If you have received Jesus as your Lord and Savior and wondering what comes next, keep reading. Hopefully you're stepping forward into your relationship with Jesus (read Knowing God ), reading your Bible, and are plugged into a local church. If you do not have a Bible, message us, and we will get you one. Congratulations on the best decision you can make! Now get baptized! The Bible makes it clear that after you accept Jesus you should immediately be Baptized. Baptism is the representation of the spiritual transaction that is taking place in your life. You confess with your mouth that Jesus died on the cross for your sins. You believe in your heart; He rose from the dead three days later. Evidence of your belief and surrender to Him, as the ruling authority in your life causes you to repent (turn away) from your old sinful life. You ask Him to be your Lord, because you trust He is good. So, why is baptism an important next step? Let me break it down for you. Obedience You humble yourself and follow Jesus's instructions. Baptism is one of the first acts of obedience to truly making Jesus the ruler of your life. You yield to him: all self-consciousness, your reputation, your inconvenience, your fears. You get in the tub, lake, or river (whatever form of water is available) and possible, you can even share the story of how Jesus has brought you to this place. You may even inspire somebody else to make the same decision. Sharing your testimony is also a first step of faith and reliance on the Lord, as you share the truth of what God has done in your life. (Rev. 12:11, 1 Peter 3:15, Acts 1:8). Blood and Water 1 John 5:1-8 "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves those born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome, because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. Who then overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ—not by water alone, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies to this, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and these three are in agreement." 1 Peter 3:18-22 "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits—   to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,   who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him." Everyone born into this world came through water and blood when birthed by their mother. When you responded to God's call on your life and submitted to Jesus, as your Lord, you receive a washing by the blood. 1 John 1:7 " But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." You must also go through water in the process of walking in new life. This baptism in water is the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. While it is putting your faith and trust in Christ that brings salvation, Jesus modeled baptism and commanded his followers be baptized. If you are a professing follower of Jesus, do not wait. You Die and Are Washed Clean The pastor or leader will assist you in going under the water and coming back up. As you go under the water, the old you dies and is buried in the grave, just like Jesus after he died on the cross. The water washes away every sin you ever committed, all of your guilt, shame, and everything you would have been ruled guilty for, in your old life. The old man, deserving punishment, gets left in the water. You come up a new creation; totally clean, holy, and righteous through the Holy Spirit that now lives in you. Baptism is symbolic, but there are many testimonies including my own that brought freedom. For myself it was freedom from feeling dirty, guilty, and shameful. I have also listened to people describe demonic thoughts and tormenting dreams, which stopped after being baptized. For some, sinful habits fell away. Some have even been healed, or experienced God in a powerful way. (Below is a YouTube link explaining Baptism further, along with testimonies of its power). This certainly is not the case for everybody, but it is important we don't limit the possibilities of how God can move, based on our own experiences. I have heard a pastor joke that he likes to hold a person down until the bubbles stop, and then he brings them up for air, resurrected into their new life. Please don't be scared, it is just a joke, and nobody will hold you under! It should give a good visual though of what is truly taking place: The death of your old life and being made new in Christ. Ironically, maybe we should do baptisms in a giant toilet bowl. Then you could flush the old dirty water, filled with your old life, down the hatch. Now you get to learn how to walk as a brand-new baby Christian. Just like a baby needs to be fed, so do you. Just like a baby learns walk, so will you. I believe many don't stay the course because they keep the old man alive and don't have a clear understanding of who they are as a new creation. They try to bring Jesus into their old life, keeping it alive, instead of yielding all trust to him, so they can walk in their new life. Understanding your new identity, righteousness, purpose, and the power of the Holy Spirit living in you, is vital to walking in victory. Go to a church and ask to be discipled. Contact us through this site, we will direct you to somebody and come along side you any way we can. If Only I Had Known I wish I had understood baptism after I accepted Jesus. Nobody talked to me about it. I didn't fully understand what it meant. Most importantly, I didn't fully understand my salvation. I was 17 when I said a prayer to get to heaven, and I asked Jesus to be the Lord of my life. I was sincere, but it was the lack of knowledge that brought many wasted years and hurts. When somebody asked me if I wanted to get baptized, I probably would have said, "Not yet, because I'm not fully committed." Knowing what I know now, I would have asked 17-22 year old me if Jesus was truly the Lord of my life. I can tell you now, no He wasn't. My lack of knowledge is not an excuse, as the Holy Spirit that was now living inside me, brought a burning conviction. Trying to guide me away from self destruction. I seared my conscience as I lived a double life. God's grace was good, and I am so grateful that he pursued me. It was my understanding, if I said a prayer I would go to heaven. I didn't understand that I was surrendering my life to Jesus, just as He surrendered His life for me on the cross. Jesus tells his followers to deny themselves daily, pick up their cross daily, and follow Him (Matthew 16:24). He also says, put your hand to the plow and don't look back (Luke 9:62). Oh man! I was young and afraid I would miss out on life. What a lie of the enemy. The old man will try to stay alive, but you now have the Holy Spirit, who Jesus sent to live inside you. The Holy Spirit will guide you, teach you, and empower you to live new. Our new life grows and matures as we surrender and yield to the Holy Spirit. It is also important to spend time with Christian friends who have been walking it out longer than you. Remember, you didn't say a prayer to get to heaven you said a prayer to get heaven inside you. The Early Church Baptized Immediately Matthew 28:16-20  "Then the eleven followers went to Galilee. They went to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw Jesus, they worshiped Him. But some did not believe. Jesus came and said to them, “All power has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go and make followers of all the nations. Baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to do all the things I have told you. And I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” So today my friend, don't just put one foot in the grave and keep the rest of your old man alive. Go both feet in and get baptized. I promise the joy and freedom you get in Jesus is far greater than the lies of the world. It is the goodness of God that leads to repentance. Go all in and you will get a taste of Him and see how good He is and nothing else will matter. Jesus instructed that you can't be friends with the world and serve Him. Everything I held out for wasn't worth it and if anything, brought pain into my life.

Ryan Gilroy grew up in a normal home, but a deep emptiness led to depression and no hope. Eventually deciding suicide was the answer if there was no God. He set aside 1 week to find out. Hear what he learned.

Debra Smith was delivered from alcoholism instantly by the power and grace of God after a suicide attempt.

Love is the defining feature of the Christian life. The two great commandments that sum up the entire law of God is to love God with our whole being and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. But love isn’t merely an emotion. Love must be expressed or it isn’t truly love. One of the most famous verses in the entire bible is John 3:16, True love must be expressed ​ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. God expressed His deep love for the entire world through radical self-sacrifice. Remember that when we were in the world we were God’s enemies because of our evil thoughts and deeds. (Colossians 1:21) But Jesus told us to love our enemies and that love would make us like our Father in Heaven. Read Matthew 5:43-48 How does God express love to His enemies in the passage? What makes us look like our Father according to Jesus? Generosity seems like a radically inadequate word to describe the gift that God has given us in His only Son. So what should our response to God’s gift be? Read Romans 12:1 What does true spiritual worship look like? Read 1 John 3:16-18 How did Jesus express His love for us? What does love look like in practical terms? Read 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 How does God want us to give? Under what circumstances are we not supposed to give? What happens when we sow sparingly? What happens if we sow generously? In what ways did Paul say we would be enriched? For what purpose are we enriched? What occasions call for generosity? What stands out to you most about these passages? Has your thinking about giving changed after studying these passages? Some churches stress tithing as an important principle in the Christians life. The word “tithe” means “tenth.” It simply means to give ten percent of all of your income to God. At my church, Roots Church, we understand tithing to be an Old Testament command. Instead, we believe that God owns everything that we have. It’s ALL His! We believe that tithing teaches compulsive giving, rather than cheerful giving. We don't want you to give because you MUST but to give from the heart. Giving is not meant to be a condition we need to meet or a hoop we need to jump through for the purpose of getting blessings from God. Rather, giving is meant to be an expression of our love for God and His people! We give because we love and we trust that our God will also meet our needs as we express our love to Him and one another through radical self-sacrifice and generosity. Watch these videos, either with your Christian friend or before you meet:

When Jesus rose from the dead, He gave His disciples a mission. Read Matthew 28:18-20 Following Jesus ​ Up until now, we have been referring to the 12 people that Jesus spent the most time with as His disciples. But what exactly is a disciple? Let’s read about how Peter began following Jesus. Read Luke 5:1-11 What did Peter do before becoming a disciple of Jesus? Into what did Jesus promise to make Peter? How did Peter do in response to Jesus calling him? Peter left everything to follow Jesus! This is a disciple. When we became disciples of Jesus we left our old lives in order to follow Jesus and He radically changed the direction of our lives! In Jesus’ day, rabbis would gather to themselves disciples from the smartest young men. Those young men would leave their family and their trade in order to live 24/7 with their teacher. They would absorb the teachings of their rabbis and emulate the way they lived. Think about that! Discipleship was a radical restructuring of a person's life in order to model oneself after the pattern of their teacher. It’s one thing to emulate the life of a merely human teacher, it’s another thing entirely to emulate the life of Jesus! That’s the guy who healed the sick and raised the dead! He is the Son of God! How could we emulate the life of someone like Jesus? ​ What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus in the 21st century? Is it possible to be a Christian but not be a disciple? We need God's Help to follow Jesus ​ The Bible says that Jesus performed the miracles He did by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 10:38) Then Jesus gave the same Spirit that rested on Him to His disciples! It’s the power of the Holy Spirit that is present in the lives of Jesus’ disciples that enables us to live like Him! We cannot live the Christian life by trying really hard. We can only be a disciple of Jesus by depending on His Spirit. Jesus gave the command to make disciples to the people who followed Him. They heard and obeyed His teachings and followed His way of life but they were still falling short. Peter had just denied even knowing Jesus to a servant girl because he was scared. He had left his life as a disciple of Jesus entirely in order to go back to his old life of being a fisherman. He had completely given up! All the disciples abandoned Jesus when He was arrested. The disciples were very far from perfect. Jesus knew they needed the Holy Spirit in order to fulfill the grand plan of bringing the Gospel to the whole world. That’s why He told them to wait in Jerusalem until they had been filled with power from Heaven. ​ Is perfection required to be a disciple of Jesus? What is required to be Jesus' disciple? The disciples of Jesus were far from perfect. They constantly argued about who was the greatest among them, they often said foolish things, and they even abandoned Jesus at the time of His greatest need. Still, Jesus trusted them to carry on His work and establish His Church because He would leave them the Holy Spirit who would continue to make them more mature even after He left them. ​ Jesus doesn't need you to be perfect in order to follow Him, He just needs you to be willing. ​ Helping others follow Jesus ​ Those who followed Jesus did make disciples and those disciples were also expected to make disciples. Read 2 Timothy 2:2 This verse is from a Letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, his disciple. Paul told Timothy to pass along the teachings and pattern of life he learned to other faithful people. This is part of being a Christian! We learn from Jesus in the scriptures and obey His teachings! We emulate His life and teach others to do the same. What does it mean to follow Jesus? How can we teach people to follow Jesus? What do you need to emulate Jesus’ life? Are you living a life that looks like Jesus? Are there people in your life that you think God is leading you to teach about Jesus? Watch these videos, either with your Christian friend or before you meet:

The Christian life cannot be done solo. That’s by design! We were created by God to need each other. Families, communities, and even nations exist because humans need other humans to survive and thrive in life. This is also true when it comes to the Christian life. ​ You are a part of the Body of Christ Read 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 Read Ephesians 4:4-16 Read Romans 12:4-6 What is the analogy Paul uses for the Church? Why is unity important? What is it that unifies us as Christians? Why is diversity of gifting important? What really stood out to you personally about these passages? The Body of Christ is similar to an actual body in that every person plays an important role. When you become part of the Body of Christ, you are filling an important role and without you, the body suffers! You matter! But you also need the rest of the body. ​ You Can't do this alone There are so many Christians who believe that their faith is merely a personal relationship with Jesus and they don’t need church in order to have a healthy faith. This is a lie! Yes, a personal relationship with Jesus is necessary, but according to the scriptures, one of the primary ways we interact with Jesus is through His Body, the Church! The scriptures are full of commands that can only be lived out inside of a healthy Christian community. We are commanded to love one another, bear one another’s burdens, rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn, confess our sins to one another, forgive one another, pray for one another, minister healing to one another, encourage one another, and exercise spiritual gifts for the purpose of building one another up. None of these can be done in isolation! The benefits of the body are not felt when you simply stare at the back of someone’s head on Sunday morning! Singing and a sermon is not Christianity! Christianity is done in community and we need to actually interact with one another in order to benefit from the diversity of gifts, contribute your own gift, and fulfill the commands of scripture. ​ Whether or not you go to church, what do you believe a healthy Christian community would look like? Is there someone in your life with whom you can begin true Christian fellowship? Are there ways you have avoided fellowship in your life? If so, why do you think that is? ​ True fellowship requires vulnerability. It's very difficult to be vulnerable, especially when you have been hurt or disappointed by people before. Whether it came through the church, through family, through school, or through friend groups, past wounds can become very isolating if we allow it to be. ​ Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 ​ What are some of the ways you can practically show love to those around you? Is it possible to be patient, forgiving, or slow to anger if everyone around you is perfect? ​ The biblical definition of love has a built-in expectation of being wronged. That means we cannot show love to its fullest extent until people around us fail. The church is not a perfect place yet. You will be disappointed by other Christians in your life from time-to-time and other Christians will be disappointed by you too. The key to true Christian fellowship is how we treat our Christian family when they fail to represent Jesus accurately. ​ Now some have faced horrific treatment in church and certainly, there is no need to continue going to a church that is engaging in active abuse, but without bonds of love, peace, forgiveness, and patience, true Christian fellowship is impossible. Watch these videos, either with your Christian friend or before you meet:

In the Bible, the very first thing new Christians were commanded to do was to be baptized. But what is baptism and why is it so important? The word “baptism” comes from a Greek word that means “immersion.” To be baptized is to be immersed in and brought out of water. But why does the Bible care about you being dunked in water? Die to your old life ​ Read Romans 6:1-10 ​ How does Paul describe your old life? What happens to our old life in Christ? What does Paul say we are baptized into? What does it mean when we are raised out of the water? There is an important word we use a lot in my Church. That word is “identity.” Everything you do comes from who you believe yourself to be. Your thoughts, actions, and even your life goals are determined by your sense of identity. This is why your sense of identity is so vital. Many people in the world are having an identity crisis. They don’t know who they are apart from their roles at work, their family, their friend group, or the thing they really do well. They’ve allowed their environment or the things they do to define who they are. If you can, try to describe who you are in three or four words. Nothing lasts forever. If your identity is in being a mother or a competent professional, what happens when your kids grow up, or you change careers? If you were to take away your job, your family, or your friends, who would you really be deep down? It can be a scary thought. If who you are is rooted in something temporary, your identity will always be dependent on your circumstances. You’ve no doubt seen it or experienced it yourself. That one relationship falls through and suddenly you have no idea who you are. Maybe you lost that job and now you’re drifting. In Christ, you have a new identity Read Ephesians 4:17-24 How does the Bible define our old lives? What does the Bible say about your true self? How does the Bible describe the process of changing from the old self to the new self? The Bible uses an interesting word to describe our old lives; that word is “flesh”. The reason the Bible uses this word in order to draw a contrast between what is worldly and what is spiritual. Your old life is a life concerned with earthly affairs, your new life is a spiritual life given to you from Heaven. In Christ, we are born again from above. Our old self—our “flesh”—has been corrupted by sin. Sin is rebellion against God. The Bible says that when you work for sin, your paycheck is death. (Romans 6:23) God is the Author of Life. If you rebel against the Author of Life, what else is there but death? Read Galatians 5:19-26 What are the defining features of the old life? What are the defining features of the new life? When we sin we are identifying with our old life apart from God. When we are made alive in Christ, we live by the Spirit and the evidence that we are living by the Spirit begins to manifest—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. If we live according to our new nature in Christ we will not fulfill the desires of the flesh. In baptism, you are putting to death your old life of sin and being raised to a brand new life with a brand new nature in Christ! This doesn’t mean you will never sin again, it simply means sin will no longer be your nature. You have a brand new identity. Read Galatians 2:20 What would it look like if Jesus lived your life? Imagine Jesus parenting your children. What would be different? Imagine Jesus working your job, would anything change? How? ​ Being united with Christ through baptism means you no longer identify with your old life. You consider it dead. Now Christ lives in you. His righteousness is given to you as a gift. You don’t have to earn your position of right standing before God, your life is now in Christ! Jesus becomes your new identity! That means the same love that God, the Father has for Jesus is the same love He has for you! When you begin to see yourself as a member of Jesus’ body (which you are as a Christian) you begin to treat yourself as someone who is holy. You treat yourself as someone loved by God. You begin to treat others the way Jesus would treat them, your life goals align with the Kingdom of God rather than putting your own desires first. What does it mean to be in Christ? What would be different in your life if you truly saw yourself as being “in Christ?” When you choose to be baptized, understand that you are leaving your old life and being united with Jesus in His life! You are becoming a brand new creation. The old is gone! Everything is brand new! You’re a Christian! It’s time to change the way you think about yourself and receive your new identity in Christ. ​ Is anything keeping you from being baptized right away? Watch these videos, either with your Christian friend or before you meet:

The story of the Bible begins in a garden. God created a beautiful place where His presence dwelt with creation in peace. Then He made a man and a woman in His image to represent Him and extend the peace of this place called "Eden" to the rest of creation. God gave humanity dominion over the earth and commanded them to take care of His creation. God placed a tree in the garden called “The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” God forbade Adam and Eve from eating from this tree and told them that if Adam and Eve rebelled against Him and ate from this tree, they would surely die. The purpose of this tree was to give humanity a choice. As long as there is an option, humanity can choose to love God and live in relationship with Himself. Love means nothing when there is no choice. What is sin? ​ So why would the punishment for this rebellion be death? It’s just a tree, right? What’s the big deal? Well let’s back up and first try to understand God. God is the Author and Sustainer of life. Nothing exists without Him. Just as there are physical laws that govern the universe the Bible tells us that there are similarly moral laws that govern the universe. Rebellion against God is rebellion against life. We call this rebellion “sin.” Sin is a transgression against the moral order of the universe. Another definition for sin is to fall short of our design and purpose. Sin is more than merely making a mistake, sin is a violation of our design and a rebellion against life. If you rebel against the Author of Life, what is there to turn to but death? Read the following verses Romans 6:23 Romans 3:23 Galatians 5:13-26 What is sin according to these verses? What is the consequence for sin? According to these verses, who is guilty of sin? After some time, a serpent came to Adam and Eve and tempted them into disobedience against God. What was his tactic? The serpent (who was actually satan) told Eve, “God knows if you eat of this tree you will become like Him knowing the difference between good and evil.” Did you catch that? Remember that Adam and Eve were both created in the image of God but the serpent convinced them that God was actually holding out on them. They needed to rebel against God in order to become like Him. What a tricky lie! And humanity fell for it. The consequences of sin ​ Because of humanity's rebellion against God, we were banished from the place of His presence and peace. This is still the consequence for sin—banishment from God’s presence. The Bible says that those who live in rebellion against God will receive eternal banishment from the place of God’s presence and peace. We call that state of banishment, “hell.” As if this weren’t bad enough, remember that God gave dominion over the earth to Adam and Eve? Well, the Bible later calls satan, “the ‘god’ of this age” and “the prince of the power of the air.” Humanity was supposed to rule, but now the serpent is in charge! How did that happen? In our rebellion against God we turned to obey sin. The Bible says whoever sins is a slave to sin. In humanity’s rebellion against God, satan began his rule of chaos. Gone was the true peace and harmony with creation that we all know we should be experiencing. Now we live in a world that is fallen. So the Bible says that the consequence of sin is eternal banishment from God’s presence and peace and that everyone is guilty of this rebellion. So how can there be any hope for anyone? How can anyone be forgiven and have a right relationship with God? Here’s the good part! God Made a Promise When God came to Adam and Eve to punish them for their rebellion and banish them from His presence, He made a promise to Eve and the serpent, “And I will put enmity   between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15) This was the first prophecy about Jesus, “the seed of the woman,” coming to crush satan. Remember that the wages of sin is death? Well, God made a plan to redeem humanity from their rebellion and sin before He ever made the world. God sent Jesus, His only Son, to bear the consequences of our sin upon Himself. Read the following verses: John 3:16-17 Isaiah 53:4-6 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 Romans 6:23 Instead of punishment, God is offering forgiveness! Instead of death, God is offering life! So how is this possible? Read the following verses: Romans 10:9-11 1 John 1:9 Ephesians 2:1-10 Colossians 1:19-23 According to these passages, what do we need to do in order to receive forgiveness from our sins and right relationship with God? Is it possible to earn our forgiveness and right standing before God? What would be different about your life if you were to truly believe this? Is there anyone in your life that needs to hear this? Watch these videos, either with your Christian friend or before you meet:

Debra Smith encountered the power and love of Jesus when another believer was led to pray for her. Healing miracles happen more than many realize. Listen to this amazing story! If God did it for her, He can do it for you. There is always hope.

Chris Hulla shares how she responded to the invitation for prayer. After walking away, she experienced a touch from God and all pain left her. After years of suffering with chronic pain from osteoarthritis, hear her emotional account. If God did it for her, He can do it for you.

One of the greatest benefits of a true relationship with God is the ability to hear God speak. However many say they can’t hear God’s voice. Honestly this is a tragically common claim even among those who have been Christians for a long time. They know they can hear God through the Bible but when it comes to a day-to-day interaction with the living God it’s as though they pick up the phone to pray and are met with silence on the other end. This is almost entirely due to a misunderstanding of what it truly is to hear the voice of God and part of this is due to the language we use. ​ God's Thoughts Read 1 Corinthians 2:6-16. In this passage, Paul states that the place of spiritual communication is in the realm of the mind. He draws a parallel between the spirit of a man which knows his own thoughts and the Spirit of God which knows God’s thoughts. Then he says that we have received that same Spirit which knows God’s thoughts. He goes on to say that “we have the mind of Christ.” Imagine someone else having your spirit. The very essence of what makes you you was living inside of another person. That person would have access to all of your thoughts, feelings, and motivations. You wouldn’t need words to communicate because your thoughts are inside of them. Can you imagine anything more intimate than that? Yet that is the very relationship we have with God! Part of the problem we have with hearing God’s voice is that we’re expecting to receive something from the outside. Maybe it’s a voice we hear with our ears or something profound like that. That can happen from time-to-time but the primary way that God speaks is in the realm of thought. This happens when we are in prayer or reading the Bible. A thought occurs to us and we sometimes just dismiss it as a random thought or something that is insignificant, but often that’s God speaking to us. Pay attention to your thoughts when you are in prayer! How to Tell What is God and What Isn’t The Holy Spirit is consistent. He doesn’t contradict Himself. You can tell what is God by looking at the character of Jesus as revealed in the Bible. Can you picture Jesus saying what you believe the Holy Spirit is speaking to you now? If not, you can toss that thought into the garbage can. Does it contradict anything the Bible teaches? If so, you can through that into the garbage can as well. What if the thought is directive? What if you get a thought telling you to go into a grocery store and pray for someone? How do you know whether or not that is God? Well, would you normally have that kind of thought? If the answer is no, then it’s probably God. Pay attention to those thoughts and act on them! You’ll find that more often than not, those are God thoughts. There’s really no shortcut for trial and error. As you actively try to hear God’s voice, test it out and see if it holds water. As you continue to do this you’re going to get better and better at distinguishing God’s thoughts from your own. Finally, it’s essential to bring other mature Christians who also hear the voice of God in on the process. The Bible says that when prophecy is happening in the church (that is the act of speaking what you believe God is saying) two or three at the most should speak and the rest should weigh carefully what is being said. (1 Corinthians 14:29) Here Paul is giving us a safeguard for prophetic ministry. Bringing other mature believers into the process of hearing the voice of God along with you will help you to better hone your ability to discern God’s voice. ​ How to practice hearing God's voice Spend some time in prayer with a Christian partner and let’s practice hearing God’s voice. Read the prompts below and ask God what He says regarding those prompts. Don’t be afraid to be wrong. If you allow fear of being wrong to stop you from trying you’re going to have a hard time growing. Write down the thoughts that come to your mind and ask your partner if that seems like God’s voice. Ask God what He thinks about you. Ask God what He thinks about your partner. Ask God if there is something going on in your partner’s life that you should be praying for. Ask especially if there is something going on with them that you don’t know about in the natural. For instance, do they need healing for anything? If so from what? Is there something going on in their family that needs prayer? If so what? Share whatever comes to you and don’t be afraid to be wrong. We’re just practicing here. If you’re right, thank God and pray for that thing. If it’s physical healing they need, pray and expect God to heal it on the spot. Have them test it out. Ask God if there is something you need to change in your life. Write it down and commit to obeying what God is saying to you. Watch these videos, either with your Christian friend or before you meet:

The most vital resource we have as Christians is access to God’s throne in prayer. Prayer is not merely asking God for things, (though it certainly includes that) nor is it a time of reciting mantras in order to change your thinking from negative to positive (though prayer will certainly change your perspective.) Prayer is the act of being present with God. In prayer we cultivate an awareness of God’s presence in our lives and we begin to invite Him into even the mundane areas of life. Prayer isn’t just for church or for holy moments in life. Prayer is a lifestyle. Think about the closest relationship you have. Your times together with this person doesn’t only involve conversation, there is also shared activity. Sometimes the best and most intimate moments that you have with this person don’t involve speaking at all but just being present with them. A hug when someone’s grieving, a smile when someone walks into the room, even mere eye-contact can be the most intimate moments in a relationship. This is what it’s like with God. If you’re a Christian, God has placed His Holy Spirit within you. Jesus said, “‘…Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.’” (John 14:23) God Himself dwells within the heart of every Christian by His Spirit! He never leaves you and He will never forsake you! Prayer begins by merely cultivating an awareness of this truth through thanking Him for the great gift of His presence. ​ Jesus Taught Us How to Pray Read Matthew 6:5-14 What are some of the truths that stood out to you in this passage? What are some of the things we are told to ask our Father for in prayer? Notice the way Jesus taught us to address God, “Our Father.” When you pray, you’re not coming to the principle’s office expecting a reprimand for your bad grades. You’re not trying to prove to some divine loan officer that you’re worth the line of credit you’re about to ask for either. You’re coming to your Father who loves you. Read Matthew 6:25-34. What stands out to you most in this passage? What is God’s attitude toward answering your prayers? What if My Prayer Doesn’t Get Answered? An unfortunate reality in lives of many Christians is that they give up praying when they encounter disappointment. They prayed for something and didn’t get it and assume that God’s either no longer in the prayer answering business or He simply is uninterested in listening to them. How sad! We just read how the Father wants to answer our prayers, but there are some conditions to our prayers being answered. Read Luke 18:1-8. What does this say about they way we should pray? ​​ Read James 1:5-8. What is the most essential ingredient for prayer according to this passage? Faith is an active trust in God’s promises. Having faith means you trust God enough to act as though what He says is true and will affect the world around you. When we have faith in God for healing we pray and expect a change afterward. When we have faith in God for provision, we bring our requests to God and live generously knowing He will provide our needs. Simply put, faith is living as though what God says really is true. That is why those without faith are called “double minded.” What are some ways you can exercise faith in your life? Read 1 John 5:14-15. What is the condition given here for our prayers being answered? A Model for Prayer There is no true right or wrong way to pray, but if you feel stuck in your pray time and feel like you don’t know what to do or say, here is a helpful model to follow. Think of this as training wheels to get you going rather than a strict rule to follow. Thank God. It is often helpful to begin praying by thanking God for giving you His Son. Thank Him for forgiving your sins and providing you with true peace. Remind yourself that God loves you and has invited you into His presence. Begin to celebrate the joy of being united with Christ. The old you is dead and you have been raised to a brand new life in Jesus! Praise God. Praise is the act of glorifying God with our words. When we praise God we remind ourselves and others who God is and what He has done. One excellent way to do this is through singing. Ask your Christian friends what songs they like to incorporate into their prayer time. Ask For God’s Will to Be Done. Prayer isn’t just about getting our needs met, it’s about bringing Heaven to earth. Remember when Jesus said to pray, “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”? That’s exactly what we get to be part of in prayer. If there are things in your life or the lives of others that don’t line up with the will of God, it’s time to partner with Jesus in prayer. Ask For Your Needs and Those of Others to be Met. Jesus told us to pray, “give us today our daily bread.” This means that we ought to bring our requests for provision both for ourselves and others before God. Spend Time in Worship. Worship is the act of surrendering to God and serving Him with our lives. We often worship through singing. Again, music is a great tool for this. There are many songs that help us to posture our hearts in a place of surrender to God. Here is one excellent example. If this is not your favorite style of music, as you Christian friend for some recommendations of worship music that might be more up your alley. Music is not strictly necessary for you to enjoy worship. It’s merely a helpful tool. True worship is an expression of an inner desire to honor God and serve Him. This can be done by simply telling Him how much you love Him, enjoying His nearness to you, and asking Him how you can serve Him. As has already been stated, prayer is not a formula. But it is vital that you make it a regular part of your life to get alone with God and pray. Then take that awareness of God’s presence that you’ve cultivated in private and try to be aware of Him always. It will change your life forever. Watch these videos, either with a Christian friend or before you meet: