My King

The first time I realized how awesome a savior my King was, I was reading a book, and no, it wasn't the bible!  It was shortly after I accepted Christ. I remember thinking, 'Wow, Jesus is all these things & more and he still wants a relationship w/me?' I felt so unworthy. But then I thought, 'Who am I to question God's love?'. God's love just is...and what's even more amazing about God's love is that it's the same for all of us--for every single solitary person on the planet! He loves us all exactly the same no matter who we are, or what we've done, or how much we don't deserve it.

What person do you know that you can honestly say that about?!?!? Do you know anyone who would give up their one & only Son because of the love they have for someone else? I don't. People don't naturally love like that, only God does. The bible tells us that as believers, we are to love one another.

1 John 4:7-8...Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. (NIV)

1 John 4:10-11...This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. (NIV)

  But do we honestly make a habit of loving others as our Lord Jesus Christ did? I know I haven't. Not always anyway, but I'm learning to. You see, the most incredible thing about Christ living in you, is that as your faith grows you start to uncover just who He is & what He is all about. You discover that one day when you weren't even aware of it, He placed compassion in your heart where before there was none. He deposits empathy where once you were full of apathy. Where unforgiveness used to reign over you keeping you in bondage, he breaks the chains with His perfect absolution and mercy.

How do I know these things? How can I claim this about Him? I tell you these things because this is what my Lord has done for me. He has been transforming me from the inside out, to become more and more like Him from the moment I surrendered my life to God and accepted His awesome grace in Christ Jesus. Sounds impossible you say...? Well, with man it is. There's no way any counseling or self-help book could do for me what my Savior has done, that's for sure!

(NKJV) Matthew 19:26...But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

There was a time in my life when I never thought I'd be able to forgive...anyone.....ever. Being sexually abused as an adolescence by someone I loved, who was supposed to love me kinda poisoned me as far as the whole trusting others thing went. Once I did let someone in though, the moment you betrayed my trust, that was it. We were through. No second chances, no making up. I'd burn that bridge so fast believing that there was NO way that person would ever be able to hurt me again. Little did I know that unforgiveness  works to turn your heart bitter toward others.

As I have learned from my Pastor at church..."Unforgiveness in any relationship will effect every relationship."--P. Troy Gramling of Potential Church. You see, there was no way anything I could do would be able to cure my broken heart, only Christ can! He is capable of everything I have mentioned tonight and MORE! I wonder, do you know Him?




I personally believe that if all of us who claim to be Christians would seek to live out our lives as Jesus lived His, the world would be blinded by the light and love of our Savior King and so many more who are lost would come to the Truth and be saved from the web of lies that the world has spun around them!


Until my next post...

(NIV) Ephesians 3:16-19...I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Religion vs. Relationship

I touched briefly on this topic in my last post, but ever since then I've been feeling the Spirit in me nudging me to delve deeper into "religion vs. relationship", to fully explain the truths He has shared with me and that have been revealed to me through the seeking of God's Word and studying the scriptures. 

In order to see the difference between the two, lets define them. Here's the definition of 'Religion' according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary...

"Religion: (1a) the service and worship of God or the supernatural; (b) commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance. (2) a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices; a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith."

Here's what Wikipedia had to say about Religion...

"Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values.^[1] Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to explain the origin of life or the universe. They tend to derive morality, ethics, religious laws or a preferred lifestyle from their ideas about the cosmos and human nature."

From the definitions above, 'Religion' is defined as something we humans practice in order to please God; to try to gain his favor or approval in our lives. There's a problem with that though. God cannot approve of the spiritually dead. God only accepts what is holy, and there is only one of us who ever lived a perfectly holy and blameless life, His Son, Jesus Christ.

(NIV) Romans 3:10- "As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one;"

(NIV) Romans 3:23- "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,"  


If you are not in Christ, you are in Adam and are spiritually dead. As I pointed out in my last post, we are all born into the world spiritually dead because of Adam & Eve and their betrayal  in the Garden of Eden.

Bob George explains it this way in his book Classic Christianity. "From God's point of view there are only two kind of people in this world: those who are in Adam, and those who are in Christ. To be "in" somebody might sound strange, but put simply, it means that they are your family head. The two family heads in this world are Adam & Jesus Christ." 


When we are in Christ, God sees us as totally acceptable and righteous in His sight-not because of what we do, because of what Christ has done for us. Without Christ none of us can be counted as holy or blameless in God's sight, and nothing we do, including serving a religion, can change that fact.

Now let's define relationship. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary says...

Relationship- (1) the state of being related or interrelated; (2) the relation connecting or binding participants in a relationship; Kinship. (3) a romantic or passionate attachment.

Dictionary.com says...

Relationship- 1. a connection, association, or involvement. 2. connection between persons by blood or marriage. 3. an emotional or other connection between people.

From these short definitions, a relationship sounds like much more than a religion. It is defined as a deeper, more personal connection between persons. You see, God longs to have a real connection with us. That was His plan from the creation of the world!

I like what Mark Hall, (lead singer of Casting Crowns), wrote in his book The Well..."Have you ever sensed God trying to break through, saying 'I am NOT a book. I am a Person who wants to know YOU!' ?"
 

God didn't just send Jesus to us to help get us out of hell, he also sent him to get Himself out of heaven & into US! The real goal of the Christian life is to get to KNOW CHRIST, and the motivation for such is the love & grace of God shown to us by him sending his Son to die on the cross for us. It is our Heavenly Father's desire for us as believers, to "express our faith through love".

Jesus told us so in John 13:35-- "All men will know that you are my disciples if you love one another".

As believers, and beloved children of God, we are called to live according to the same pattern as our Lord Jesus Christ. When "we receive God's love & become channels of that love to others, we can walk in the assurance that we are fulfilling the highest purpose of God in our daily lives."--Bob George Classic Christianity.

The sad thing is, many Christians today seem to miss the fact that a relationship w/Christ is more than just accepting him & receiving salvation. Once we come to know the Truth, we are called to a way of life where God sits above all and works through us to accomplish his perfect will on earth.

"As Christians, the God who created this universe lives in us & wants to use our bodies every day of our lives to show His love and grace to the world around us! God lives in you and wants to produce fruit through you that will endure for eternity!"--Bob George Classic Christianity

That is so much more than a religion! Yet many of us in the faith treat our relationship w/Christ as such, completely missing out on what God intended for us to experience as his children & heirs of the promise. Wake up brothers and sisters of faith, life is too short to miss the REAL thing!

We know that religion cannot deliver what it promises, for if it could Christ died for nothing. I don't know about you, but I don't believe for one second that God would send his One & Only Son, whom He loves above all else, to die on the cross in vain. Religion cannot deliver what it promises. Religion will never get you a relationship with the one true God, because there is never enough that we can do on our own to "earn" God's favor.

The only one who has God's favor is Christ, and the only way we can be made acceptable in God's sight is by accepting Him. It was God's plan all along, from before Satan defied Him, to make a way for the world to be reconciled to Him and restore the lives of men. Religion, with all its traditions, rituals, customs, well-meaning beliefs & moral ethics, cannot do that for you friends--only Christ can.

(NKJV) John 14:6-- Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

"God has not called us to change our lives, but to experience the 'exchanged life'. We give Christ all that we are-spiritually dead, guilty sinners--and Christ gives us all that He is--resurrected life, forgiveness, righteousness, love & acceptance." Bob George Classic Christianity

A New Creation

(NKJV) 2 Corinthians 5:17~ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a New creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

If I really think back to the night I said yes to God, and accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as my savior, there's one verse of scripture in particular that stood out in my mind over all the others. It's the verse I typed above, 2 Corinthians 5:17. I'd always thought this was a powerful verse, even before I became a Christ follower. Before I even had any idea just what it meant. That night as these words sunk into my mind I was grateful for following my heart and not listening to my stubborn pride for once. I didn't have any idea how Christ could make 'old things pass away' or make 'all things new', but I sure couldn't wait to find out!

I think Bob George said it well when he wrote, "The Word of God is alive & active. It gives substance to our lives and transforms our hearts. The Word of God points us to Jesus Christ and it is in Him & Him alone that we find life & discover the truth that will set us free." (from the book Classic Christianity by Bob George)

I want to take a moment to break this statement down & share with you the insight and truth I have discovered in it. Mr. George first says 'The Word of God is alive & active.'  Now this statement, to me, sounds like the Word of God would be a living, breathing, moving, thing. Well, maybe not breathing, but definitely living and moving, lol! Guess what, it is! Hebrews Chapter 4 tells us so...

(NIV) Hebrews 4:12--"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

This verse says that the word of God penetrates us as far as 'dividing soul and spirit', and that it 'judges the thoughts & attitudes of the heart'. That sounds like a pretty active description of the Word of God, does it not? By this verse we see that the Word of God isn't just printed text in a book. The Word of God takes action. It moves us and changes us as we grow as believers & walk in faith with our Savior King. You see, God didn't just send Jesus into the world to introduce a new religion or to perform random miracles of healing. God sent Jesus to us so He could reconcile the world to Himself and restore our lives!

(NKJV) John 10:10b "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." ~ Jesus

(NKJV) Matthew 4:4  Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ "

(NKJV) John 17:3 "Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent."

(NKJV) John 3:16-17  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

(NKJV) John 5:24  “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life." ~ Jesus

I've come to realize that from God's point of view, salvation is about more than the forgiveness of sins. To God, salvation is a LIFE & DEATH issue! It's not just that we are all sinners in need of forgiveness, which we are, but we are all born spiritually DEAD and in need of LIFE! That is why God sent His one & only Son into the world and that's how Jesus is able to make 'old things pass away' in us and create 'all things new'! 

(NKJV) Galatians 2:20  "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and 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." ~ The Apostle Paul 

When we accept who Jesus is and believe what God's Word says about Him--which we know to be true, John 17:17 "Sanctify them by Your truth.Your Word is truth." (Jesus praying for his disciples)--and what he did for all mankind, we cross over from death to life!

What religion do you know that can truly deliver that?!? You see, God's Word reveals that his intention was never to make a way to Himself by religion. God's original plan was for us to live in fellowship with him.

(NKJV) Genesis 3:8 "And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day..."

It was always God's plan for us to have a relationship with Him. Adam & Eve screwed that up in the beginning. Because of their disobedient act, all of mankind was made to suffer and died to God. Jesus was sent to bring us all back to life and restore the relationship between man & God. That's what he did when he went to the cross for us. That's what was so important to God, that He sent His beloved Son to be the sin offering for the entire world. THAT IS HOW MUCH GOD LOVES YOU! 

(NIV) Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." 

Through my hunger to know Jesus I have stumbled across some radical truths. I've already shared a couple of them with you, but I want to make this next one crystal clear. I'm not a religious fanatic. To be quite honest, I cannot stand narrow-minded religious types who give Christ followers a bad name because of their sheer ignorance in their own inheritance in Christ. So many Christians today have an incomplete understanding of what Christianity is supposed to be and therefore never quite grasp what God truly has in store for those who believe in Him.

Christianity is NOT a religion. It is a way of LIFE that God the Father designed for us. It is defined by a relationship with Jesus Christ in which we as believers are transformed by the incomparable love & mercy of our Heavenly Father. Having a relationship with Christ however, does NOT end with accepting Him and receiving salvation, it BEGINS there!

The gospel of Jesus Christ is God's message of love, acceptance and LIFE! It is available for everyone, but not just so we can go to heaven when we die. It is also the POWER of God for LIVING our lives here & now! Jesus Christ laid down His life to set US free from the bondage of sin & death. He was raised from the dead so that we could have NEW LIFE! If you are in Christ, you have been adopted into the family of God. You have been made a child of God according to the scriptures...

(NIV) Romans 8:9-11 "You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you."

(NIV) Romans 8:14 "...those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God..."

(NIV) Romans 8:16-17 "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ..."

As Christ followers, we are beloved, accepted children of God who have been called to experience the LIFE of Christ living in and through us every day. Abundant life IS real, and it is ours for the taking! Why would you settle for anything less???

How I came to Salvation...

NIV--John 6:44 "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws them..." ~Jesus


It was a typical weekday night. I was off from work and sitting at my computer. I was looking for inspiration for my next project & hanging out on the scrapbooking site I was designing for at the time, when I came across a post by our site creator.

It was a prayer request. Her father had been taken to the hospital and was very ill. So ill, in fact, that she thought he might not be able to hang on much longer. She was asking for those of us who pray to please pray for her father.

Well, I had prayed for many things in my lifetime & never really thought it did any good before, but I really wanted to do whatever I could to comfort my friend at this difficult time. So I decided to send up a prayer for her father. I didn't know how much good it would do, but even if God didn't hear me, what could it hurt?

So I closed my eyes and prayed. I prayed that God be with my friend & the rest of her family. I prayed that He would comfort them no matter what happened to her father. I prayed that if her dad did pass away, that God take him quickly and that he not have to suffer needlessly. I pleaded with God for Him to be there for my friend, thinking out loud..."She really needs You right now Lord...", and just then it occurred to me, "this whole world needs You...I need You."
The moment I said out loud that I needed Him, my emotions overwhelmed me. Tears flooded my eyes. I'd never admitted that I needed God in my life before. Not to Him or me. I had always depended on myself or my family, hardly giving God a second thought. I broke down right there at my computer, unable to hold back the tears. I cried out, "God, if you can hear me I need You. I don't want to live like this anymore."

I felt so many things at that moment, as I came to the realization that I didn't want to live another day without Him. Living life on my own terms had left me feeling alone, empty & never satisfied with any accomplishment no matter how hard I worked. I felt deep remorse and regret for the way I had been living, for all the horrible things I'd done & for my rebellious attitude toward the truth. But mostly for my stubborn pride which had kept me from ever thinking I needed Him before now.

Just then as I was sobbing so violently I felt as if I was falling apart, something I can't explain happened. A strange, soothing presence came over me. It felt like giant arms being wrapped around me, encompassing my entire body...like a huge comforting blanket. Within seconds my tears slowed & my body stopped shaking. It was as if God was telling me "I'm here my child. I hear you & I know exactly what you need. It's going to be okay."

As my emotions settled, a thought came to my mind, 'Get up, go into the other room & ask Paul to pray with you.' I'd never had a thought like that before. I'd never prayed with Paul, (my then live-in boyfriend). But Paul was a believer. He had told me so when we'd first met. He had shared with me how he had been saved at the age of 23 and how God had changed his life, though he wasn't living for God at this point in time and he struggled w/that a great deal.

I thought to myself, 'Should I really do this? Did this really just happen? Am I going crazy here?'. As I thought about everything that had just happened while I was sitting there in front of my computer, another thought occurred to me. 'There's no way what just happened didn't just happen. It would be crazy for me to pretend it didn't. What have you got to lose Jami?'. So I got up, I wiped the tears from my eyes & I went into the other room.

Paul was asleep w/his little boy in our room. I went over to him & gently woke him up. I told him I needed his help and had something important to tell him. I asked if he could put J to bed in the other room so we could talk. I'm sure the look on my face alone told him it was serious. He got right up, asking me what had happened & if I was okay. I told him I was fine but that I had something important I needed to share with him. Immediately he took J and put him 2 bed. He came back looking worried and asked "What happened?"

I told him I didn't exactly know how to explain it, but that something strange had just happened to me while I was on the computer. I proceeded to tell him what I had just experienced. He listened very patiently as I described what had taken place. When I was finished I asked Paul if he would read me some scripture from his bible. I didn't know what to do next, but I had a feeling Paul would know. Ever since I'd found out he was a believer and heard his stories of what God had done in his life, I'd known that if anyone could lead me to the Lord one day, it was him. His faith in God, despite his circumstances & the life choices he'd made, had always been an inspiration to me.

Paul picked up one of his bibles and opened it. One of the first verses he read to me was from the book of Matthew..."Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." (NKJV Matt 5:6). I don't remember everything he read, but he read to me for a while and then I read some to myself. While I was reading the tears came flooding back. I kept thinking about all the bad things I'd done in my life, all the hurtful, painful experiences I'd been through that had practically turned my heart to stone and left me bitter & incapable of forgiveness. I was so tired of living that way.

In the midst of my thoughts I heard Paul speaking to me. He asked if he could pray for me. Again I figured, 'what could it hurt?', so I said "sure." He took my hand and started to pray. I couldn't tell you his exact words, (this took place a little over 19 months ago), but what I do remember is that it was the most beautiful, heartfelt prayer I'd ever heard anyone pray, ever. It was very humbling to have the man I love speak to God on my behalf like that. When he was finished, I knew exactly what I needed to do next.

I squeezed his hand and began to pray to God myself. I told Him exactly how I felt...that I was so tired of living life without Him & that I was ready to live my life from that night on with Him. I told God how sorry I was for all of the horrible sins I had committed against Him & for resisting the Truth for so long. I remembered reading 1 John 1:19..."If we confess our sins, He is faithful & just to forgive us our sins & purify us from all unrighteousness." (NIV). I asked God to forgive me if there was any way that he could and to teach me about forgiveness, to teach me all of His ways. I thanked Him for sending His one & Only Son to be the sacrifice for the sins of the world so that I could be forgiven along with all who come to Him in Christ's name. There was a lot more tears...I'm normally pretty emotional and this was probably the most emotional night of my life, so I don't remember much else after I finished praying.

The next morning when I woke up, I had such a craving to know Jesus. To read about his life, his ministry, etc. I had never before wanted to know so much about him. Later that day Paul & I were out running some errands when I asked him if he'd take me to get my own bible. He had a half dozen or more at our apartment, but I wanted one that was my own. I ended up picking out a New King James Version Scofield Study Bible. I read it for hours that night and Paul read one of his with me for a bit too.

I called my Mom and Dad & told them what happened. I asked them if they would go to church w/me the following weekend. I called my brother and told him what had happened and he was grateful to hear about it. Unbeknownst to me he had been praying for me to come to salvation for a long time. I called my sister though I originally wasn't going to tell her, (her beliefs are contrary to my own when it comes to God), but she asked me, so I told her what had happened. 

To be honest, it didn't matter so much to me what she thought, or anyone else for that matter. I know what happened to me that night and there's no way anyone can tell me it didn't happen or even offer an alternate explanation that would make sense. I wasn't imagining things. I'm certain I felt something come over me and comfort me while I was crying and shaking like I was falling to pieces that night in front of my computer. The only decision I made, was to listen to my heart and step out in faith and accept God's invitation. He was calling me to come home.  I'm just so thankful I had the courage to act when He called. It's the best decision I've ever made and it has changed my life for the better in more ways than I ever imagined it would.

I encourage anyone still reading to stick around and find out exactly what I mean, because that's where the real proof lies--in the changed lives of those who the Father calls. Those who are willing to put aside their pride in self and 'look not to their own understanding', but seek His wisdom and guidance & accept the gift of His marvelous grace in Christ Jesus. I plan to go into detail on just how amazing the love of our Father in heaven is and how it has transformed me into the woman I am today.

So, that's how my new life in Christ began. I would like to encourage others to leave their own testimonies in the comments of this post if they feel the nudge to share as well. If you're long-winded like I am, feel free to leave a link if you like.  ; ]



Until my next post... 

(NIV) Romans 1:16 "I am not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes...For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith..."

(NIV) Romans 3:21-24 "But now a righteousness from God apart from law has been made known to which the Law & the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned & fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."

Welcome Friends : ]

My life, real & unscripted...

I stumbled across some unsettling remarks a few weeks ago while searching for something online. I mean, I know the world is full of people with all kinds of opinions about God. There are unbelievers, doubters, naysayers & even blasphemers, but the comments I came across on another blog, where the majority of those who subscribed/commented were self proclaimed atheists, was just seeping with hatred & contempt for the truth.  

Ever since then I've felt as if the Spirit in me is compelling me to offer my testimony as a record of proof that the Bible is the TRUE word of God & that God does in fact exist. I believe that what has happened in my life is the best proof I can offer to those seeking an answer to the question, 'Does God exist/Is the Bible really the Word of God?'. To prove this point I plan to keep a written account of all the ways my life has changed & all the ways in which God has used me for His purposes to impact the lives of others since I came to the truth and turned my life over to Christ.



Until next time...

 "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
1 Corinthians 13:13 New International Version