Seek Him with all your Heart

 Jer 29:13

And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Every year this day holds special meaning for me. It is the day that I found the Lord to be real to me. It was a turning point in my life that I still hold as the most important day of my life. It was a Thursday evening in a small church in Cucamonga, California. I don’t remember the message that Rev. J.E. Cook preached that revival night. I just remember seeking to find forgiveness and acceptance. 51 years ago, I knelt at an altar of prayer as these strangers gathered around me praying that God would save me from a life lived in sin to a new life in Christ. The journey since that day remains the same. I still seek and search for Him with all my heart. He has never failed me, and is always there when I need Him. It has been a life of seeking, a desire to know the will of God. “Seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” Matt. 6:33 has been the journey and destination theme of my life. The path to my eternal destination is filled with failures, disappointments, and unwanted circumstances, but through it all He has never been a disappointment or led me astray. As I continue this journey, I pray that the Lord will let me see my kids and grandkids come to Him as I have known Him. He is everything to me and each day, I will seek Him with all my heart, and will be found by Him.

Repent and be Converted

Act. 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

Repenting is to be sorrowful for wrong doing and to turn away from doing it again. Many people will often be sorry for their behavior, but find themselves repeating the offense. They have not truly repented, but seek only to be relieved from the guilt of doing wrong. The process of true repentance requires a conversion. All things passed away and all things become new. A born again experience in Christ. Being converted is more than just changing religions or a mind set, it is a change of heart. The heart is the centrality of man’s passions and desires. From the heart rise the issues of life. A true repentance, will convert the heart from doing what is wrong to doing what is right. This is the center of the teaching of Bible Holiness. The heart is made new through the blood of Christ that blots out our sins, and Holy Spirit indwelling the believer to live a life that is truly repented. 

You Must Be Born Again

John 3:6,7  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

A new chance at life. Born again is a new beginning with a new heart. The old heart was dead in trespasses and sin, it was sold under sin and a servant to the nature of sin. The old life has been put to rest with its deeds of unrighteousness. The old life was burden down with guilt and shame, but the Spirit of God through Christ has removed the load of sin and it has been cast into the sea of God’s forgetfulness to be remember against us no longer. His blood now cleanses us from all sin and we have been born again through His grace and mercy. Born again and there has been a change in me, old things have past away, and all things have become new. We now see life through different lens, our world view and what is important in life is now set on things above and not on things of this world. Being born again is not turning over a new leaf, but having the experience of growing new from the branch, a new leaf in the vine of God’s love. Being born again is more than just believing that Jesus is God and came to the world to save sinners, it is allowing His Spirit to make us what we ought to be, a new creature in Christ Jesus. If eternal life is your desire, Jesus said, you must be born again!

Follower of the Lord

1 Thess 1:6 And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.

I became a follower of the Lord on this day 43 years ago. This is my story. I grew up in a religious home. Went to church every Sunday, taught to respect the sacred things of God. The church was my religion. I had a sense of security knowing I went to a church that promised that as long as I kept the tenants of the church and was faithful to its teaching, that I would have a place in heaven when I died. I never recalled anyone telling me that I could have a personal relationship with God and know Him through Christ. Yes, there was a lot of symbolic rituals that pointed toward having communion with Christ, but I was never told that I could go personally to Christ and asked for forgiveness and that the Bible taught that He and He alone is able to forgive. I never was encouraged to read the Bible for myself. We had a large  Bible in our home, but it was never opened and read in our home. We were sent to church school to learn about the teachings of the church, but I never recalled ever opening a Bible. So at the age of 15, I began my quest to learn what the Bible taught. A whole new world was opened up to me. I thought I knew a lot about God and His love, but His Word opened my heart to truths that went far beyond the teaching of the church. It was in the Word that I learned about the life of Jesus, how He lived and how He wanted me to live. Reading the writings of Paul opened my eyes about human nature and how we overcome the flesh and the temptations of life. I found that stories in the OT held truths and life applications that were invaluable. Being a follow of the Lord was more that going to church on Sunday, it was a life style that I would seek to live to this very day. I don’t claim to be perfect, and I have made my share of mistakes in life, but this one thing I know, once I was blind, but now I see. Thank God, I became a follower of the Lord and received His Word in much affliction, but with joy in the Holy Spirit. 

New Life in Christ

2 Cor 5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things have become new.”- 

It was Feb 21st, 1974 that I began my spiritual journey as a new babe in Christ. The life I lived before Christ was a short 15 years. The sins of my life were washed in the blood of Christ. I became a new person, and slowly my life style started to change as I grew in the knowledge of my Lord. Life now had new meaning and purpose as my eyes were open to spiritual truths. I now look at life through the eyes of God’s Word. Christ became the center of my Life and everything I did was focused on pleasing Him. Almost 40 years later, and I don’t regret the path that I choose to take. A life of full surrender and adventure as I journey this earth with the Lover of my Soul by my side. 

Born Again in Christ

39 years ago today on a Thursday evening, February 21st, 1974 I knelt at an altar of prayer in Cucamonga California confessing my sins and asking Jesus to come into my heart. My life changed forever more on that Thursday evening. Rev. J.E Cook was preaching revival. I remember coming home that night with Pattie and telling my mother that I had accepted Jesus as my Savior. Things are different now, my coarse was set and I have never seriously looked back.

From Death To Life

 From Death to Life

Born in Sin

Romans:3:23-For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

 

We were conceived in sin and born into this world with the sin nature. As children, we were trained to suppress the nature of sin and discipline our lives to exhibit good behaviors. We came into the world as a self-centered being demanding the attention of others. Although involuntary, our human and sinful nature is focused on survival of self. 

Brought Up “Right”

 Eph. 1:8,9-For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: ⁹Not of works, lest any man should boast. 

As we grow and mature, we begin to make voluntary choices. If we are trained properly, the choices we make will be founded on Biblical principles of right and wrong. It would seem, that if we continue on this path of doing good, that God would be pleased with us and for such good living we should not be denied the reward of eternal life. It is this premise that many in the world have rooted themselves in the soil of self-righteousness. As long as I am a good person who treats all mankind with love and respect, I have no need for any kind of savior. Religion (Salvation through Christ) is for those who have made bad choices in life and have messed up. This was the mentality of the rich young ruler who came to Jesus and asked, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life”. He was raised in a good home that followed the moral standards of good behavior. What else did he need? 

Born Again- A man name Nicodemus

John 3:7- Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Nicodemus also inquired about the kingdom of God and seemed to understand that there was more to eternal life than living a good moral life. Unless made clear from the pulpits of churches, many find security in going to church following the creed of religious rituals, and adhere to exhortation of good behavior to obtain the approbation of God. 

Become a New Creature

2 Corinthians 5: 17-Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Eph. 2: 3- Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

The new life in Christ brings about many changes in the life of the believer. Some of these changes will occur instantly and others, like the metamorphosis of a butterfly will occur slowly over time. What kind of changes can a believer in Christ expect?

• A clean conscience- Guilt of sin is gone- Like Christian in PP- Load sin is gone
• Peace of mind- Anxiety of one’s eternal destiny is at rest
• Desire to talk with God- Sweet communion with the lover of your soul
• A need to be with God’s people- We have fellowship one with another
• Manifestation of the Fruit of the Spirit- often added to our faith/new life
• Lifestyle changes- With the help of the Holy Spirit and good Bible teaching, we begin to alter our conduct and behavior so as to be consistent with Biblical principles of godly living. Such changes are made willingly as individuals completely surrender their life to God is full consecration and abandonment to the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit is given complete right away and control in all areas of a person's life. It is no longer my will, but the will of Him who gave His life for me that guides and directs life.