The next few minutes could change your life forever. If you are interested in truly connecting with the God who created you, please read on and consider deeply the powerful message of the gospel that is being shared with you.  God cared (and still cares) so much for you that he went beyond any reasonable means to secure your eternity with him forever.  There’s a choice you have to make though.  Will you accept the invitation to follow Christ and transfer control of your life completely over to him, or will you reject it?  Not to be a big downer, but “not choosing” is a choice you make. And the result of that choice is the same as choosing to reject it.

We tried to lay out the story of God and how you fit in as clearly and concisely as possible below. Our prayer is that if you haven’t cosen to follow Christ, that you are moved by what God has done for you to the point where you ditch your life your living now (packed with sin, selfishness, and headed for hell) for one of glorifying God (packed with forgiveness, service, and headed for heaven).

SIN – OUR REBELLION 
Even if we try to justify ourselves with thoughts like,. “I’m not nearly as bad as that person,” or “I live a good moral life,” the Bible tells us in Romans 3:10, “As it is written: There is none righteous, no, not one.” This idea is continued in Romans 3:23 ”… for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” Everyone has sinned in the eyes of God. All of us stand guilty before Him. While that may not be the most pleasant thing to consider as we start things out, it’s imperative that we grasp the magnitude of our sins and the urgency for a Savior.  Only through this will God’s response blow us away.

Romans 6:23 tell us that “the wages of sin is death…” In this case, eternal death is the price that we must pay for sin. What is sin? Sin is simply this…disobedience to the will of God (1 John 3:4) and since all have sinned, all are subject to the penalty of sin and an eternity in hell separated from God.  This might sound harsh, but that’s just how serious our sin issue is. It’s not something that a little slap on the wrist will remedy. It’s too big. It’s too deep. It’s something that completely eradicates our ability to know, glorify, and worship God as well as our chances to inherit heaven. This is the bad news. Now, onto the Good News!!

JESUS – GOD’S SON / OUR SUBSTITUTE
God provided a cure for our sin-diseased lives by providing His Son to pay the penalty for us. John 3:16 tell us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” What a promise! But God even elaborates in greater detail when the Bible tells us in Romans 5:8 that ”God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus didn’t wait for mankind to “get it together,” but He gave up His life as a sacrifice while we were separated from Him.

The remedy for sin, which is salvation, does not come through good works, but it comes only through Jesus. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Scripture also tells us in John 14:6 that, “Jesus said…’I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

SALVATION – GOD’S SOLUTION / OUR DECISION
No one can choose eternal life for you. You must make the choice yourself. In Mark 1:15, Jesus said, “…repent, and believe the gospel.” Romans 10:9-10 says that if you ”…confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” John 1:12 says,“ But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God.”

The two things that God is looking for are: Repentance FROM sin and Allegiance TO Jesus. This is best symbolized through baptism through immersion.  Only you can make that decision. When you do, God receives you into His family.  This is a significant choice that shouldn’t be taken lightly or made on a whim.  Carefully consider what Jesus is asking.  He is asking for you to surrender your life to him.  Not some of it.  Not most of it.  Not everything but this one part that you hold oh so dear.  All of it.  Every… single… aspect!! It’s like looking at a menu at a restaurant and ordering something and the waiter asks, “how much of the meal would you like?”  Ummm… the whole thing please.  Why would you pay full price for only part of the meal?  Jesus paid with his shed blood to secure your eternity, and he won’t settle for anything other than your whole life.  He’s patient, and gives us the Holy Spirit to enable us to make the changes he’s looking for.  But the journey starts by giving him your life to mold and shape into his desired design.

The bible tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that “…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Imagine that, the chance to start all over with a new life… Eternal life!

Prayer is the way we make the connection. Our link with God is established through prayer, and prayer is simply talking with God. It is vital to keep the lines of communication open in any relationship if it is to succeed and flourish. Prayer is the way we initiate our connection with God, and prayer is also the way we maintain our connection with God.

God’s invitation of eternal life is to all, so we invite you to make that connection with God now by repenting from (or walking away from) your sin and aligning yourself (or walking toward) Jesus. We encourage you to pray this simple prayer.

“Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank you for the gift of salvation through Your Son, Jesus Christ. I repent of all my sins and ask You to forgive me. I want Jesus to be the Lord of my life. I believe He died on the cross and was raised from the dead that I might receive His life now and forever.  Jesus, thank you for saving me and giving me eternal life. I desire to honor you with and serve you through my life, and I ask you to change me on the inside. Help me, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to live in a way that would honor You. While I may  not know everything that will include, I give myself into your hands. Have your way in me and give me the boldness and humility to follow your lead. Amen!”