My Faith Journey
As I begin this blog, I believe it is necessary to share some of my faith journey.
When I look back on my life, I think I have always believed in God, always believed in the truth of God's Word, the Bible, and always believed in the reason of Jesus' birth, death and resurrection. But belief isn't enough for a relationship with the God of Creation. I had to realize that very fact, to understand that my imperfections caused me to fall far short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and to comprehend the consequences of ignoring the personal offer of justification. [An easy way to remember the meaning of justified is being made "just as if I'd never sinned".] I needed the salvation that Jesus Christ offered when he bore the punishment for my sins and the sins of the world on the cross.
That day came when I was seven years old. I don't remember all the details, but I do remember the church service ending and my father saying, "I sensed you were feeling convicted during the message." I even remember that we moved over to the pew next to the organ where we could talk and pray. I was adopted into the family of God; I was a child of God (Romans 8:15).
Granted, I was only a child and so my faith and understanding were limited, but that didn't lessen the authenticity of my salvation. The Gospel of Mark records Jesus as saying, "Anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it" (Mark 10:15). A child doesn't need intellectual reasons to believe; the simplicity of a child's faith is to be emulated.
The summer of my twelfth year, I attended a Christian camp where I began to understand that there is much more to the Christian life than faith and salvation. In Ephesians 4:1, we are called to "walk worthy of the calling [we] have received". And Peter gives us a whole list of things we are to add to our faith (2 Peter 1:5-7).
Thus began my journey of learning and growing through studying God's Word. At a women's retreat I attended last spring, Damaris Carbaugh taught us the prayer, "I want to live in Your Word until Your Word is living in me." That sums it up so well! The purpose of this blog is to share with you some of those things I am learning as I study God's Word, as I allow God to transform my life. I trust I will never stop learning and growing and changing, in becoming more and more conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29). My prayer is that you, too, will be encouraged by the lessons I share, that you will want to live in the Word of God until His Word is living in you.
When I look back on my life, I think I have always believed in God, always believed in the truth of God's Word, the Bible, and always believed in the reason of Jesus' birth, death and resurrection. But belief isn't enough for a relationship with the God of Creation. I had to realize that very fact, to understand that my imperfections caused me to fall far short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and to comprehend the consequences of ignoring the personal offer of justification. [An easy way to remember the meaning of justified is being made "just as if I'd never sinned".] I needed the salvation that Jesus Christ offered when he bore the punishment for my sins and the sins of the world on the cross.
That day came when I was seven years old. I don't remember all the details, but I do remember the church service ending and my father saying, "I sensed you were feeling convicted during the message." I even remember that we moved over to the pew next to the organ where we could talk and pray. I was adopted into the family of God; I was a child of God (Romans 8:15).
Granted, I was only a child and so my faith and understanding were limited, but that didn't lessen the authenticity of my salvation. The Gospel of Mark records Jesus as saying, "Anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it" (Mark 10:15). A child doesn't need intellectual reasons to believe; the simplicity of a child's faith is to be emulated.
The summer of my twelfth year, I attended a Christian camp where I began to understand that there is much more to the Christian life than faith and salvation. In Ephesians 4:1, we are called to "walk worthy of the calling [we] have received". And Peter gives us a whole list of things we are to add to our faith (2 Peter 1:5-7).
Thus began my journey of learning and growing through studying God's Word. At a women's retreat I attended last spring, Damaris Carbaugh taught us the prayer, "I want to live in Your Word until Your Word is living in me." That sums it up so well! The purpose of this blog is to share with you some of those things I am learning as I study God's Word, as I allow God to transform my life. I trust I will never stop learning and growing and changing, in becoming more and more conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29). My prayer is that you, too, will be encouraged by the lessons I share, that you will want to live in the Word of God until His Word is living in you.
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