I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
A Heart That Follows God
When we plant apple seeds, we expect an apple tree to grow. It’s the seed and the roots that decide what kind of tree grows in the soil.
Similarly, when we belong to God we expect goodness and righteousness to grow in our lives. It is the fruit of our actions that tells us what kind of seeds we’ve planted.
One of the ways we can identify the work of God in our life is by watching what type of fruit we produce. A sign of a growing and godly life is a heart that desires to live and act in accordance with God’s Word. Only someone who has spent time with God will produce that type of action in their life.
John cautions us to be mindful of what type of fruit our lives produce. When we truly belong to God, and we spend time with Him, our lives will naturally produce goodness and right living.
The goal is not to be prideful about how many good deeds we do, but instead, to cultivate a heart that wants to selflessly do good to others in the name of Jesus. We may not be perfect, but our hearts should desire to follow God.
Take a moment to think about your thoughts and actions over the past week. Do they reflect a heart that has been in a close relationship with God? Think of some steps you can take to create regular rhythms of spending time with God.
Created to Love Others
When we believe in Jesus and live our lives following after Him, we get to experience His grace and mercy every day! We get to walk in new life and new ways of thinking about God's creation and our place in it. Not to mention, we can rest knowing we are God's own children!
But it can be just as easy to live life thinking only of ourselves and the good things we have received. Jesus spent most of His ministry helping and assisting others, but if we're being honest—and Jesus was always honest, too—most of us have a tendency to be selfish with God's gifts, or ignore opportunities to serve the weak or needy in our everyday lives.
As Paul was speaking to the leaders at the church in Ephesus in Acts 20:35, he made sure to remind them that his life has not been about himself, but about helping others. Paul says that everything he has done has been about helping those who are weak and in need. Paul didn't say these things to boast about himself, he said them to point back to ...
