1. Realize that you need God
Every single person that has ever been born, except Jesus, has sinned. Sin is any action that separates you from God. Paul writes in Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God".
2. Realize that being a "good person" is not enough
Living in God's favor is not like a teeter totter with all the good things you have ever done on one side and all the bad things on the other. When you are standing before God He will not measure the weight of your deeds and grant you entrance if the good deeds out weigh the bad deeds.
3. Realize who Jesus Christ is and what He means to your life
Jesus Christ was a flesh and blood human being, sent down from Heaven to show people how to live their lives in accordance with God's will. Because it is impossible for anyone to gain their own way into Heaven, Jesus was beaten, whipped, spit on, slapped, punched, and nailed to a cross and left for dead. This was done as the final sacrifice for your sins. Without Jesus and his death and resurrection, we would all be forever separated from God.
4. Ask God to live in your heart
Drop to your knees and pray to God. "God, I am a sinner and I realize that I need your love and grace in my life. I believe in you and I believe in Jesus and what He did for me by dying on the cross. I beg for the forgiveness of my sins and I give my life to you from this day forward. Please accept my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. Amen!"
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You have taken a big step in your life today. You should know that this is not the end. This is only the beginning. You have started on the greatest adventure of your life. You will spend every day for the rest of your life learning how to live better for God. The most important thing to remember is that God exists OUTSIDE of your feelings. God is always the same whether you feel great or you feel terrible. God also exists outside the actions of other Christians. In other words, do not base God solely on the actions of Christians. Remember, other Christians are flawed human beings just like you. At some point you will be disappointed by a Christian. Do not let it distract you from God.
Here are my suggestions for your next steps:
1. Find a church
You do not need a church to go to Heaven. But it is important to commune with like minded people to help you grow stronger in your faith. I can tell you from personal experience that you will back slide into your old way of thinking unless you have support.
2. Get Baptized
Baptism is not a requirement for entrance into Heaven. But Jesus was baptized and He spoke of it as though it was important to fulfill all things that God. Matthew 3:15 reads "it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness."
3. Pray
Prayer is an extremely powerful weapon that God has given you to talk to Him about everything going on in your life. Everyone's prayer life is different. Be honest and tell Him everything. Tell Him about how you are stressed at work and tell Him about your relationships and tell Him about the things your struggle with. Sometimes you feel as if your prayers don't go any higher than the ceiling and other times it feels like you are sitting right next to God having a conversation. No matter how you feel, God is there beside you and He weeps when you weep. Lastly, ask Him for wisdom. What you seek is wisdom to apply God's will in your life.
4. Read the Bible
I only started reading the Bible daily a few months ago. I honestly don't know what I was thinking not spending time with God everyday. Believe me I know how you feel. Your day is so busy that you can't seem to push things aside for 30 - 60 minutes to read and meditate on God's Word. If I can make time to do this then so can you. I finally did when it became a priority in my life. You will not make time or it until you make it a priority in your life as well.
I praise you for reading this and I will pray for God to use these words for His purposes.
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