Make The Decison

 

Disclaimer: Obviously I am not an actual angel. However, I feel like God speaks to my heart and I would love to share it with you. Please enjoy.

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A few nights ago I was talking with my brother. He said something I had never really thought about before, but realized he was describing not only something about himself, but about me also.

He said he had always thought that when you gave your heart to the Lord and became a Christian, God instantly took away all desire to do anything that wasn’t exactly what a Christian would do. You would want to go to church every time there was a service. Reading your Bible and praying would automatically become part of your daily life. In other words, you would instantly be changed into the model Christian. It wouldn’t take any effort on your part. I don’t know where either one of us got that idea, but we both grew up thinking that.

Every time he gave his heart to God that miraculous change just didn’t seem to happen for him and he didn’t know why. I felt the same way. I couldn’t understand why everyone else stayed true to God and I always drifted away.

When my father died I was thinking about him one day and the Lord spoke to me. One of the things He told me was that it was time for me to do what I had always heard about but had never done. I needed to “make the decision for Christ.” That hit me very hard and I said, “Okay, I am making the decision right now. I will never turn back again.” I knew right then that I was making a choice for the rest of my life. I did feel a change that time. I couldn’t have told you exactly what it was, but I felt different. I thought that God had finally given me that miraculous change I had always expected every time before. I was going to make it this time.

When my brother talked to me about it he said he now realizes that he not only had to give his heart to God, but he had to commit himself to that decision. It wasn’t going to happen without any effort. He had to purpose in his heart that he would do whatever it took. He was not going to turn back in any way.

He is serving God faithfully. He never misses church. He applies every sermon to himself, and he reads his Bible and prays every day. I had never seen the Christian strength in him that I see now. Watching him and talking to him I see and hear things that amaze me. I have gotten a new perspective on many things during our long talks.

He is the one who really made me understand that when I told God I was making the decision for Christ and felt a change in myself, it wasn’t that God had finally done His part and given me the miracle I had always expected to receive. It was that I had finally done my part and decided I was going to do whatever it took to make it happen. The commitment to God that I chose was what had always been missing. God had not failed to do His part. I had failed to do mine.

The Bible tells us we have to work out our own salvation. I never really understood what that meant before. Now I know it means we have to decide to do whatever we need to do to stay and the straight and narrow path that leads to Heaven. God won’t force us.

Last Christmas I invited my good friend Gail to our Christmas Eve service. She came and really enjoyed it. When I saw her 3 days later she started asking me all kinds of questions. One of the things she wanted to know about was communion. She hadn’t taken communion since she was young, in the Catholic church. She wanted to know when we did communion and I told her it was the first Sunday of each month. She asked if it would be okay if she came to our communion services. Of course I told her it would be great. A few days later she told me she had decided she wanted to come to church every Sunday. Since then she has never missed a Sunday except one time when she was sick, and a few times when she and her husband went out of town. She made the decision and has stuck to it. It has been so fun and interesting watching her spiritual growth. It is amazing. Why is she growing like this? Because she made the decision and she is staying true to it.

Have you been failing or faltering in your Christianity as you are waiting for God to give you your miracle? He doesn’t owe you a miracle you know. You owe him your commitment and dedication. When you finally do that you will start seeing that miracle beginning in your life. God won’t just hand it to you on a silver platter. God calls you to salvation, but you have to accept it and make the decision to stick to it. Of course God will help you with it, but He won’t just do it all for you. God says laziness is a sin. Wanting God to do everything for you with no effort on your part is laziness and you will never grow that way. You will probably never make it to Heaven that way either.

So, have you made that decision or are you trying to ride other Christians spiritual coat tails to Heaven. If so, you need to make the decision while you still have time.

Think about it.