We won’t be full of faith today and filled with fear the next day. There is a process in your development—a work happening in your spiritual maturity—that leads you to a place of solidity and consistency. This is a sign of your maturity and a pathway to mastery.
Can we go further today? Are we tracking together this morning? When I talk about consistency, I’m ultimately discussing arriving at a state where there is rhythm and flow in your life that allows everything God has placed in you to flow out of you. Oh, we’re going to teach today! It’s a rhythm; it’s a flow. Consistency is a state you reach, and becoming consistent is a process. It takes time to achieve that level of consistency. I feel that some of you are discouraged because you desire a promise that can only manifest when you become consistent in a season where God is developing your consistency. Oh, God, I feel the Lord is developing it, and it takes time. Let me stick to my notes because we have a lot of ground to cover.
This state of consistency takes time. Watch this: because you have to sort through some things and first navigate distractions to get there. I want to discuss this in light of Psalm 1. I want to explore the stages of maturation—or the stages of becoming mature—that ultimately bring you to a place of consistency. Here are the three stages, and we’ll see how they are laid out in Psalm 1, leading you to this place of maturation. Does anyone want to be consistent? Is anyone tired of being up one day and down the next, all over the place? We’re going to get there, and I believe this is God’s will for our lives. He’s going to show us how to get there, and I believe He has laid it out in Psalm 1. The stages of maturation are: one, clarity; two, consistency; and three, continuous revelation. Let’s talk about it! Go back to Psalm 1, and let’s get into it. He says, «Blessed is the man…» Look at where he begins; he says, «Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.» He starts off talking about what a blessed man does. What is interesting to me is that as he leads us on this journey, he ultimately guides us to a place…
