I believe there are lots of ways to arrive at the decision to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. In the Bible Jesus says that He is the Way and the Truth and nobody comes to the Father except thru Him. This is non negotiable. Jesus is the Way. However, there are many, many stories about how one arrives at this decision—to believe that Jesus is God. Some people believe when they are quite young some when they are quite old and even others in their last days. For me, the light went on when I was 38 years old. I was in the middle of an 8 year Bible Study program when I really accepted Jesus on purpose. Before that I was just kind of hanging around Jesus not really committed to a decision. I think what really moved me forward was my job as a high school biology and human physiology teacher. As I taught high school kids how the human body works it became more and more clear that each one of us is a miracle. We are a miracle of God’s creation period. Charles Darwin is quoted as saying, “to suppose that the human eye could have been formed by natural selection is absurd in the highest degree.” This is coming from the “father of evolution”. I believe he’s 100% correct. We are miracles created by a greater miracle—GOD! Jesus is my God and the mystery behind all of the above I accept based on faith. I don’t need a scientific proof. For last 30 plus years I have been pursuing God through His teaching, reading countless books, and following His word in the Bible and I have been Blessed. I still have years to go and Jesus is not done with me yet. I believe it!

John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

When my daughter was around 10 years old and was acting up I exclaimed, “Allison, act normal”. Her answer was, “what’s normal Dad”. That answer stopped me cold and actually made me smile as I thought…..”what does normal look like”. The dictionary defines normal as, “conforming to a standard; usual, typical or expected”. Well, based on that definition who wants to be normal. I don’t think I want to be remembered as usual or typical. I think I would rather be unique, different or one of a kind. I think of Jesus and “usual” does not come to mind. Words like unique, awesome, different, one of a kind, and revolutionary come to mind plus many, many other words. Jesus was an unbelievable individual. He was completely unique. No human has ever come close to being like him through all of time. Was it normal when he healed people, was it normal when he was resurrected? Every day is Easter Sunday for me because of Jesus. Thank God for Jesus and by the way, my daughter is 38 years old and has not been normal a day in her life and I am thankful for that!

Psalm 139:14 – I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

A favorite song of mine is “Thank you Lord by Chris Tomlin, Thomas Rhett, and Florida Georgia Line.” Its a upbeat simple song about things to be thankful for. The following lyrics express thankfulness in these words……

The small things….

Blessings on Blessings on Blessings…

for my mamma, for my friends…

for your love that never ends…

for my babies, for my girl…

for the hard times…

for lighting my way in the dark times…

for pulling me in, forgiving again…

for keeping me humble…

for picking me up when I stumble…

and although I change You stay the same…

AND I DON’T SAY THANK YOU ENOUGH…

John 14:6 – I am the Way, the Truth and the Life…..

We all need to be saved…..Primarily from ourselves. We are all broken in the same and different ways. Jesus knows this. He is God. He created us. He knows exactly what we need. He knows our failures; He knows exactly who we are. There is nowhere to hide from God. And that’s OK because God through Jesus loves us unconditionally. He extends us never ending Grace. It’s on us. We either choose God or we Don’t. Yes or No. In or out. Jesus never condemned anyone when He walked the earth. Any condemnation of us comes from us. and let’s clear up the misconceptions about who is God. Jesus is God. There is one God and one Jesus. Lots of false gods, but only one true God.

John 14:6 – Jesus answered, ” I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Many, many people think they can describe Jesus with words that fall woefully short. Others use way too many words. Long sermons, long prayers will not help to figure out Jesus and his ways. In the Bible Jesus says to us to “just believe”. He understands us and our needs better than we do. I know it is hard at times to fully trust Jesus because we think we know better than Him. But the truth be told, the truth is seldom told, and Jesus is the Truth. He is also the Way. Thus, if one wants to know The Way and The Truth then they need to “believe in Jesus. And that is the truth.

John 6:28 – “the work of God is this: to believe in the one He has sent”

In the Bible, it is said in Philippians 4:7 that the peace of God transcends all understanding. One our major hang-ups is that we try to answer everything. Speaking for mankind I think it is obvious that our scholars, experts and even ordinary people like me want answers. However I am reminded time and time again that when you are dealing with God, there are not always answers. Some things are beyond our understanding. Its hard for a lot of people to accept, but we just can’t really believe that we can figure out the mind of God. Somethings we just need to believe and have faith that some day in the future there might be an answer. But again there might not. That’s life! I believe this also ties into another scripture from the Bible. In John 15:4-10, we learn about abiding in Jesus Abiding is defined as remaining faithful. We don’t have to have all the answers all the time. And just because we don’t understand something, that doesn’t make if not true. I believe every word of the Bible is truth and I have a peace that I don’t need every answer. It doesn’t bother me. I don’t have to know how everything in the grand scheme of the universe works. I just stand in awe of it. I want to abide in Jesus always and go from there. The beauty of God’s creation is “beyond all understanding”.

Philippians 4:7 – And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

John 15:4-10 – Remain is me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain on the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish , and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

God Bless You and have a great week…….

What exactly is “The Gospel Of Jesus”. Specifically speaking, The Gospel is the Good News about Jesus. The story of who He is and what He did. Saint Francis of Assisi, as far back as 1181 A.D. said, “Preach the Gospel at all times and if necessary, use words”. Implicit in this saying is the understanding that often the most powerful sermons are unspoken. When we have integrity and live consistently by our standards, people notice. When we radiate joy and happiness, they notice even more. Amen.

1Peter 1:8 – Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious Joy,.

No words can describe Jesus. He is above and beyond human language. God and Jesus are to be experienced. Theology is fine and head knowledge is fine, but Jesus is like the wind. You can hear and feel him, but you can’t see Him. You can see the result of His life saving grace. You can see His beauty in creation and you can feel His presence in your life. But no book ever written has captured His majesty although many have tried.

John 3:8 – The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear the sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the spirit.

Life was never promised to be always like a trip to Disneyland. Most of the time life is work. A lot of times hard work. Things happen that can get us down, way down. When this happens to you and it will, you should focus on Jesus, put your head down and keep moving forward. And keep praying. Jesus has his own time table so don’t expect immediate answers. Focus on the word perseverance. Pray, trust and believe. The Bible has answers to our problems and when you combine all of the above into your life, things will change. God’s not finished with you yet. He has plans to prosper you. And one last word of advice. Don’t shy away from hard work. The result is very satisfying. Hard work leads to accomplishment which leads to high self-esteem. Son don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty.

God Bless you and I pray your life is filled with a joy that can come only from Jesus.

2Chronicles 15:7 – But You, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak for your work shall be rewarded.