I'm saved! Now what?
You decided to give your life to Jesus Christ, but now what? Taking that first step is important, but what you do next is just as important. In the first place you need to realize that Gods motivation to have a relationship with you, is love. It is not the task of a Christian to try to keep the law on his/her own. It is impossible. The first and most important task you have as a Christian is to work on your relationship with God. That means getting to know Him better, who He is, why He does what He does, how big His love is for you etc. The thing that should motivate a Christian is the love of God, together with a personal relationship with Him.
How do you start a relationship with God? God has given us His word in the Bible. The Bible contains a lot of stories, testimonies and reports of who He is, what He did (and still does) and it answers a lot why’s. So my advise is, start reading the Bible and get to know Him. The best place to start is at the beginning of the New Testament and to read to the end from there. A very important lesson is that while you do that, and when you don’t understand something, that you read that part of the Bible again. And again. And again. Until you know what it means. While you do that, you may ask God to reveal to you what He wants to say through that Bible part. He will open your eyes for the truth behind it. Sometimes we have to read some parts several times before we get it, but if you persist, you will find the truth.
Besides reading the Bible, it is also very important to communicate in a relationship, so talk to Him. God is interested in you! He wants to know all about you. Of course He already knows all about you, but He loves to hear it from you. There are a few very important keys for prayer. Many people are just telling God their ‘wish list’. Please don’t become like them. The keys the Bible gives to approach God are these. Start with thanksgiving. Thank Him for everything He did for you. Even if you’re going through hard times, there is always something to be thankful for. Start with thanking Him and take the time to meditate on all He did for you. Then continue with praising and worshiping Him with your own words. While doing that, you will notice that the atmosphere around you will change and that you start to experience rest and peace all around you. That is what we call the presence of God. When that happens, start sharing your heart with Him. That is the moment you can tell Him all about your wishes, your struggles, your pain etc.
It is also very important that you learn how to hear His voice, so that He can talk back to you, but do everything step by step. Get used to be in His presence and to share your life with Him first. But also when you’re not at home, you can talk to God. The moments that you are alone somewhere, when you’re walking to the train station, when you’re driving in your car etc. There are always moments on the day that you are alone for a few minutes and God is always ready to listen to what you have to say or ask. He is with you wherever you go. There are more Bible studies on this website that will help you to understand more of God and that will help you how to develop a relationship with God.
Being a Christian is about you and God in the first place. However, it is not all about you and God. The Bible speaks of the body of Christ at several places. When the Bible speaks about the body of Christ, it speaks about the followers of Jesus Christ. It is important that we are a part of a community of followers of Jesus, who can help us grow in faith, who can pray for us and who we can serve. You are not the only child of God, there are many others. We are one big family, a family that needs you. We need people who can correct us, who can teach us and who can help us to become a spiritual adult. The other way around, we can help these people to serve them, to have a relationship with them. Yes, I am talking about the Church. But what is the Church? The Church is not a building and it’s not a denomination. The Church are all the people that accepted Jesus Christ as the Son of God and as their Savior and Messiah. The Church has many branches at many different places. Some branches are big and have a big building, others are very small and have their services in the living room of a house. Where you should go is something between you and the Lord. It is very important that you are a part of one of these branches, so you can grow to become a spiritual adult. When you spent your time with God, and when you’re praying, ask Him to show you a branch where you can go to.
When you just became a Christian, it can be difficult to understand what He wants from you and where He wants you to go. Don’t make it to hard for yourself. God will help you to find a branch for you. How do you know it’s the right place for you? You will know when you’re there. When you experience His peace and rest around you and inside you, you’ll know it’s the right place to go to. Just ask God to show you the place where you can go to. Sometimes you will meet people who will tell you about a Church, sometimes you’ll see an advertisement in the paper, sometimes you’ll see something on TV. Whatever way God will use, He will help you to find a Church that can become your spiritual home.
Just remember, whatever you do or wherever you go, the most important thing is your personal relationship with God. Going to Church is not a substitute for your personal relationship. Maintain your relationship with God, work together with Him. I pray that you will find the Church you need and that you will grow further and further in your relationship with our heavenly Father. Be blessed!
