.....::::: CAN YOU TELL THE DIFFERENCE? :::::.....

Ever look at yourself in the mirror and think, "wow, I have changed?" Have you ever realized the changes your body goes through over the years? Amazing right? It's even more amazing when others can tell the difference as well! The same thing goes for your walk with Christ. Have you ever worried about whether or not you really are a Christian, if you have changed or are you in the same place you were before you experiemented Him?

But what is a Christian though? A Christian is anyone who has the Spirit of God living in him or her. Some people believe that to be Christian, one must be perfect. But that is far from the truth.

No one is born perfect. Whether you are a believer in Jesus Christ or not, no one comes close to perfection but Christ himself. But how do you differentiate your lifestyle to that of those who are not Christians? What makes your walk any different than others?

In the Bible, in Ephesians 5 verse 8, we are called to live as children of the light. The Apostle Paul told the Ephesians to leave behind their sinful ways and their old life of sin. Yeah...I know it's hard, especially when everyone else around you is doing the cool and seemingly fun things but at what cost?

Living the Christian life is a process. It's an everyday thing. Yes, we do fall short of God's glory everyday but that shouldn't be the reason one decides to give up and do what he or she wants while screaming, "yolo" to the sky. Being a Christian means that our new nature and identity are found in Jesus Christ. Although we have a new nature, we don't automatically think all good thoughts and express all right attitudes right away. But that is the beauty of it! If we keep listening to God, the beautiful change is bound to happen with help from the Holy Spirit.

Looking towards the future, you can't help but feel positive and optimistic! Why? Because our old way of living life before we believed in Christ and His mission on Earth, death on the cross and His resurrection, is COMPLETELY in the past! Like clothes that have become too small for us, we should outgrow our old sinful lives and find peace and tranquility in Jesus. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, He was the replacement for your old life! Our "old self," our sinful nature, died once and for all, so we are freed from our past. We need no longer live under sin's power. For us to return tk the things we used to do in the past is basically making Christ's actions on the cross be for nothing. God does not take us out of the world or make us robots and we may even sin but our sin does not define us! The difference is that before we were saved we were slaves to our sinful nature, but now we can choose to live for Jesus Christ.

To conclude, we need to seek the One who can help us change. The way the world we live in functions, it does the exact opposite of what God recommends that we do. Instead of loving, society often discriminates. Instead of finding joy in God, it tells us to find joy in almost everything but Him. Instead of being at peace, patient, kind, good, faithful and gentle, the world demonstrates the opposite. And when it comes to self-control, it tells us that we "only live once". Think about a time before your walk with Christ and look at yourself now. Do you see the changes? And if so, how are you helping others seek that change too? Even if you can't see the changes now, hope is not lost. Let God speak to you today. Have a blessed day and stay in faith!

Ephesians 4:17-24 "So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed. That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."

.....::::: YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE :::::.....

Let’s face it…if you are a Christian, there is no UNIQUE or SINGLE way to preach the Gospel to someone (evangelize). Why? Because there are many! One of them is actually with your testimony or past experiences. Even if you aren’t, you will still relate. (I guarantee it!)

What is a testimony? A testimony is a recounting or telling of experiences. 

When we think of our personal testimonies, we say to ourselves, “who would want to listen to me?” or “no, I don’t want someone judging me because of the things I once did. I am no longer that person.” Even though that may be true, your testimony could serve as a launching pad to build someone’s faith. Regardless if you are a Christian or not, everyone has a testimony because we have all been through life changing situations. 

For example, this is a true story, this happened to me this morning. I work during the night at a corner store. And during my shifts, I see a lot of different faces; some new and some old. Some actually stay and talk to me and some are too busy to care. But last weekend, a girl and her friends came in. Sadly, they had all drank alcohool. The girl could barely stand as she came in to buy a pack of cigarettes. As she took her time (evidently because she was “tipsy”), I observed her friends and even her as she sat on the floor looking through her purse for her debit card. Once she told me what she needed, she proceeded to enter her card number so I could hand her the pack of cigarettes. As I stated before, I observed the whole 15 scenario that had happened when she and her friends walked into the corner store. I was intrigued because she told me that she had just came from the hospital. Hard to believe because she had clearly been drinking but I gave her the benefit of the doubt. Then she and her friends left. 

One week later, she and one of her friend’s from the week before made their way into my store again. This time, all of her senses were there but I cannot say the same for her friend. She came to get another pack of cigarettes. Ironically, when she tried to pay for the cigarettes, the transaction was declined because she didn’t have enough money in her bank account. So her friend decided to walk back home and get some money while she stayed in the store because it was kind of chilly outside and she was in her pajamas and a winter coat. So as she stood there waiting, we began to talk. I asked her why she decided to smoke and at what age did she start? She told me that she started at the age of 19. The funny thing is that she actually admitted that the reason she started smoking was because of the influence of her friends. I then asked why won’t she stop even though she knows this. She said it is because of stress. (this next part is where I wanted to get). She then began to open up. She spoke to me about her love life and how her now ex-boyfriend left her for the mother of his child. She told me how she felt; how the guy used her and that he was manipulative and how he constantly gave her false hope amongst other things.

What I wanted to show you guys that are reading this is that there are A LOT of people out there that have gone through this same thing…or even other things. There are  A LOT of people that have problems! 

Someone may struggle with masturbation…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
A stealing problem…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
Lying problem…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
A sex addiction…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
A drug problem…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
Abusive parents at home…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
A rape victims…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
The person wants to kill someone or even himself…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
You are a single mother…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE! 
Suffering from depression…YOUR TESTIMONY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!! Whatever it is, you name it and it is probably out there. But these same people need YOU! Not only do they need you to hear them and listen to them but they need you to share your testimony! What do I mean? The girl in the corner store, I could relate  to her! I too had my heart broken on numerous occasions…I too have been manipulated and even manipulated people. I actually ended up giving her advice and trust me, she left happier than she came in! People need your testimony so that they can relate and know that everything will be okay and that they are not alone in this! 

Let’s take a trip to the Bible if I may. In the Bible, there was a man named Saul (Paul). Saul was a Pharisee (a self-righteous person; a hypocrite). He once zealously persecuted Christianity’s early followers and attempted to destroy the movement. But on his way to Damascus, he had a life-altering moment and he even became one of Christianity’s most fervent supporters! 

Where am I going with this? 

A testimony, if you read the definition in the beginning is a recounting or telling of experiences, as in past experiences. Saul was once a “Christian-killer” but then became one that spread the Gospel and life (Word of God). So for us to say that because we were once something bad and that our testimonies will only get us judged or that they won’t help anyone…is WRONG! God turns our MISTAKES into MESSAGES! So what will you do? Will you continue keeping your testimony for yourself? Or will you stand, tell your story and be the help that someone needs?! You never know, the person might be going through the same thing…some people need to see Jesus through you…YOUR STORY IS WAITING TO BE HEARD! Have a blessed day and stay in faith!

.....::::: ARE YOU HIDING YOUR TRUE MOTIVES FROM JESUS? :::::.....

I was reading the book of Matthew (when Jesus taught about serving others) and it hit me...we tend to come to Jesus with requests only when we need something. What do I mean? We come to Him a certain way but we hide our true motives. For example, if I say I will serve Him but in the back of my mind it is only to receive a certain position or something from Him. Same went for James and John's mother in the Bible. She came and kneeled down and, asked Jesus a favor. She asked Him to ensure that her sons would sit by His side when His kingdom came. WHAT A REQUEST!! She did give Jesus worship, but her real motive was to get something from Him. Get it? Too often this happens in our churches and in our lives. We play religious games, and we actually expect God to give us something in return. True worship means adoring and praising Christ for who He is and for what He has done. My prayer for you today is to be transparent with Jesus. He knows your motives beforehand. He is not a fool. Serve Him in truth and in spirit. Then will you see that everything else you need, and not want, will fall into place. Have a blessed day!!!

Matthew 20:20 - "Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of Him."

(Devotions/ Devotionals)

.....::::: BAD INFLUENCE AND BAD COMPANY :::::.....

To influence is to have an effect on the character or behaviour of someone or something, or the effect itself. Whether you are a Christian or not, we have all been in a similar position at least once in our lives. For example, someone you know influences you into something that compromises your Christian faith. If the source of influence causes you to distance from God with that moment, stop. Reevaluate the situation and run the other way. Literally! There are so many examples! We all have friends or that one friend that loves to gossip. Run the other way. That friend that isn't faithful? Run the other way. One bad fruit can cause others to be wasted as well. But we mustn't take this out of context either. We shouldn't put the blame only on the other person. We too are at fault. But I am here to tell you that God knows these things even before you do them. His very Word warns us about things of this nature. The Bible can change your life. You just have to read it. Let it influence you. Have a blessed day and be a positive influence!

1 Corinthians 15:33 - "Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

(Devotions/ Devotionals)

.....::::: YOUR HEART, YOUR LIFE, YOUR IDENTITY :::::.....

Normally I put a long post up but I believe this speaks for itself. Tell me how your life is and I will tell you what your heart is like. In what shape or form is your heart? Loving? Self-Centered? Forgive me for asking...

Proverbs 27:19 - "As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart."

(Devotions/ Devotionals)

.....::::: "WHILE WE WERE STILL SINNERS" :::::.....

I don't know about you but this puts a smile on my face! Who would ever think to die for the worst of the worst? The most ungrateful of the ungrateful? Jesus that's who. God sent Jesus to die for us, not because we were good enough, but because He loves us. Whenever you feel uncertain about God's love for you, remember that He loved you even before you turned to Him. If God loved you when you were a rebel, He can surely strengthen you, now that you love Him in return! Please let that sink in...

Romans 5:5-8 "And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

(Devotions/ Devotionals)