what does it mean?

what does it mean to be a Christian?  

how do you become a Christian?

why should we become Christians?

God has made having faith in Him quite simple...

He asks only one question of us...

who do we say is His Son Jesus?

everything rests on that singular question...

Do we believe that He is God's only begotten Son who died on the cross for our sins, rose again 3 days later and is alive this very day?

that's what being a Christian really is...believing and living for Jesus with all our hearts...

But how do we become a Christian?...

it's very simple...we ask Jesus to come and live in our hearts...to be our Lord and Savior, we tell Him that we believe He died on the cross for us and to please forgive us for our sins and we turn away from that old lifestyle and that we love Him and need Him...forever more...

and finally, why even become a Christian in the first place?

simply put...to know Jesus, the Father God and the Holy Spirit...to know Them and love Them because They first loved us.

Jesus, our brother, who loved us enough to endure torture then death just so we could go to Heaven and be with Him for all eternity...

Father God, our ultimate Creator who loved us enough to let His only begotten Son get tortured then killed just to save us from this fallen world and the devil...

And the Holy Spirit, our Counselor ever with us, guiding us, our 'conscience', that still small voice leading us upward and Homeward.

this world is not our home...we are destined for Heaven...this is just a training ground...us learning, getting to know the Holy Trinity, personally, discovering who and what we actually are...

We will either spend an eternity in Heaven with Jesus or an eternity in Hell with the devil...

i know where i want to be, precious friend...do you?

P.S. . .

If you're already a Christian, but have grown "luke-warm"...where your walk with God is merely a nice afterthought, I'd recommend the "Left Behind" movie series you can find for free on Youtube...both the ones with Kirk Cameron and the one with Nicolas Cage...i watch them all every day...they truly helped invigorate my faith and walk with God :)

(please feel free to email me at laineyrose7@yahoo.com if you have any questions and God bless all for stopping by!)

precious Jesus - my daughter did the hair, i did the face...

 

renovating...

I've been doing alot of painting, sewing and general renovation lately...it's exciting to see almost instant change in our surroundings!

I especially love painting...walls and furniture the most!

it's a wonderful thing but it got me to thinking that as great as it is to create a fresh and new environment, what about the renovation that needs to take place in my heart?

what needs changing, fixing, in the way i think, do and say?

what do i truly care about...who am i reaching and affecting with my behavior and speech?

dear Father,

please renovate my heart- 

making me sensitive to the needs of others, sensing others in pain and crisis - 

reaching out with love and empathy for all...

i love You, Father...and i want to be the best mother, daughter, and friend i can be...i know that only You can reach into the deepest parts of me, changing the very heart of me for good - 

for You...

a little...

it's my birthday today and i'm feeling a little blue...it's unusual for me to feel this way, i usually have a very sunny outlook on things, people and life...i try to always stay positive and grateful for God's blessings in my life...

tomorrow will be better!

 

   my favorite prayer...

"hold me in the light of God

 protect me from danger

 save me by Your command 

 listen to my prayer

 and keep me safe."

For Ernzy...

 each of us leave our mark on this world as we depart from it, changing events and the people around us whether we realize it or not.

i did not realize how indelibly imprinted i had become by my brother's life.
his love, unique laugh and sense of humor, his passion for music and his deepest desire to just be loved.
like the "butterfly effect" & "chaos theory", ernzy's actions, his "ripples in a pond" changed my life forever and i still cannot believe he is gone.

he was such a vibrant man...i wish you could have known him...i wish he would have stayed.
maybe one of the great lessons in all of this is to realize that whether we believe it or not...we all matter.
we all make a difference, for the better or for the worse...
and in the end it's important to understand that we all need each other to simply carry on.

if you can see this, ernzy, i love you so very, very, much, and i want you to know i know that you made a difference in this world...your life mattered here - and you matter still.

your life changed mine forever, ernzy...what a beautiful gift you will always be.