Congratulations! You have made the greatest decision, the one with eternal impact, to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior. But now what happens? As with any decision this is just the beginning. You’re starting a new life and will need help and guidance. Below is a suggested action plan to help you get started in this new life. Make God bless you on your journey!
First, you need a Bible. If you don’t have one, get one! Go to your local bookstore and look at several Bibles. There are many translations available to help you understand God’s communication to man through the written word. Find one that you feel you will enjoy reading and are comfortable with. The New King James version is a good version to start with. It stays true to the original King James, which most people are familiar with, yet is much easier to read and understand.
The Bible is your “map” to the Christian life and your use, or neglect, of it will determine the kind of Christian you will become. Get into the habit of reading the Bible every day. “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word that you may grow thereby.” 1 Peter 2:2. Highlight or underline verses that speak to you. After you read a chapter, think about it and ask yourself, what is this saying to me? Make notes in the margin. Use your Bible like a textbook in the classroom of life. Remember, the Bible is God’s way of talking to you. You don’t have to spend hours and hours reading; start with just 10 – 15 minutes a day. We suggest you begin your Bible reading in the New Testament book of John. Once you have read the book of John then go back to Matthew and read through the entire New Testament; after that go to Genesis and read through the Old Testament. There are many good Bible reading plans available online along with websites that you can access and read the Bible online in almost any version you would like and with any device. A couple of sites are: youversion, Bible Gateway both have reading plans available. The important thing is to read your Bible daily.
Note: If you would like a hard copy of the Bible and can’t afford it, just contact us by e-mail, phone, or use the good old U.S. mail & we will be glad to provide you with one. Just go to the contact us tab and the information is there.
Second, develop a prayer life. Basically, prayer is simply talking to God. There’s no special formula you have to follow or certain time or place you must be in to pray. Make your prayer time a conversation with God. Talk with Him like you would a good friend. Confide in Him all your troubles, joys, concerns and needs. The Bible tells us in Philippians 4:5 to “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”
Third, become a member of a Bible believing church. You are part of the family of God now and becoming part of a local church will give you a stronger sense of belonging to that family. The church is a place for you to learn and grow by attending service, becoming involved in serving and reaching out to others. Once you are part of a church, be baptized in water; this is your public confession of your accepting Christ as your Savior, and become a tither. Giving your tithes is simply giving ten percent of your earnings to the church for the work of the gospel.
What now? Well, that depends on you. No one is going to force you to grow in the things of God, not even God, but we’ll be praying for you and we know that “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ”. Philippians 1:6; and that you “are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
May God bless you as you begin your walk in your new life as a Christian and welcome to the family! If we can be of any help as you start on your new life just email us.