- Consecrate yourself by devoting yourself to the Lord, repenting of your sins, and affirming your faith through baptism.
- Prioritize your spiritual life over your earthly life, draw closer to God through prayer and Biblical study, and act according to His will.
- Remember that consecration isn’t a one-time thing, but a daily act. Commit yourself to the Lord every morning and do your best to follow His will.
What is consecration?
Consecration means to dedicate yourself to something, usually God. The term “consecration” refers to the act of committing oneself to a specific purpose or intention. To “consecrate” yourself essentially means to wholly dedicate yourself to something of great importance, usually to a deity, and usually the Christian God. The term can also be used to refer to ordination into a sacred office. For most believers, however, it only refers to a basic, personal act of dedication. To “consecrate” something means to make that thing holy or sacred. In that sense, the act of consecration can also be defined as the act of being made sacred.
As a religious practice, consecration dates back to the Old Testament. The Christian practice of consecration is prevalent throughout the Bible. There are discussions about consecration in both the Old and New Testaments, and the practice is also frequently referred to by the Christian community of today. One of the earliest biblical references to the act of consecration can be found in Joshua 3:5. After wandering through the wilderness for 40 years, the people of Israel were commanded to consecrate themselves before entering the Promised Land. As this command was issued and followed, they were also assured that God would do great things and fulfill the promises He made to them. In the New Testament, in 2 Corinthians 6:17, God instructs his followers to "touch no unclean thing" and promises to receive them in response. Similarly, in Romans 12:1-2, Paul describes the necessity of viewing the body as a living sacrifice to God, set aside wholly for the worship of God and no longer for the ways of the world.
Consecration is considered a spiritual duty for Christians. God calls humanity to be consecrated to Him. The ability to consecrate yourself is only made possible by God, and the calling to do so comes directly from God. All holiness comes from God, and any holiness demonstrated by a human being is transferred to that person from God. Only God has the power to transform a human into something sacred, so in a sense, God is consecrating you—making you holy—once you decide to consecrate yourself. As the Creator, God wants each person to live in His image and likeness. As such, God wants to dedicate each person to a sacred or consecrated life.
Consecrating Yourself to God
Dedicate your heart to God. To consecrate yourself is to answer God's call to spiritual consecration. This means making a conscious, willing decision to dedicate your soul, mind, heart, and body to God. This decision must be one of will, intelligence, and affection. Only you can make the decision to consecrate yourself to God. No one else can push you into it. On a practical level, dedicating your heart to God means accepting Christ as your savior and building community with the church. Pray to God to receive you as His follower: "Dear Heavenly Father, I believe Jesus is Your holy son and that He was sent here to love us and save us from sin. Daily, I long to follow Your path. Help me to adhere to Your will, O God. Amen."
Reflect on your motives. Consecration is a holy calling, but it must be voluntary. Ask yourself if you are truly dedicated to God or if you are caving into external pressures. You must view your commitment to Christ as a priority, not a secondary option or passive experience. Only you and God know your heart, so don't worry about whether you appear to have the right motives. Ask yourself if you feel gratitude and love in your heart for God. If your heart is ready to be consecrated to God, it will love Him in response to the love He has for you. Ask God to help shed light on your true feelings if you're unsure of them. "Dear Father, I want to serve you in the way that is best. Help me to lead my life in accordance with Your will because I love You and long to do what is right, and not because I am led by the expectations of the rest of the world."
Repent. Repentance is one of the first acts you must undertake when you make the decision to consecrate yourself to God. The act of repenting involves the acknowledgment of your sins and the need for the salvation offered to you by Christ. Repentance is a personal experience, and it's also a fairly straightforward one. Upon gaining the desire to repent, all you need to do is pray for forgiveness and ask God to help you fight against temptation in the future. "Dear God, I know I have committed sins against You, and I ask for Your forgiveness and mercy, as well as the strength to follow Your will in the future. In Your name, amen."
Be baptized. Water baptism is an outward sign of inner consecration. In being baptized, you are given a new spiritual life and dedicated to a life lived for the service of Christ. Consider regularly renewing your baptismal promises, especially if you were baptized as an infant before the decision was completely yours to make. Renewal of your baptismal promises can happen in several ways. Some denominations, like Roman Catholicism, have the Sacrament of Confirmation, in which you confirm your own intention to remain consecrated to God. Without a separate sacrament, you can still renew your baptismal promises by reciting a creed of faith or by regularly praying a personal vow to God about your desire and intention to remain consecrated.
Separate yourself from the evils of the world. The Bible calls followers to be in the world, but not of the world. This means it's essential to prioritize your spiritual life over your physical one. This doesn't mean never enjoying the material goods the world has to offer or holding worldly values as unimportant; rather, it means regarding worldly things as significantly less important than spiritual things. On a practical level, this means rejecting things the world promotes when your faith tells you that those things are wicked. It also means following God's will for your life even when it seems to conflict with something neutral the world holds as a major priority—financial security, romantic love, etc. These “neutral” things can be good when used to serve God, but they are not to be prioritized over service to God.
Draw closer to God. Rejecting the wicked ways of the world will not be enough to truly transform you. The human spirit always needs to "drink" from some source. If you do not drink from a worldly source, you must drink from a divine source. Just as the body hungers for the ways of the world, the spirit thirsts for the ways of God. The more you train yourself to cave into the desire of your spirit, the easier it will become to continually turn to God. There are practical things you can do to draw closer to God. Weekly worship at a church and study of the Scriptures are 2 common and highly effective practices. Any activity that allows you to keep God as the focus of your life and encourages you to approach God can be used as a tool for that purpose. Regular prayer is one of the most effective ways to draw close to God: "Dear God, I love You with all my heart and I want to serve You all my days. Teach me to feel Your love today, and tomorrow, and forevermore. I desire nothing more than to be close to You. Amen."
Stay committed. Consecration is not a single, one-time-only decision. It is a way of living. When you make the decision to consecrate yourself, you must be prepared to continue pursuing God for the rest of your life. Even though you can only draw near to God after consecrating yourself, your consecration will never be "complete." You will never achieve perfect righteousness. God does not demand complete perfection, though. You are only asked to make the commitment and to actively pursue it. You can stumble as you walk the path, but you must choose to keep walking even when you do. When you fail (as everyone does, even the holiest of people), repent, and trust that God has forgiven you. Ask for strength to carry on and be better each day: "Dear Father, I trust in Your almighty power to forgive my sins. Help me to stay on Your path, even if I fail again and again. Teach me to be resilient, that I may never stop running the race for You. Amen."
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