I am probably among the many who, after giving my life to Jesus, followed Him for a little while, then went my own way.

What happened to me? Did I just slowly lose my salvation?

Once you truly give your life to Jesus and make the lifetime commitment to follow Him, you’re sealed into eternity.

You shouldn’t treat salvation like fire insurance. You can’t just get saved and sit on the sidelines and enjoy a comfortable life.

Jesus died in our place, for our sins, so that we would have an abundant life. But, He also gives each of us an assignment.

Have you accepted the assignment? Are you living for Jesus and serving others? Are you helping those in need? Are you putting others before yourself?

I’m thankful that God didn’t make me a robot. I have freedom of choice and so do you. I can decide how I’m going to spend my time on this earth, so that I can know for sure where I’ll spend eternity. And so do you.

Don’t miss God’s most important assignment. Tell others about this new life you lead. Give others the opportunity to hear about this Jesus you’re serving how He loves you unconditionally and has purchased a place in Heaven for you.

Accept God’s assignment today. Join me in the “Great Commission.”

Mark 16:15 -”He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”

Did you know that satan loves it when we focus on our feelings?

The world does a good job at promoting, “just do what you feel.” This will usually get you into trouble. Feelings are one of satan’s favorite tools to use to distract us, to focus on self and to take on a prideful personality.

Proverbs 28:26 - “Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.”

What are you led by? What directs your decisions, your actions?

As a Christian, we are called to live by faith, not be how we feel.

As it says in the verse above, we’re a fool if we only trust in our feelings.

Our feelings are changed by people and/or circumstances.

Because of the fall (Adam and Eve) our entire being is affected by sin.

Paul talks about it in Romans when he says he doesn’t understand his own actions.

We all battle the flesh daily. Our feelings get us into trouble when we are led to do what ‘feels good.'

If we want to live a righteous life that is pleasing to God, we can’t do it by trusting our feelings.

Instead, we are to live by faith in our creator. Our faith is guided and informed by God.

Try to live by what scripture says, not by how something makes you feel.

You don’t have to know the answers to every problem you have.

Take yourself off the throne and put God back on. God is the head of your life if you’ve surrendered your life to Him. So, if you did give your life to Him, why are we constantly trying to take it back?

I’ll admit, sometimes I worry about things that I typically don’t even have control of in the first place. I play the scenarios in my mind, wondering if I do this, the maybe this will happen.

In the spiritual realm it’s ok in not knowing what’s going to happen.

Next time this happens to you, try to stop worrying and start thanking God for lining things up; thank Him for fighting our battles.

God’s ways are always better than anything we could dream up.

Don’t get discouraged when you can’t figure things out. You don’t know what God is up to.

Things will start to happen out of the ordinary. That’s why you don’t see it now. God’s ways are always supernatural, far better and higher than we can accomplish.

Get comfortable. Trust God with the unknown.

Isaiah 55:8 - “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.”

Transition is the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.

Joshua 1:9 - “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

As a Christian, God is always changing us. He’s transforming us and molding us to be something different than we are.

Change is never comfortable but it is a fact of life. I’ve been through several transitions in my life and have grown in maturity in each one. It’s the times I tried to do things ‘my way’ that seemed the hardest on me. There were times that I didn’t trust God enough to let go of my plans. Boy, was I dumb to think I could make it on my own.

I’m going through a transition in my life now, a little different than I’ve ever experienced. There are challenges ahead. There are already obstacles I’ve had to go around. But, there is one thing that stands out and is very prominent in me and that’s peace.

Some may look at my season and think, “how is she going to get through this?”

I’ll admit, I’ve had to make some compromises that I wasn’t comfortable with. But, I know that no matter what plans I have, God’s got it all worked out.

I’m standing back and giving God the reigns to make this transition as smooth as humanly possible.

How many times have you either looked for or checked your cell phone today? I hate it, but yet the temptation is there.

The latest statistic says most people check their cell phones every 12 minutes. This boils down to being on your phone almost 24 hours a week. Ugh.

Can you imagine what this world would look like if those people opened the Bible every 12 minutes, looking for guidance?

The problem is not the cell phone itself, but temptation. And, this is not anything new. Temptation started with an apple in the garden and now it’s an Apple product that society has become addicted to.

The temptations will always be out there in some form. Most of them are subtle and just seep into your life slowly.

Recognize them. Speak to God about them and ask for His help in overcoming them.

Just remember, it’s satan who tempts us, not Jesus.

Let’s put a smile on God’s face and a frown on satan’s, and resist the temptation. 

You’re not a bad person if you’ve been tempted.  What really matters is how you respond to the  temptation. 

1 Corinthians 10:13 - “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

A lot of successful businesses keep ahead of everyone else by how they manage their time.

I’ve worked in 2 large law firms and I can affirm that time is money. Most people are particular in who they pay to do their business, or to represent them. Clients also research firms to see how proficient they are in handling certain types of cases in terms of time management.

After all, if you’re paying an attorney to do some work for you and he/she’s charging $500.00 an hour, they better know how to manage their time.

So it is with life. How are you managing your time each day? Are you so caught up in busyness that you don’t have time for God?

Most of us do have to work during the day, we may have other obligations that fill our evenings and you end up having an hour at the most before you have to go to bed, so you can wake up early enough to do it all over again.

Time is something that once its gone, you can’t get it back.

It is possible to manage your time to include God, even for the busy new mom, the single mom or dad who works two jobs, or the guy who works twelve hours a day.

It took me years to surrender my time to God. Now, I purposely and intentionally wake up an hour before I have to head out the door, and spend time with God.

If you’re willing to try, God will meet you wherever you are. Start out small and work up to more time with God.

Manage time with God; it will be your greatest achievement!

Ephesians 5:15-17 - “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

Take cell phones for example. It’s not a sin to have a cell phone, billions of people do. And it’s not so wrong to have a fast sporty race car. But, are these things really necessary?

People ask us older folks all the time, “so, what did you do for fun when you were a kid?” I answer, “we had good clean fun, like playing outdoors with each other. We played jax with marbles; we climbed trees. We pretended we were adults and played ‘house.’”

In my opinion technology has robbed kids today of all this. What would the average teenager do if you took away their cell phones or computers? They would be devastated. These items aren't a necessity, they’re distractions of every day life.

You can ask my daughter, who just turned 30, even her generation had some good ole fashioned fun. These foundations give kids routine, good boundaries, fun and friendship.

Computers aren’t necessary to child rearing. Sure, computers in schools help in learning, but lets leave them in the schools.

When your kids or grandkids get home today, how about going outside with them and having some good ole fashioned fun. Have a picnic, take a walk or just lay down on the grass and look up at the sky.

It’s a necessity of life.

Proverbs 17:22 - “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”

It’s an every-day thing now, people taking a picture or selfie of some famous landmark. Whatever happened to just looking at the landmark, viewing the natural beauty of a mountain or waterfall?

I actually missed seeing a whale come up out of the water once because I was fooling around with my camera.

This pertains to every day life too. Most people are so busy going here and there, making appearances so they can say they were there, that they miss golden opportunities of just being in the moment.

It’s always a whirl-wind of a time when 2 of my grandkids visit. They’re both trying to tell me something at the same time, or the older one typically dominates the conversation altogether. But, I intentionally slow my mind down and just breathe in their presence. I do capture the moment in my mind often so I can remember it later.

In the moment is a wonderful place to be, especially if you’ve invited God in. Precious moments can be found in stillness, in a baby’s laugh, in an elderly person’s smile, or in the middle of a worship song.

Stay in the moment with God.

2 Corinthians 4:18 - “as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”