A New Start

Life may not be as simple as you once thought. For instance, by now you have probably discovered that all roads do not lead to God. Well there is good news for those who are at this crossroad. The Bible offers a new life, one filled with purpose, fulfillment, and acceptance. It is a new start. And the steps are simple:

1. recognize that you are a sinner.

First you must admit your spiritual need: “There is none righteous, no, not one” [Romans 3:10]. We can’t make excuses or blame others or our circumstances for our actions. “For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God” [Romans 3:23]

2. recognize that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for you.

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God…” [1 Peter 3:18]. Jesus paid the price for your sin. The Apostle Paul said, “…the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” [Galatians 2:20].

3. repent of your sins.

The word “repent” means “to change your direction.” The Bible tells us, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord” [Acts 3:19]. God tells us to repent. You must be willing to turn away from the things that displease God.

4. accept Jesus as your Savior.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” [Matthew 11:28]. It is essential that you come to Jesus as you are. Don’t Try to “clean up your life” before you come to God. Instead, receive Him and allow Him to do the “cleansing.” Jesus said, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out” [John 6:37]

If you are at a point in your life where you are ready to do those four basic steps, then let me help you with a simple prayer you can pray. Understand that there is no magic in the prayer itself. But, if you are sincere as you pray, then God will do something great in your life. He will go from just being God, to being your God. He will be like a Father to you.

Prayer:

God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I will never get good enough to earn Your love for me. The only hope I have is Jesus. He died on the cross for me and paid for all the sins that I ever did. Please forgive me for doing all the things that I have done. I willingly become one of Your children, and accept the fact that Jesus is Lord. Jesus, will You be my Savior? Thank You for forgiving me of my sin and alowing me to become one of Your children.

If you did the above things, then you have just become a Christian. You have always been loved by God, now you get to know that love more deeply.

Leave a comment, and I will pray for you.

The Hole in Our Heart

The other day a man stumbled into the hospital barely conscious. One minute he had his senses, the next he was delirious. The trained hospital staff jumped into gear and put the gentleman on to a gurney and whisked him off to be examined. The ER doctor was called and as the gurney was being rushed through the corridors, the doctor stepped out of a room and joined in the rush down the hall. On the way he looked the man over. No sign of outward damages. In fact, from the outside the patient looked as though everything was fine. Obviously the problem was internal.

As the staff wheeled the man into an examining room, the doctor was checking the pulse. Something was wrong. There was something about that heart that wasn’t quite right. X-rays were ordered. Sure enough, when the X-rays came back that doctor saw the problem. It was a major heart condition. In the very center of the heart there was a huge hole that seemed as big as eternity. The man had basically been living his entire life as a dead man, as a man with a hole in his heart. Short of giving the man a new heart, there was nothing that could be done.

But, instead of telling this helpless man what needed to be done, the doctor decided what the best thing to do was to distract the man from his condition.

“You know, what you need is a new car. That ought to make you feel better. Get a good looking woman to hang on your arm and you should be as good as new. In fact, you’re a good guy- that condition isn’t as bad as the X-ray says. Those people who tell you that you have a problem are a bunch of morons. Where do they get off trying to tell a guy like you that you need a whole heart to be healthy. Bunch of medical fundamental extremists! They’re all a bunch of morons!”

Though the afore mentioned doctor is fictitious, he does illustrate that this is the type of advice we are getting today about our spiritual condition. Ignore the problem of the hole in our hearts, trying to distract us, play it up as not that important, act like it doesn’t exist, even condemn those who would be so narrow minded as to point it out.

But it is true- we have all sinned. We have all fallen short. Solomon makes this point well in the Old Testament book called Ecclesiastes.

For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.

Ecclesiastes 7:20

To tell you anything less is to play the role of the unfit doctor. We need God’s help to repair the damage that sin left- a hole in our hearts, and that hole is as big as eternity, it is as big as God, and only God will satisfy our deepest longings and needs. When a person responds to the love of God, he will find that the damaged heart will be on the way to healing.

A Few Q’s for You

How were or are you distracted from your need for God?

How has God filled that hole in your heart?

Write your answers in a “comment”. Keep it anonymous if it is too personal. I’ll pray for you.