Boys in the ‘70s and ‘80s loved to jump ramps. We would lay a post on the ground and nail one end of a piece of scrap plywood to it, and voila! a ramp. Most of these were rudimentary, made from found wood that we dragged home from someone’s trash. Some of the ramps were a wobbly mess. But not at my house. My dad, who’s life-motto seemed to be “SAFETY FIRST,” was not afraid to let his boys have a little fun. He knew we would crash horribly—everyone who jumps ramps will experience storybook wipeouts; it’s inescapable.
But the old engineer didn’t want our crashes to be the result of equipment failure. So when he saw us barreling down the sidewalk at top speed, about to throw ourselves into a barricade of junkyard scraps, he decided to build a ramp for us. The old engineer did it right, of course, and we always had the best ramp around. And boy, did we crash. I bumped into a childhood neighbor last week and he reminded me of the time when he broke his collarbone teaching us ‘little kids’ how to jump ramps. Forty years later, it remains a vivid memory.
The thing is, once you learn how to jump a ramp, you crash much less often. You learn to fly farther, with more stability, and you execute a smooth landing. There is a skill to it. You must lift your front wheel, and if you’re good you will lift the back too, but not too much. There’s a finesse it. But we became good at it—and we loved it. I loved the silence of flying through the air. There is nothing quite like jumping ramps, although a jump on snow skis is also pretty amazing.
R.A.M.P.S. will help you grow in Christ. Consider these five areas to help you mature as a Christian:
READ the word.
APPLY the word.
MEMORIZE the word.
PRAY the word.
SHARE the word.
Are you reading the word? Are you applying the word to your life, your problems, your circumstances? Are you praying the words of scripture? There is no more powerful way to pray than to quote God’s own word back to him. Are you sharing the word? Do you talk about the Bible with your friends? With the lost? Do you teach the Bible in Sunday school? Do you share your faith?
One of the best verses I ever memorized might be Joshua 1:8. What a great verse about success!
“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it, both day and night, being careful to do according to all that is written in it, for then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have success” Joshua 1:8.
Think about this promise: if you study the word day and night, you will have success! What a great promise from God—and a great passage to memorize.
A second example of taking the R.A.M.P.S. to discipleship happened today. While brewing a pot of coffee, I was complaining to the Lord that my son moved 400 miles away, that he may be there for years, and that God seems to have orchestrated the whole thing (against my wishes!). Five minutes later I was reading Genesis 21 and noted God’s words to Abraham after the man had to send away his son Ishmael: God said, “Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad…” Genesis 21:12. I knew that short phrase was for me today. I wrote it down. I APPLIED the words to my situation. I will think of them when I am bothered. I will also PRAY the word by asking God to help me to ‘let it not be grievous’ in my sight.
And that is how you grow in your faith. You read the word, apply it to your situation, use some of the exact words from scripture when you pray, then share what God is teaching you.
TAKE THE R.A.M.P.S. TO DISCIPLESHIP!
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