DEFINITION and QUALITIES
A Christ-Centered Believer is an individual who has reached the point in time where Christ has taken centerstage in their life! For example, before making a decision involving a new romance, finance, new job, use of time, talent or other resources, the Christ-Centered Believer will pray about the decision, ask that His will to be shown to them, wait for an answer, and then follow what has been shown. And when an answer hasn't been received in a few weeks or months, they will take a step of faith in a direction where they think or feel they should go - as long as the decision honors and brings glory to Christ!

Also, with Christ at the center of their lives, they've taken His Word (The Bible) and applied many of its teachings to their lives.

FOCUSES
With Christ, His Word and His Spirit at the center of their lives, Christ-Centered Believers can now begin to focus on a few important building blocks for a life well-lived - one that please their Lord . Here they are:

• Self-Discovery.
• Apologetics.
• Ministry.

Self-Discovery
Self-discovery can be defined as, "The process of gaining an understanding and an awareness of one’s own personality, values, emotions, strengths, weaknesses, tendencies, and life-purpose. It involves examining who you were before Christ entered your life, and who you are now apart from external influences or expectations, as well as identifying what gives you meaning and purpose."

Here are some questions that will give you some ideas for finding strengths that can be used for The Lord and His Kingdom:

• What activities make me feel energized instead of drained?

• Which tasks do I learn quickly and with little effort compared to others?

• What do people often ask me for help with?

• What subjects or topics do I naturally enjoy learning about?

• When, and doing what, have I felt most confident and capable in my life?

• What achievements am I most proud of, no matter how small?

• What do I do that feels easy to me but seems difficult to others?

• Which moments at work, school, or in life make me lose track of time?

• What do I often volunteer to do without being asked?

• What personal challenges have I overcome that others struggle with?

• If I had to teach a class on one subject, what would it be?

• What hobbies or interests excite me even when no reward is involved?

• What kind of problems do I naturally enjoy solving?

• Which skills or talents come out when I’m under pressure?

• In a group setting, what role do I usually take (e.g., leader, planner, encourager, problem-solver, get-er done-er, etc.)?

• What feedback have I received in performance reviews, school, or casual conversations about my strengths?

Once you discover a handful of your strengths, take a little time to discover how and where God might use these for His Kingdom. Then, before you plug yourself into some kind of ministry, take an honest look at your personality, current abilities, as well as your communication abilities. This will be important because while you may have a gifting in certain areas of ministry you might not be as polished as you need be to be to work in that area - and will need to take some time to work on your current strengths, weaknesses, personality, abilities, communication and/or delivery skills. However, there are some things everyone can do right now. Here is a shortlist:

• Help with the cleaning of the church.
• Help with greeting.
• Being an usher.
• Running errands for the pastor or priest.
• Praying for the pastor or priest, daily.
• Praying for the church, daily.
• Praying for the church services.
• Praying for local churches and their pastors.

Once we take the time to discover and polish a few of these things, we've laid a foundation for us to build something honorable for our Lord!

Apologetics
Apologetics can be defined as, "The discipline of systematically defending and explaining the Christian faith through well-reasoned arguments, evidence, as well as giving answers to objections."

As a Christ-Centered Believer, you now have the maturity level - as well as the knowledge and insight into The Scriptures - where you can begin to engage others in discussions surrounding your faith in Christ! You are there because you've had time to (A) pray a lot and have numerous answered prayers, (B) read a lot and have numerous Biblical connections come to mind as you've read, and (C) have been inspired several times by His Spirit to do something that didn't make sense at the time but later you discovered you had been led by His Spirit and accomplished something pretty amazing!

Additionally, you've probably already read the admonition that The Apostle Peter gave to all Christians when he said:

"But in your hearts set Christ apart [as holy—acknowledging Him, giving Him first place in your lives] as Lord. Always be ready to give a [logical] defense to anyone who asks you to account for the hope and confident assurance [elicited by faith] that is within you, yet [do it] with gentleness and respect." I Peter 3:15

Apologetics is an important topic to learn for all Christ-Followers because we have been called to be salt and light in this world in this world and point people to Christ. Now, this doesn't mean that all of us should become apologists or engage in public debates. Rather, it means we should all learn how to defend our faith against some of the simpler and more common attacks against Christianity.

Ministry
Ministry can be defined as, "The act of serving others in the name of God, meeting their spiritual, physical, or emotional needs, and carrying out the mission of Christ. It is heartfelt service motivated by love for God, love for people, and eternal impact on His Kingdom."

Ministry can be as large as being a pastor, priest, missionary, or evangelist. And, it can be as small as listening to people when they need to vent; spending hours in prayer, praying for people who don't know the Lord, people who know the Lord, pastors, priests, churches, missionaries, evangelists, neighbors, people at work, people at your hobby, people with whom you went to elementary, junior, middle, high, undergrad, or graduate school, politicians, teachers, government officials; or giving a cup of cold water to a child or homeless person! Anything done FOR the Lord and FOR His Kingdom is considered a ministry!

As someone who's placed Christ at the center of their life and is mature enough to go through the above-mentioned activities, it's now time to pray, find a ministry, and then plug yourself in and watch how God uses the life He's given to you. It's only a matter of time before you find exactly where God wants you to be!

I pray this article has been helpful. If you have questions or comments, you can email me here.

In His Name,

Roy