It's Your Choice

We all have choices. Usually our choices are influenced by our upbringing. Often our choices are influenced by our circumstances. We make choices when we face new challenges. We make choices when something fantastic occurs. We may choices all the time: every day, moment by moment.

The biggest choice we make can be the most challenging or it can be so very easy. We need to stop and think about why we are making these choices.

The Lord seeks us to make the choice to come to Him. Are we fulfilled? Are we broken? Do we need Him or do we want Him? He’s waiting for us to welcome Him into our lives. He is here for us and He’s not a crutch!

He is here for everyone — both those who are bad and those who are good, and both those who love Him and those who reject Him. Ultimately, He loves each and every one of us because He created us.

He welcomes us all, and He took on all of mankind’s sins. Can you picture His arms outstretched on that tree (that cross)?

You’re at a crossroads. The choice of which way to go is yours. Which choice will you make? Do you choose to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior or not? This is the ultimate, most important choice that you’ll ever make in your whole entire life. I guarantee it!

It’s really all about Him. I say: choose Jesus Christ! Choose God the Father! Choose everlasting life! If you don’t, then I assure you that you will have made your choice from your own free will. You may regret your choice if you deny Him. Why? Because it will result in death, separation, and suffering that will go on and on. Why would anyone choose this over the welcoming loving arms of a Father who desires our love back, too?

Just because “you’re a good person” doesn’t mean you have a “ticket” to Heaven. You must accept God and Jesus Christ into your heart, not just your head (or your mind). If you haven’t read the prior blogs, please do so. I urge you to do so, especially if you haven’t made this choice yet to become a follower of Jesus.

I hope you will make this positive choice. God won’t force you, and I won’t either, but I’ll sure do my best to make sure you know that you have this choice and what it ultimately means when you make your choice.

As the song says, “Jesus Take the Wheel.” The girl being described has lost control of her car. She thought she was going to die. When she finally let God take over, she truly surrendered her life. She decided to change her life by becoming a true follower of Jesus Christ. She needed to give full control to the only One who truly deserves this. God who knows what is best for us. God wants what is best for us. Why? Because He truly loves us more than anyone else ever could or ever will (even our parents or our spouse).

When we accept Jesus Christ into our heart and believe in what He did for us, we will be able to forgive others and accept His forgiveness for us, too. We will believe and grow in our faith. We will be able to commit our lives to Him because I tell you the truth: it’s all about Him!

The girl in the car no longer wanted to do it her way anymore because she realized it wasn’t working out her way. But it wasn’t until she thought her life may be over that she finally made the choice to change.

Why wait? It could be too late. You need to make the choice before you die, and the sooner, the better, or you may not have the choice to accept Jesus into your heart anymore! You never know when your time is going to end here in this life (on this earth).

How about getting passionate for God? How about giving the Lord the kind of praise and recognition that you probably give someone else right now?

We can love God back and choose Heaven. If you truly knew what Hell was like, you would never want to go there!

Thank God there is redemption for our soul through the blood of Jesus Christ who became our sacrifice.

“For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when He held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past for He was looking ahead and including them in what He would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness for He himself is fair and just, and He declares sinners to be right in His sight when they believe in Jesus.” (Romans 3:25-26)

We need to see the eternal view of life and death, and of the new life here that can be obtained first. It is found through the rebirth that God offers for each and every one of us to become a new person in Christ. (See verses in the Bible about rebirth and being born again in John 3:3-7, I Peter 1:3, and 1 Peter 1:23. See verses about becoming a new person or a new creation in Galatians 6:5 and 2 Corinthians 5:17.)

As my keychain says: “Got Jesus? It’s hell without Him!” Quite a strong statement, huh? Yes, it is! This is a life and death choice! It’s a decision that we have been given full authority to make. Each one of us has this choice.

We will all live on from here. You will live on in Heaven or die in Hell. The thing most people don’t realize is that you are constantly dying in Hell, suffering continually, and forevermore separated from your Creator, God. In Heaven, you are in peace and love, surrounded and embraced by your Creator, God’s love.

Will you choose life or death today? What will your answer be?

It all starts here: "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved." (Romans 10:9-10) — "... Indeed, the 'right time' is now. Today is the day of salvation." (2 Corinthians 6:2)

God must be first and foremost! For He is our life and our salvation (that is, our life beyond the death of this body we now inhabit).

What’s your goal? For those who have made the choice to follow Jesus: “… Our goal is to please Him [God].” (2 Corinthians 5:9)

Until we virtually meet again, may God call you to Himself.

God’s Word for Today: “I call Heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, so that both you and your seed may live. That you may love the Lord your God, and that you may obey His voice, and that you may cleave to Him: for He is your life, and the length of your days: that you may dwell in the land that the Lord gave to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20 − my emphasis in bold)

Copyright © 2015 by Patricia Shehan

All scripture is quoted from various translations of the Holy Bible (God’s Word) and is set in italics and quotation marks.

For Such a Time as This

What do you think when you think about time? Does it feel like time is passing you by? Maybe you’ve discovered that time is what you make of it. You may not think you have enough time to accomplish what you need to do, much less what you want to do, but setting priorities really helps. However, even when priorities are set, time can be disrupted by unexpected events.

Have you ever wished you could escape time? No more days, weeks, months, or years. No more hours, minutes, or seconds to count down. No more clocks.

Although maybe counting down the seconds to the New Year is exciting because it represents the chance for a new beginning. But we should realize that we can do this any day or time of the year.

Maybe you wish you could just create more time in each day. If you just had a few more hours each day, you could achieve so much more.

It is possible that you don’t treat time with any care whatsoever? Maybe each day blurs into the next. Hour by hour you find yourself lazy and inattentive to anything in particular. Maybe no ambition utilizes your time. I have found myself in days like this. You can admit it, too. We’ve probably all had at least a few days in our lives like these. Most certainly when we’ve been awfully sick.

At this age in my life, I wish I had already accomplished a whole lot more than I have so far, and yet, I have accomplished quite a bit. Maybe not what I would have hoped to have completed so far, but there’s always now!

We have to realize it’s important to focus on today – not on yesterday or the future either. It’s important to focus on the present.

God tells us that we cannot be certain of our plans tomorrow: “How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog − it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, ‘If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that [tomorrow].’ ” (James 4:14-15)

God gives us a present and it's free. It’s called salvation, and once we accept it, we will receive the Holy Spirit. Then we can move forward in His presence with His present to live and accomplish much for such a time as this!

There are a lot of things occurring in the world today that could cause you to live in fear – things, I believe, you never expected to see in your lifetime. This is truly a time to have faith for such a time as this in which we need to act.

If you knew that the time we are all living in would be such a very special time in the world today, would it change anything for you? Would it change the way you spend your time? Your days? Your hours? Your moments?

If you knew that you could have effectual changes in the course of someone else’s life for eternity, would it change the way you spend your time today? Now? It should!

Why? Because we were created for such a time as this! What does this mean? This is a special time. History is gone. The future is ahead. Now is the time to have victory for God.

Victory to defeat your enemies. Victory to overcome death through Jesus Christ by accepting and receiving salvation for eternity. Victory to live a fulfilling life to bring the Good News to all. Victory to be successful in matters of importance. This kind of victory only comes from God because He gives us the strength and the success to prevail and live victoriously for Him. It is through His strength and power of the Holy Spirit for every person who has obtained the salvation of God. There is power in our temple, which houses our body, spirit, and soul together with His Holy Spirit.

We were born for a time, and the time is now. It is for such a time as this to accomplish the greatest thing of all time. To tell others about God’s love and God’s wrath. To tell others that God saves through Jesus Christ. To tell others that they can be forgiven. To tell others that it’s not too late, but the time is short. We were born for time such as this. The clock is ticking, ticking, ticking. Don’t waste any more time.

Read the chapter of Esther in the Bible to learn about how she was born for the time in which she lived. She is told: “Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)

Who knows if you were made the person you are today for just such a special time – for such a time as this? God says you were, and I’d say you were and you have a very important Godly mission to accomplish. However, if you have not been saved, you must accept God’s free gift of salvation first. Then you can achieve mighty works for the Lord. After all, you were created in His image to fulfill His plan for your life for such a time as this. There is no more time to waste.

“But the time is coming − indeed it's here now − when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.” (John 4:3)

“That is why the Lord says, ‘Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning.’ ” (Joel 2:12)

It’s all a matter of the heart. Like I have shared in this blog, I didn’t have the salvation of God until I could believe in Him with my heart. When I could come to love Him first and foremost with my heart, I became a new person in Christ and I pray this for you, too: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

It’s time to realize what God wants for our lives because we were born for a time such as this for a reason and a purpose.

Until we virtually meet again, may God call you to Himself.

God’s Word for Today: “Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.” (James 4:17) – I believe this can include something as simple, but most important, as accepting salvation. I believe it can be as simple as taking the time each day to pray and read the Word of God (that is, the Bible). I also believe this can be something as great as accomplishing our purpose in Christ for our life with the talents he bestows upon us. Will you fulfill your purpose in life? For we were born for such a time as this!

Copyright © 2015 by Patricia Shehan

All scripture is quoted from various translations of the Holy Bible (God’s Word) and is set in italics and quotation marks.

 

Seeing the Light through the Dark

With today’s world headlines, many people can’t help but speak about the darkness and evil they see growing all around them. Some may say, well the news can now reach most everyone on the globe with modern technology. Therefore, we are just hearing things we’ve never heard before because the news is now so far reaching in its scope. No, I say! No!

This is not about technology and the news we’re able to receive nowadays because of it. This is about the prophecy of God telling us about something that will definitely happen in the future, and I believe as many others do, too, that the future is now. The evil occurring today is dark and it’s growing due to sin, disbelief, evil, compromise, lack of commitment, tolerance, and so forth.

Why? Because the Word of God has warned us: “... Woe to the inhabitants on the earth ... terror will come on the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you in great anger, knowing that he has little time.” (Revelation 12:12) – (Please note that this scripture is a combination of Bible versions and is not the entire scripture verse.)

What does the devil have little time for here on earth? Why is the devil so angry?

Because he has little time to dissuade you from the truth of God’s love. He wants your soul! The devil wants you to follow him instead of God. He is angry because He never got what he wanted. He never got his own way. He wanted to take God’s place. He wanted the highest honor and control. He wants to take everyone else down with him into the depths of Hell and the Lake of Fire. You know that saying, “I sold my soul to the devil.” Well, it’s real! It’s very real, and I am here to tell you: Don’t do it!

It is important to understand that God has allowed the devil the ability to terrorize those who live here on this earth to test each and every individual. Do you believe in God? Have you given your heart to God? Will you obey God or not? If you do obey God (after having believed in Him in your heart and accepted what He has done for you, and after asking and receiving His forgiveness and love, having repented of your sins, and giving your life to Jesus Christ, then believe that you now have this promise):

“Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.” (Revelation 3:10-11)

I believe this time has begun. I believe we are living in the very beginning of a time of tribulation that will grow in intensity until the anti-christ is revealed on the world stage. Then there will be further tribulation, and some will know God’s wrath during the latter 7-year period described in Daniel. I don’t want to get side tracked into discussing this period of time. If you do not know what I mean by it, then please study the Bible, do some research, and ask a true Biblical-based preacher.

“You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake.” (2 Corinthians 4:5)

“If the Good News we preach is hidden behind a veil, it is hidden only from people who are perishing.” (2 Corinthians 4:3) Those who are perishing are not saved by God. Choose life instead! Seek God to have Him remove the scales from your eyes. Then the devil cannot blind you from the truth. Don’t choose to perish in eternal suffering! No matter what I say to you, the bottom line is that it is your choice!

You must come out of darkness and evil to be able to see the light.

“Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4)

Why? Because they choose to run their own life for their own evil pleasures and desires. These individuals reject a belief in the God who created them who can also save them.

I believe when the Christians recognize that our days have much evil and it’s sometimes difficult to see the light through the dark, we must remember that God will protect His own and we must continue to be strong in our faith and our calling in this life until we see Him someday face to face. But until then, we know the Bible is true and it is the living Word of God. We can see that we must be living in the last days, described as follows:

“You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that! They are the kind who work their way into people’s homes and win the confidence of vulnerable women who are burdened with the guilt of sin and controlled by various desires. Such women are forever following new teachings, but they are never able to understand the truth. These teachers oppose the truth just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses. They have depraved minds and a counterfeit faith. But they won’t get away with this for long. Someday everyone will recognize what fools they are ... .” (2 Timothy 3:1-9)

Where do you stand? Do you stand on the side of evil, defending sin, compromise, tolerance, and so-called peace? Or do you stand on the side of good and God, defending your faith?

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it [or] understand it.” (John 1:5) – (This scripture is also a combination of versions.)

Until we virtually meet again, may God call you to Himself.

God’s Word for Today: Seeing the light through the dark: “For God, who said, ‘Let there be light in the darkness,’ has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” (2 Corinthians 4:6-7)

Copyright © 2015 by Patricia Shehan

All scripture is quoted from various translations of the Holy Bible (God’s Word) and is set in italics and quotation marks.