Don't Let it Slip Away

Are you ready to hear from God today? Me too! How refreshing to wake to God's voice! This is Michele posting this morning  and we are moving on to 1 Timothy 1:18-2:7. Take it in and see what God is saying to your heart as you read. This is what stands out most to me:

Cling to your faith in Christ, and keep your conscience clear. For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked. (v. 1:19)

I have always had an overactive conscience. This was particularly evident when I was a little girl. I confessed everything I did to my mom, everything! As you can imagine, I tried my hardest to be well behaved then. But, as I grew into my teenage years I began to ignore my conscience and not be so up front about my misbehavior. Guess what? I ended up not being so well behaved as a teenager. It's the same way with our faith. God speaks to us through our consciences and when we listen we stay on track.....but, if we ignore his voice our faith will become less and less important over time. This reminds me of a song by Casting Crowns called Slow Fade. This song basically states that our faith doesn't just dissipate over night, it's a slow fade and something we can lose over time as a result of each and every choice we make. So, listen to the voice of God and don't allow your faith to slowly fade away. I don't want mine to be shipwrecked!

Not only do we want to keep our own faith on track, we also want others to have a strong faith in our Lord and Savior. How can you and I help with that?

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them, intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.......This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand truth. (v. 2:1 and 3-4)

Our God is not just partial to those of us who have already chosen him, he loves all people and wants everyone to spend eternity with him. Does this mean that all will be saved? No. The Bible is very clear that all will not be saved. That doesn't mean that God doesn't give each one of us ample time to make a life changing decision. Who knows, he may use you and I to minister to a lost soul and see someone become a Christ follower as a result.

So, what God is telling me today is that I have two very important callings on my life. One is to keep my own faith in check and the second is to pray for others so they can do the same for themselves and others in their life.

Thank you, Lord, for reminding me of the importance of listening to my conscience. Take me back to when I was a little girl who worked so hard to do what was right.  Hold me accountable and give me a heart for all people. Help me to love others and care about where they will be spending eternity. I want to be like you! Amen