I have been someone who could have been known as a lukewarm christian. I was just another person who said that she followed Christ while not actively pursuing a relationship with him. I wasn’t like this ALL the time, but it did happen every so often. I would have fiery seasons where I was so incredibly on fire for God and then other seasons that were just so dry. There were seasons when I would not read my Bible or pray unless things were rough, and other seasons when I would do nothing but pray and read my Bible. Looking back, I am so sad for that girl who missed so much when she was not actively pursuing a relationship with Jesus.
Let’s think about it in a relationship aspect. If you are married to someone and you go days, weeks, maybe even months without talking to them or pursuing them; your relationship with them could easily diminish.
Our relationship with Christ could easily be related to this, but with a twist. If we are not actively pursuing Jesus, then what is the point in saying that we have a relationship with him? If we aren’t trying to get to know who He is, then we won’t ever know the greatest man that ever walked this earth. We won’t know how worthy He is to be praised. We won’t know the freedom that we can access or the joy that we could have. We would still be tied to shame and guilt. We would still be chained to the sins that entangle us. We won’t know about the grace that is given to us by Jesus Christ. We also wouldn’t ever know about the promises that God has given us, the inheritance that is waiting for us, and the love that surrounds us.
Knowing Christ is such a gift. It is a gift that has been given to us, but it is a gift that we have to actively receive and choose to keep and maintain every day. When we stop pursuing him, we grow farther from him.
Here is the twist though, the Lord doesn’t grow far from you! You can push, kick, and scream all day every day and God NEVER stops loving you. He never runs away from you. Think of the worst thing you could do. Do you have it in your mind? Now imagine that you did that thing. You would probably expect God to run for the hills and say that you were too much. But guess what!!! He would never say or even think that.
In the book of Romans, chapter 8 verses 38 through 39, Paul stated “I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow — not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky or in the earth below — indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Now imagine that you were Paul. Paul was someone that persecuted (killed) christians. He didn’t care about anything else. If you were a follower of Christ, he killed you. He had no remorse and didn’t have a care in the world. That is until he was met by God himself, and everything changed. One day Paul was killing christians and the next day he was a christian sharing his testimony with others trying to spread the good news about Jesus. What a powerful testimony right!?
So let’s go back to the question that I asked a little while back; what is the worst thing you could do or maybe you have done? My first thought was killing someone. (No, I have not killed anyone, but it’s the worst thing that I thought of.) That is when my mind went straight to Paul who had killed christians. He killed the very people that loved and followed Jesus. Yet what happened? God called him out of that lifestyle of sin and set him free. God showed Paul the grace and the love that was missing in his life. And then He called Paul to a higher status. He gave Paul a mission to tell the world about who God is and what He has done and will continue to do.
Here is my encouragement to you. You are never too far from God. You can never sin too much to be accepted and cherished by God. You can never stop the love of God from coming and encompassing you. You are not the exception. Part of the foundation verse of A Fruitful Life states that God has chosen you (John 15:16). Why not choose him back?
If you have never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, I invite you to stick around and continue reading. Whether you are in the lukewarm phase that I was in, on the fence between living in the world and living a godly life, or maybe you have never even heard the name of Jesus; I challenge you to make a change. Get your life back on track with God. He loves you and He is ready to accept you with open arms.
If you're ready to make that step towards living a fruitful life that is dedicated to living for Jesus, then pray this prayer with me.
Lord, I thank you for your love that encompasses me. I thank you that you sent your one and only son to die on the cross for me. I ask that you forgive me of my sins and set me free from the schemes of the devil. I praise you, for you are worthy of my life to be given to you. So I ask that you come into my heart and cleanse me from all my guilt and shame. Change my heart to want you. Renew my mind to think of things that are holy. And transform me into who you are calling me to be. I thank you again for loving me enough to welcome me into your arms. I praise you Father. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Congratulations!! What a step you have taken to accept Jesus into your heart. This is the best decision that you could ever make. I encourage you to start taking the steps now to truly turn your life around and follow after Jesus. Find you a home church, get a bible, and start reading! Surround yourself with christian community and turn away from your sins of the past. For you are born again in Christ!!
I am determined to walk alongside you as you take the steps in your journey with Jesus! If you want to send me a message saying that you accepted Jesus, I would love to send you some personal encouragement! Continue following along with A Fruitful Life to learn more about how to live a godly, fruitful life!
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