First off, shout out to all those who have supported me. I have not expected so much support, and so quickly! It has been a huge blessing not to worry about finances and raising support while I am abroad. I am confident in that I have one of the best support systems back home. I cannot express how much thanks everyone deserves. Many people have pushed me, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. All of these things have played a huge part in me accepting and say a bold yes in what God is calling me to do. I know I am here for a reason, a reason higher than me or anyone else.
That reason is Jesus Christ. As much as I would love to give all the credit to all my supporters, it pales in comparison to what my Heavenly Father deserves. I wouldn’t be who I am today, where I am today, or doing what I’m doing now with him. I remember the time when I accepted Jesus as my Savior, sitting in Wooster, Ohio, looking at a picture. The picture was so complicated and simple, even for a 7 year old to understand. It was Jesus standing, waiting, at a door. The door didn’t have a doorknob. There was no way for Jesus to get in. He is waiting for you, YOU, to open the door to your life, your heart, and welcome him in. I understood as a child, I was lost without Christ. How could I let the Son of God stand at my doorstep, waiting for me, waiting to walk through life together?
If you haven’t, open the door. Open the door for the BEST thing that could ever happen to you. Open the door to your heart and soul for Jesus. He literally is the answer to everything. Unfortunately we are all sinners, and there is nothing that can separate us from that fact. Nothing, absolutely nothing, can change you, you can’t work harder, or say the perfect things, or associate with the ‘church’ people. Except Jesus. Jesus changes you.
Jesus was such a cool cat, he was sent here by his father, was perfect, and died. Died the most grusesome death. For you, for me. He was the perfect definition of perfect, but yet died. He performed miracles, and walked alongside men to share the truth. He could have saved himself. He knew his death, knew details about it, and yet he did nothing to stop it. He died for us, he died for our sins. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3: 17
While Jesus was hanging from the cross, the criminals hung next to him argued over who Jesus was. They talked about how if God was killing his Son, his perfect Son, what could God do to them. Valid question, because really, what are some things God COULD do to us, for us, because we are sinners. We need Jesus on that cross, to die so violently, because we sin. We do bad things, we think bad things, we think poorly of ourselves, we argue, we hate, and we do everything in our power to be opposite of Jesus. BUT, there is a light in that dark fact. God loved us so much, that he sent Jesus for us. But it’s not enough, we HAVE to accept Jesus as our Savior. Because Jesus said in John, “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” Our death isn’t always in our physical death, but also spiritual death. We are all dead because we sin. Jesus is life. Eternal life is through Jesus, and he is the one who saves us from spiritual death.
I urge you, take a look at your heart, at your life. What are you spending time on, who are you spending time with, and where is Jesus in your life? If you can’t find him, then try the front door, because he is standing waiting to be let in. If you start looking, Jesus does this awesome thing of not hiding. He isn’t like us, doesn’t play hide and seek. He is whispering for you, start searching!
If you haven’t opened the door of your life to the Savior of the universe, start NOW. Life is too short, and so much more important that floating around, lost. Call out to Jesus, yell if you have to, He will hear you. Tell him how you were dead in your sin, and you don’t want that to be your life. Express to Jesus that he died on the cross for YOUR sins, and how thankful you are now that your sins are FOREVER forgiven because of his death. But remember, your sins are forgiven because God raised Jesus up from the dead. Jesus is going to become your best friend, not some unreachable higher up thing. Jesus is going to walk beside you, every day. All you have to do is open that door and invite him in.
“If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”-Romans 10:9
