DO I REALLY FOLLOW GOD?

There’s a question I used to ask myself before I found my answer, and I’m positive I’m not the only one that has asked that question.It’s a simple question, with only two possible answers, yes or no. So, why would we have trouble finding the honest answer? And, if the answer turns out to be no, how do we change it to yes?“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”(Matthew 6:24) This could be why you may not know the answer. You try to follow God, but try to follow the world as well. Thus, by trying not to admit what you’re doing is ungodly while “following God,” you may know that the answer is no, but you try to make it yes and continue following the world. So maybe you don’t do magic spells and worship idols, but do you watch videos that have ungodliness in it? Things like Wednesday and Matilda? Do you play games that are ungodly? Like Fortnite, Roblox, and Poppy Playtime? What about your thoughts? Do you entertain ungodly thoughts? I read something once that said, “The person you will be in 5 years depends on:-The videos you watch-The books you read-The food you eat-The money you invest-The people you spend time with-The habits you adopt-The sacrifices you make”I happen to agree with this. So, maybe it’s just a movie, but that one movie can open a door, just a crack, but that crack can let something else in. And, then the door opens wider and more stuff comes in until the next thing you know, it’s open wide and another door is opening.

Another reason you may not know the answer could be that you have become disconnected from God. If so, I highly recommend you read your Bible. The Bible is the main way God talks to us. He tells us about himself and gives us guidance through the Bible. He will also give us signs to answer our prayers. Whether it’s a rainbow, storm, or an actual sign. Though sometimes it’s through feelings.So, how do we change our honest answer from no, to yes? It’s simple. Give all your problems to God. Read the Bible, pray, even. Prayer is so, so powerful. And if you feel like you could never be forgiven, just know God forgives everyone who is willing to be forgiven. That is why Jesus died on the cross for us. So, we could be forgiven of our sins and live with him forever.We are all sinners, God said so himself. But Jesus saved us from punishment, all you have to do is accept. And once you do that, everything else will fall into place. Just trust him.

- Kai

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT PART 2-JOY

Galatians 5:22-23

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

The definition of Joy is: the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation.

Most people have joy only when their life is going well, but as Christians, we can have joy even when things aren’t going our way.

James 1:2  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;

Even when you are going through a hard time, God can give you joy.

Lines

The title is very odd. ‘Lines’. What do I mean by lines? What does that have to do with a

Christian?

By lines, I mean rules you make for yourself and people under you on things to do. This could

be from how you talk to how you dress to how often you go to church.

These self-placed rules can be very good. You may say you won’t wear shorts because you

don’t want to be immodest and displeasing to God, or that you won’t listen to certain types of

music because you don’t think it is pleasing to him.

These are ‘lines’ you can draw to help you be a better Christian, but that doesn’t necessarily

mean that it’s wrong if another Christian wears shorts or listens to that type of music you don’t

think is good.

This is where problems can come in. When you start holding other Christians accountable to

your own rules, it can cause strife and unnecessary divisions amongst Christians. It’s good to try

and live a good life that’s pleasing to God, but other Christians might disagree with you.

You shouldn’t judge a Christian because they listen to a certain type of music, or because they

wear certain types of clothes. There are some things the Bible is very clear about. ‘Thou shalt

not kill’ (speaking of murder). If a Christian murders someone, they have committed a sin. End

of story. But if they listen to a certain type of music you think is wrong, but the Bible does not

explicitly state it’s wrong, that doesn’t mean they’re a bad Christian.

I, personally, think it is wrong to dress certain ways and to speak certain ways. If I do one of

these things and have a guilty conscience about it, I have committed a sin.

To conclude: Don’t judge people on how ‘good of a Christian’ they are because they don’t match

up to all of your rules. Remember that what is truly important is Jesus Christ.