Dearest Friend,
Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” He is calling you and wants to be your strong shoulder to lean on—your support. Life is too hard to go it alone, and Jesus knows it. That is why He makes this offer to you today:
God’s Word tells us in Romans 3:23 that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That is easy enough to understand. We mess up everyday – ALL of us.
God goes a step further in Romans 6:23 to explain that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. I like sentences that have a “but” in them! It means there is an alternative. In this case, God tells us that even though we’re to pay the price of our sin by death, there is another option – eternal life.
Next, God tells us exactly how to accept the free gift of eternal life that He is offering. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”
Romans 10:13 goes further and says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Not just the “good” people or the preachers or the nice lady at the checkout counter at Krogers. God means EVERYONE – regardless of what has taken place in their life. That is excellent news for me!
I can’t write a fancy prayer for you to pray to God at this point. I can’t tell you what to say. You have to do that for yourself. Just quietly sit there and talk to God like you’d talk to your best friend. Tell Him what is on your heart. Tell Him all that you feel. If you are ready, tell Him you accept as truth all the scriptures you’ve read today and you want Jesus to reside in your heart and life.
Need a bit more convincing that it is really that easy to accept Christ? Read the whole chapter of I John 5. It is near the back of your bible. You need not be ashamed of loving Christ and making Him the center of your life.
Jesus tells us in Matthew 10:32-33, “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” I include these words today because I want you to know that living a life for Jesus and experiencing eternal life in heaven with Him is much more than the verses you read and the prayer you may have prayed today. We have to be willing to let others know that Christ matters to us and has changed our lives. We have to be willing to share Christ with others. Does that mean you have to preach on a street corner or grab strangers in the mall and tell them everything you know about God? No, it doesn’t. It means that you live each day forward as Christ would – in kindness and mercy to others and in honor
of His Father, God.
Now you know the meaning behind my “salt and light” statement on the business card you may have found or on the first page of our website. Matthew 5:13-16 is our mission statement for life – all of us that love the Lord.
I’m rejoicing in your decision to accept Christ today! Please write me at barbara@barbaraoden.com. I can’t wait to hear from you! If you are not ready for such a commitment, please write to me so I can pray for you specifically.
Barbara Oden
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