Dear Ones,
Hope you had a great weekend. Yesterday the youth had a fund raiser and meal following the service, including the dunk tank where Pastor and others got very wet! We also had a wonderful surprise as Ethan and Taylor (who many of you have prayed for in the past) came for a visit. She is now 7 months pregnant!!
Today I am going to Aldi’s and my exercise class and then having a DEXA scan, hoping my bones have gotten stronger.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Each one or you who is reading this devotional today has either come to the Lord through a conversion experience that might have been sudden and dramatic, or one that one that happened more gradually over time. Or perhaps you are one that has not yet accepted Christ. Coming to receive the Lord is the most important decision any one of us will ever make and effects how we will spend eternity.
Professor Zittser, in his book Water From a Deep Well, writes that conversion means a change of direction, a new way of life. It involves repentance and a change of heart, mind and direction. It is like a new birth! It happens in many ways and we can tell if it is true and authentic by the results that follow. If it is real, we will draw closer to the Lord and we become more like Him. Some may listen to a charismatic evangelist and go forward at a crusade to receive the Lord, but there is no evidence of a change of life that follows. One such girl in our youth group had an emotional experience, but it didn’t last long as she later returned to her former life.
Jonathan Edwards preached to many in the 1700’s and saw great awakening in the church. He observed the pattern that conversions seem to follow: “a conviction of sin, commitment to live a better life, repeated failures, feelings of utter helplessness and guilt, and finally an experience of grace, which overwhelmed the converts with confidence, rapture and love.”  Edwards recognized and believed people coming to the Lord was the result of God’s initiative and work! If we try to live it out on our own we will fail, but when we experience His grace we are left with gratitude and great joy. Yes, conversion is far more than just an ecstatic experience. When we experience God’s grace in a deep way, we may then respond with love for God and for our neighbor.
We may not have an exact date when we came to believe but the big question is, have we surrendered to God and does it affect our marriages, schedules, relationships, jobs, finances, etc. If we know Him, it will impact on how we love and serve, for we will be known by our fruits. (Matt. 7:16) If you have never received Him, the Lord waits for you to open your heart to Him.
Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to help you live a life of love and service and share Him with others.
Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy