She was into witchcraft until she got to college and her Christian roommate asked her to go to a sermon. Then something wonderful happened!
When we hear the call of Jesus in our hearts and choose to follow Him our faith is the drip that becomes, or should become, a roar in our lives. God uses the Holy Spirit to touch our hearts and plant a seed that will grow into a new creation. It is our responsibility to help that seed to grow by watering it with the Living Water of God’s Word.
Some people tend toward watering it occasionally, like once or twice every year. Some who feel God leading them into a deeper relationship will water it a few times every month. Those who demand to be His disciples and want an intimate relationship with Him will water that seed every day regardless of what is going on in their lives. On the drive to work, while they are at work they will listen to Bible readings when they can. They will listen to praise and worship music and be in the spirit of worship on their way home.
I’m sure there are some different people who fit into a category in between those that I spoke about in the paragraph above and there are a few who dive deeper into the Scriptures than the disciples I spoke about as well. My point is that we, as Christian believers, fall into all sorts of slots and categories. Some are deeply involved in the mission field, some teach classes at the church, some lead Bible study sessions/classes at their homes and then there are some who have received Jesus and are confused about their role so they don’t do anything with it except attend church…sometimes.
There were people in all of these areas even in the early church but not many. Why do I say this? Because, most of the people in that early church just fifty to one hundred years after Jesus was taken up to Heaven were Jewish converts to Christianity. They had the Scriptures that were taught in their synagogues and had learned to have faith in God from their history and the prophets and had been persuaded that their Messiah was Jesus Christ! While it was true that there were also many pagans who had come to know Jesus as their Savior, a good percentage of the early church were, like Paul, converts from Judaism. Their faith was built on the Old Testament and what they had heard from the disciples and Paul himself. Most of them had unshakable faith.
The church today has become more “flexible” in their teachings and in their faith which can be a good thing but in some areas of the “message” flexibility can be a bad thing. Because it can lead many to believe that they can live like a Christian and not commit deeply to it. Being “like a Christian” is like being “sorta pregnant”, it doesn’t work that way! You either are or you’re not!
I don’t know Jesus as my Savior? When Jesus called His disciples, they didn’t know Him either.
I’ve done so many things wrong in my life. Will God even consider saving me? Jesus saved the thief on the cross next to Him. He didn’t ask what he had done or if he was willing to change, he didn’t have time. The thief just asked Jesus to “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus told him “Today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
I don’t go to church and I’ve never read a Bible. Would God want me? Yes! Jesus came to save the lost, not those who thought they didn’t need Him. God calls us to be His. He chooses us to become His disciples so when you feel His touch in your heart, answer His call because that Is what you are feeling. All it takes is your willingness to say, “Jesus, come into my heart and change me to be Yours.” Then, go to church and read the Bible so you can learn more about your Savior.
I’ve been in church since I was little. I already know Him. But…I feel empty inside. Why? If you still feel an empty feeling inside, even if you’ve been in a Bible-teaching church since you were young, then you may still need to get to know Jesus as your Savior. Being in the church can give us a false sense of safety because we sing the songs and we’ve heard and read most of the Scriptures and you might have felt Him convict you of your need for a Savior, you might’ve just brushed the feeling away. This is when you need to seek Him in the gospels. Pray about your feeling of emptiness and ask Him to come into your heart and fill that place up.
God is moving in the world today bringing many people to Himself for their salvation. Even in places where they can’t go to church or maybe they don’t own a Bible. He is still making a way for them to come to Jesus and know Him as their Savior. If you don’t know or you’re not sure, seek Him at a Christian friend’s house or at a church. Get a Bible and read the gospels of Luke and John and pray that He will show you Who He is and that you need Him. We are very close to the time of the Tribulation foretold in the book of Revelation. Don’t wait. Seek Him today.
Shooting children? Why?
Life isn’t bad enough? Yet it seems that some just want to make it worse because of their actions that don’t make sense at all. Murdering children that haven’t even had a real chance to enjoy life. These children were wanted and loved by their families…what reason could possibly be given for this atrocity?
Gun control won’t help. Outlawing any kind of gun won’t help. The guns are not the problem nor is the availability of the guns. Our country has forgotten its roots that were deeply grounded in the Bible at one time. Parents and grandparents used to teach their children about God and pray with them about things that were going on in the world. We need to get back to that practice again!
God loves each of us and He placed those children on this Earth for a purpose but someone’s idea of killing them cut that purpose short. God knew of this but it is our responsibility to teach our children the right way to live according to God’s law. When I was growing up during the ’70s nearly every pickup that you saw had either a rifle or a shotgun or both in the cab on a gun rack visible to anyone. There were no shootings at the time that I remember. What happened?
We have walked away from our faith in God and particularly in the last few years because COVID gave everyone an excuse to leave the church and most haven’t gone back. We need God in our lives every day and those who feel that He doesn’t exist or don’t want to believe that He is real are going to be in for a huge surprise one day…soon.
Psalm 139 says in part: 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
I pray that each of you will seek Jesus out today to learn of Him and what He offers to all who will believe in Him for their salvation.
The Living Message of Christ 