Thank God I'm saved, but now what?

We’ve received God’s word. Now we must nurture it and make it grow, by living the right way. Knowledge isn’t enough; now is the time to “walk the talk.”

We feel wonderful knowing God and knowing we are saved, but true fulfillment only comes through doing what God has planned for us. We are called to do good works and to glorify God. Glorifying God is reflecting Him in the world so others will see through you what He is.

To start with we can turn to James 1:19-20. James says we should be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger.

We listen to God in many ways. Sometimes He speaks through other Christians. We need to be quiet and give them a chance to talk, don’t we? Who knows how many messages we’ve missed from God by interrupting! He also speaks to us through His word, the Bible, which we have to spend time in with open hearts and minds.

Sometimes listening to God is just noticing creation – the sun rising and setting everyday. It shows us how consistent God is. Sometimes just the wink or smile from a friend is the still small voice of God reminding us that He never planned for us to be alone. He’s given us friends and family to support us throughout life.

The Holy Spirit, who is in all believers, can be likened to our conscious; nudging us to do something right or stop doing something wrong. God tells us in countless ways, everyday that He has plans for us and will never forsake us – if we will just stop, look and listen to Him.

Quick to hear, slow to speak. There’s a saying that we have two ears and one mouth so we should listen twice as much as we speak. We need to really know God’s word ourselves before we rush out to share it. We should meditate on it, compare scripture to other scripture and let it work in our hearts.

We need to establish routine habits of worship, prayer, study, fellowship and righteous behavior. We need to get away from temptations and examine our hearts regularly and confess all known sin. Sin interferes with our relationship with God. Personal purity and moral integrity is the standard for Bible believing Christians.

We need to develop a support system. Cultivate deep spiritual friendships. Life is short! We should live life for God today. Then no matter when our lives end, we will have fulfilled God’s plan for ourselves.

And remember – you can’t go with God and stay in the same place!