~ "there's that same tree we passed an hour ago..."

And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. (1 John 2: 28-29)

Do you sometimes feel like you're going around in circles? I know that I do! I'll get to a good spot, rest and then continue on - but I sometimes end up back where I started.

It's not easy to be a Christian sometimes. Even as Christians we do things we know we shouldn't, and we chalk it up to being the "lesser of two evils". We lie out of fear instead of letting go and being honest. Sometimes our faith is not as strong as we'd like to believe it is, or is it? We have faith in God - that he will provide for us, that he will care for us, that he will protect us. It's mankind that we don't trust! There are situations where our human nature tells us that we need to say or do something to avoid the repercussions of men (be they Christian or not). They come from our experiences.

For me, to be unashamed before Christ is to have followed where he's led me without detour. To have faith in his will and believe that he will continue to lead me is where I put my trust. I don't trust man any farther than I could throw him (and those who know me will tell you I probably couldn't get him off the ground). It is in times like this that we reach out to one another and ask for advice and suggestions. They pray for me, lift me up in prayer and comfort me and yes, put up with my insanity from time to time - but they always love me. The same goes for Jesus. He will always love me - he is always there for me - I want to be the righteous Christian he desires me to be. Every thing that I do that is done for his glory, not mine. Anything I accomplish in this life is because he has seen fit to bless me!

Being born again doesn't mean we're perfect - we're sinners - our job is to spread his word and lead people to his sheltering arms. He has a plan for each and every one of us. In my book I tell readers to "aspire to be the Christian you know is buried deep within your soul". There is no other feeling on earth that compares to the joy of seeing a sinner led to the altar of the Lord. Salvation is for all! Share your joy with the world!