Day 18

10 Feb Day 18

Scripture: ‭‭Romans 10:9 NLT-  “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Observation: Confessing that Jesus is Lord of your life is telling yourself and the world that you believe in Jesus. You must confess with your mouth and with your heart that you are a sinner and that Jesus is your Lord and Savior.

Application: Confessing that Jesus is Lord was one of the hardest things I had to deal with when I began my journey in accepting Christ into my heart. I didn’t know how I was supposed to feel or if I believed it, and it sent me on a spiral of continuing to do things my way instead of the way God intended.

After pulling myself out of a bad depression, I was in a season where I felt like I was in a great mental and spiritual space. That’s when a few friends invited me to The Journey. Previously, I’d been to different churches and they didn’t seem to be the right fit for me, which led me to this struggle of wanting to believe in my heart that Jesus died for me, but not being able to entirely. Visiting The Journey was such a great experience that I kept coming back and eventually raised my hand that I put my faith in Jesus! After that, I started experiencing so many blessings and miracles and felt safe after attending church. However, I was still doing things my way. I was still sinning and playing by my rules, but God was still blessing me.

After making a series of decisions that were not of God, I found myself in a dreadful place that left me raw and confused. When I realized I hadn’t talked to God about any of this, I felt something in me: you know when you’re in trouble with your parents or guardian and your heart sinks to the pit of your stomach? That feeling. At that moment I already knew I believed in him. If he wasn’t real why would it feel like I was about to get my phone taken away and be grounded for all eternity? He had shown me who he was but I still hadn’t done my part. I opened my mouth and let him know that I believed in him and that I was sorry that it took so long to come to him. I confessed to him all of my sins, cried out to him, and told him I believed in him and Jesus. I thanked him for giving his only Son to wash my sins away. In that instant, I felt peace and knew I was already forgiven. The only thing I had left to do was go in front of everyone and declare Jesus as Lord and leader of my life. On April 25th, 2021, I was baptized and washed of my sins.

I believe that God is our Father; without him we wouldn’t be here. He breathed life into us and created everything that we see, feel, hear and smell. Jesus is our Savior, and he died for us so we can be forgiven of our sins, no matter how big. Now I’m always running my mouth about how great our God is and I don’t think I can ever stop!

Prayer: God, thank you. Thank you for loving me so much that you would send your only Son to die on the cross to cleanse me of my sin. On days when I think I can’t feel you, I know you are still there and I continue to have faith in you. Thank you for giving me the chance to serve your Kingdom for your glory.  I believe in you and believe Jesus is Lord and leader in my life. Thank you for raising him from the dead for my salvation. It is in Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Going Deeper:

• Pulse Check: Are you still doing things your way or are you doing things God’s way? 
• Feel energized in your confession of knowing what God has done for us and that we are saved!
• Have you accepted Jesus as Lord and leader in your life? How are you making his name known? 
• Take some time to listen to Pastor Marks message “Fresh Drip”

Eva Taylor/Worship Care Team Leader, Evening Program Class of 2022

Eva started coming to The Journey just weeks before the global pandemic hit with much encouragement from a few friends who had already been attending. After coming to the church for about six months, Eva decided she was ready to get plugged into Journey Worship. Now you can catch Eva most weekends raising the roof and giving all praise to Jesus in hopes that you will do the same!