Just one Decision

Whew it’s been a long time since I’ve written! Life has been crazy and I’ve just not felt led to write until now. There have been heartaches, joys, and healed relationships along the way and so many changes personally as well as in the world.

I have been riding, even though I haven’t been writing, and even that has been different in the past 6 months especially.  It seems the majority of people are just not paying attention at all when they drive. There have been so many times when vehicles of all sizes with all ages of drivers have crossed over into the other lane headed right towards me. It can be very unnerving to say the least.

As I’ve stated before, I rarely ride with any specific destination in mind. I have set out to go certain general directions many times,  and my gut tells me to go another way.  I must decide every time whether I’m going to listen to my “gut”, which I believe is actually the Lord talking to me, or ignore it. I’ve learned over the years it’s best to not question that feeling. Any time I have gone against it, the outcome has revealed I should have listened.

The same goes for my writing. So many times I start to write and it seems my mind and heart go a million directions and I can’t get focused in. When discussing my frustrations over some things quite a while back, my husband’s reply was, “Stop trying to carry the cross that isn’t yours. ” How often do we do that?

The enemy continues working hard to steal,  kill, and destroy. There have been so many devastating “natural ” disasters just within the last year with so much loss of life and property and no end in sight to the devastation. Families have been torn apart and are constantly under attack.  The news is increasingly unreliable and full of lies and hatred.

Most recently we lost an incredible young man, the age of my sons, to a senseless assassination. My heart aches for Charlie Kirk’s family, especially his 2 young children who will now grow up without their daddy. Thankfully they will one day be able to watch videos of him, but that’s most definitely not much comfort for them now. Anyone who can’t see that the Bible is playing out before our very eyes is blinded by the lies of the enemy.

We lost another amazing man of God, Voddie Baucham, and also lost John MacArthur and James Dobson this year. I believe they are all now in the presence of the Father and what a wonderful place to be. They all had, and I believe will continue to have, a very strong impact on so many even today.  Although social media can be down right cruel, it can also help spread the gospel through the videos and teachings of these 4 men as well as so many before them who were not afraid to speak truth.

On a ride a while back, I passed by a church that had on it’s sign out front, “Who is going to Heaven Because of You?” I thought quite a bit about that as I rode that day and have pondered on it many times since. I think I understand what was meant with that question, but in reality none of us is truly responsible for anyone other than ourselves going to heaven in my opinion. God and the person who makes the decision to follow Jesus are ultimately responsible.

We can, however, be a wonderful witness for God and we can allow others to see the joy we receive following Him, in good times and in tough times. That in turn may get them interested in learning more about Him and wanting to dig deeper into that relationship. I’ve heard some reports that it takes someone hearing the Gospel 3 times before they respond and others say it takes 10 times. I have no idea how many times it truly takes, I just know that anyone who is lead to tell others about Jesus should never stop. It’s not just about telling them, it’s about living it and showing them. The old saying, “actions speak louder than words” is very true. If you are telling someone about Jesus and claiming to have a relationship with Him, but then your actions show otherwise on a regular basis, which do you think will speak loudest? I know we all make mistakes and will continue to, but when we do we must apologize,  ask for forgiveness and strive to do better so as not to repeat the same mistakes. People may forget things you say but they won’t forget how you made them feel.

I’ve watched and listened to many people talk about Charlie since he was murdered and I’ve been in awe of his wife’s remarks about him in so many ways. She said he never raised his voice towards her or their children and was always asking her how he could serve them better. That kind of self control and willingness to serve could only come through a relationship with Jesus. Those actions matched his words and that’s part of what makes his witness so powerful, even in his absence from this world now.

One day we will all face our creator and how that turns out for each of us will all depend on one decision, do you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior?  It’s not just do you believe in Him, even the evil one believes He exists or he wouldn’t be fighting so hard to make you question everything and not follow Jesus. Do you truly believe He is the son of God, that He died, He rose and He is coming back again?!

Think about the Bible for a minute, can you think of any other book that has been around longer or caused so much discussion and uproar, yet provided so much comfort to so many? How many times have you heard about a fire, flood, tornado, or hurricane destroying everything in it’s path yet someone finds a Bible in perfect condition amongst the devastation? Have you heard about that with any other books time and again?

Why do you think that happens? There’s only one reason, GOD! I will never be convinced otherwise.  He is omnipotent,  omniscient and omnipresent. He is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

If you’ve never before sought Him wholeheartedly, please consider it now, the days are getting darker all over the world.