ChristianSalvation

So you wanna get saved, eh?

You do know it's not easy, right? This is definetly not something for weak pansies, you must be a warrior now, and don your armor! Do you know how to fight? Can you stand your ground against an enemy? Satan is very old and he knows humans very well - tempting you is easy for him! And he loves to see you fall. Will you bring glory to your God? Well, you can't do any of that without God in your life, first. Here is how.

Repentance

Learn how to say "I'm sorry". This is important! Jesus died for you in the worst, most painful way there is to die (On the cross) just so you could easily be forgiven of your sins. All you have to do is admit that you were wrong, and ask God to forgive you - that's it, you're forgiven!

[Note] - You have to mean it, God knows your thoughts and your heart, a shallow mumble of forgive me's isn't going to cut it. This is God you are talking to. He knows and sees all! You also have to plan on not doing it again. Whatever sin it was, you can not ask to be forgiven for telling a lie (for example) if you have intentions of doing it again - God doesn't work that way.

ACts 17:30
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
Isaiah 30:15
This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength"
Luke 5:31
Jesus answered them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. {32}I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

Ephsians2:8
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God {9} not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

The Sinner's prayer

This ties in pretty well with repentance, though if you really mean it you need only say it once. The basic elements to this prayer are these; you need to
1)Admit that you are a sinner and have sinned.
2)Ask for forgiveness.
3)Ask God to come into your heart and give yourself and your life to Him.
4)Ask for help in living a biblical, Christian (meaning Christ filled) life.
5)Thank Him for his forgiveness and grace, and for coming into your life.

~*~C-O-N-G-R-A-T-U-L-A-T-I-O-N-S!~*~

Please be sure to E-mail me or leave me a message if you just prayed this prayer, let me welcome you to this wonderful family! (or answer any questions!)

What's wrong?? I don't feel much different!
Well, many people like to exaggerate and say they see fireworks and rainbows, but it's merely a state of mind. Don't worry if nothing feels different, God is very patient and sometimes He works very slowly on changing people - each person is unique.

Wow, that was easy
Hehe, yup! That's the last time it will be easy, too. Sorry to tell ya, but on the lighter side, you have some heavy equipment now. There is nothing more powerful than God, and you are on the same team! Time to get familiar with one of your two very powerful weapons. The Sword of the Spirit! Which is, of course, the Holy Bible. I am still looking for an online version, until then you can either buy one or borrow one from your local church. (You need to join a church now, anyway) A fighter with a sword he doesn't know how to use is worthless, he may as well be using his fists against the enemys' wicked weapons. Because of this, you need to read and memorize scripture daily! Don't be the waterboy! *Winks*

Get the word out

Now that you have read your bible and been forgiven, you are going to want to tell the people in your life all about it - It is exciting! Go right ahead! Just be sure you have some verses memorized and/or a bible handy, because chances are good you will get tested. There are tons of questions people will ask, generally just to test you, not because they're interested in getting saved. Either way you want to be prepared. There is the ever famous, "Why does God let bad things happen to good people?", "God doesn't exist, and you can't prove it... can you?" and my personal favorite, "Why should I get saved now, when i can just do it real quick before I die? Then I can party my whole life long!". Of course I know the answers to these, but unless you are really baffeled, i'm not telling! (I had to find the answers meself, now it's your turn lazy-butt!)

Pray, pray, pray

Think of a battlefield. You and your fellows on one side, the enemy and his on the other. Front line, you have your best men - we don't sacrifice our weak here! The best men are experienced, they've been fighting for years, and won't stop until they're in heaven! On the front of the enemy's side you see some of the most beautiful, intelligent creatures, wielding their weapons with many many years of practice and ease. These creatures have been fighting for centuries longer than any of your best men! And they know all your weak spots, because before you there was someone a lot like you. So what's your temptation? Sex? Drugs? Gambling? They know, they do their homework. They watched you spend your whole check at that casino last week. So their they sit, with greed dripping from their lips and clothed in money. "Shew!" you think, "Glad im a newbie, i'll just hide back here behind our frontmen who know what they're doing. Later when God has been working with me for awhile, then I will go up there and show 'em a thing or two." Uh oh. Was that your name you just heard called? God just called you to the front lines?? Is he crazy??? You've barely cracked your bible open, you wouldn't stand a chance against them! Oh, oh. Praise the Lord, that He works thru you, eh? "Everything you do, do it for the glory of God." (It is ALWAYS for the glory of God, never for yourself!) God works with cracked vessels. This means the more you depend on Him, the more He can do through you! So, with a gentle nudge from a comrade, you stumble up to the front lines, your brow furrowed thick with fear and worry. You lift that very heavy sword awkwardly, and raise it not-so-gracefully and squeeze your eyes shut tight and-! Cheering? The old front men are cheering for you? But, um... you hadn't even swung yet!? Then you peek around your shoulder, and there He is, with you as always, the sweet Lord had worked through you once again.

This is your second weapon, and it's very, very powerful. You need to pray daily, starting at about 20 minutes. Doesn't sound like much? Wait until you try it! *Smiles* Eventually you will want to get to the point where your thoughts are intermingled with God - every one of them. I don't know anyone personally that has done it, but it can be done, and is the ultimate prayer goal to shoot for. My father wakes up three hours early everyday so that he can spend them in devotions, (a mix of prayer and bible studying) then spends three hours before bedtime doing the same thing - and he says repeatedly how he wished he had more time for devotions! It is a very special ability we have, to be able to communicate with God in such a personal way - take advantage of it. Again, think of the battlefield. There has got to be the back up troops, the support, the healers, and these are the prayer warriors. Always keep your brothers and sisters in prayer!
Not sure how to pray? The Lord gave us an outline to follow in Matthew, which i will put here. But pay attention to this - This is an outline, do NOT say this word for word! If you repeat the same prayer every time, it will lose any value or meaning it had!

Matthew 6:11

This, then, is how you should pray:
"Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
(This is praise - better than just thanking him, Praise your God! He is worthy of it!)
your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
(Ask for God's help and direction on living the will He has for your life)
Give us today our daily bread.
(The only material possesions you need are the necessities, more than that and you will become greedy and will not be depending on God like you should. You'll see that the more you are in trouble, the more you pray and study. Hence; you should pray just to ask for your next meal.)
Forgive us our debts,
(This is repentance)
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
(God can not forgive you if you need to forgive, or are harboring hate for someone else.)
And lead us not into temptation,
(God said in His word that he will never allow you to be tempted without an escape, or way out of it.)
but deliver us from the evil one.
(Ask for help against a specific sin or temptation.)
(In closing you will hear many people say "In Jesus name". They say this to ask God's blessing on their words, thet they might not be in error. How you pray is as important as what you pray for!)