Dear Friend,

Jeremiah 29:11-14 tells us, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,' declares the Lord.'"

God's greatest purpose is for you to be in a right relationship with Him and His greatest priority is for you to experience the blessings of a life of deep, abiding intimacy with Him both now, and for all eternity.

A Great Love - God designed man, for His pleasure and His purpose, to be in an intimate relationship with Him. He created man in His image, and gave each of us the free will to choose to love God in return (Genesis 1:26-27). God purposed from the beginning to give us His full, abundant and eternal life.

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." - John 10:10 (NIV)

"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness." - Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV)

"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." - John 3:16 (NIV)

A Great Lie - From the beginning, God gave His people freedom to enjoy all His blessings, with commands for keeping them safe. But when the enemy of God, Satan, deceived the woman in the Garden and tempted her to question God's Word, by asking, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" "You will not surely die" (Genesis 3), the man and woman disobeyed God's commands, and our fellowship with God was broken.

Deuteronomy 30:19-20 exhorts God's children to, "Choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord you God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life."

Because man did not obey God's Word, but questioned His Word and believed a lie over the Truth, we all have been eternally separated from God (Genesis 3:22-24). This choice to go our own way instead of following God's Way is called sin. We are all sinners. "There is none righteous, no not one" (Romans 3:10)

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." - Proverbs 14:12 (NIV)

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." - Romans 3:23 (NIV)

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 6:23 (NIV)

"But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear." - Isaiah 59:2 (NIV)

A Great Plan - God is merciful, gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin (Exodus 34:6-7). Because He is holy, God cannot tolerate sin. Because He is merciful, He doesn't want to punish us, but because He is just, He must punish sin. Sin is what keeps us separated from holy God; sin is what is killing us. The incomparable love of God is all-encompassing; He is moved to attack the thing that is destroying His creation, and at the same time makes a way for our restoration. In our sin we have fallen far from God's high and holy standard, and only He can meet the demands required by His holy law for our salvation. He paid the penalty for our sins through the sacrifice of His perfect, sinless Son, Jesus Christ, on the Cross. Jesus is the way prepared before He laid the the foundation of the earth. "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:11):

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning." - John 1:1-2 (NIV)

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." - John 1:14 (NIV)

"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8 (NIV)

"For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men - the testimony given in its proper time." - 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (NIV)

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given to men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12 NIV)

"For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." (Romans 10:13)

God has provided for our total restoration from our fallen, sinful state. Through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, God heals all our wounds, removes the disease of sin, and takes away the curse from us, and then places us in a higher standing with God than we had before we fell (Psalm 103:1-5; Ephesians 2:6). There is only one way back to fellowship with the Father. There is no other means of Salvation. Because of the sacrificial and atoning work of Christ on the Cross, and, through His subsequent death and resurrection, God's Anointed Mediator paid sin's penalty and bridged the gap between sinful man and Holy God. Jesus Christ bore our sin in His body on the cross Through Christ, we are brought back into proper relationship with our Heavenly Father. God has provided only one way for us to be reconciled to Him - through His Son Jesus Christ - He is the door opened into a life of eternal bliss and fellowship with the heavenly Father, and we must chose His Way or die. Eternal life is a gift, but it a gift that must be received and accepted.

A Great Choice - From the very beginning, God gave us the freedom to choose to be in relationship with Him. Today the choice that is before us came at a great price and should be received with humble gratitude and reverential fear (awe and respect). Jesus Christ gave His life for us, so that we would never suffer the terrible consequences that our sin deserves. Through His shed blood on the Cross, our sins are paid in full, and we are cleansed from all unrighteousness. Through faith in Christ Jesus and His work on the Cross, we can be made right and holy in the sight of God and receive forgiveness for our sin and eternal life.

"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. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." - John 3:16-17 (NIV)

"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." - John 14:6 (NIV)

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." - Acts 4:12 (NIV)

"At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." - Philippians 2:10-11 (NIV)

"If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." - Romans 10-9-10 (NIV)

"Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life, he who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" - John 11:25-26

God loves you dearly and cares for you deeply! Will you respond to His advances of love today by trusting in His provision for your sins and accepting the living Christ as your Savior and Lord, by repenting of your sins and turning control over your life into His loving and gracious hands? "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me" (Revelation 3:20).

"Behold, now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2b).

Please pray this prayer today:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I do not always make the right choices, and one of those wrong choices has been to go my own way instead of following You. I know that way is no longer the right way because it is entirely selfish and has kept me separated from You. Because of this I have sinned against You. I know that I am a sinner and do not deserve eternal life, but I believe that You love me and died on the cross to bear the full weight of my sins, so that, through Your death and resurrection, You have paid my sin-debt in full and provided forgiveness for my sin and eternal life. I choose today to accept this gift by faith, and ask You to come into my heart and life. I repent of my sin and choose to trust You this day to be my Lord and Savior, and ask You to take control of my life and lead and direct my paths all the days of my life. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

If you have prayed this prayer today from a sincere heart, we rejoice, along with all of heaven, in your decision. Your Heavenly Father is well-pleased with you and has promised you eternal life: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life" (John 6:47). Welcome to God's family! You are now a child of God! Today is your spiritual birthday! Record this date in your Bible to remember always! Because you are a newborn babe in Christ, He desires that you now nurture this new relationship with Him and grow in the knowledge of Him. Begin by reading the Gospel of John in the New Testament and develop a daily routine of reading the Bible and spending time with God in prayer. Attend a church that honors Jesus Christ and teaches the Bible, and fellowship with other Christians who will encourage you and help you to grow in faith. Share your testimony with others! Tell other what Jesus Christ has done for you!

Please email us and let us know of your decision at info@trumpetandtorch.org. We rejoice with you and would consider it a privilege to pray for you by name as you begin this amazing journey with the Lord. We invite you to accept God's invitation to dine at His table by joining our mailing list and taking part in our devotional prayer and fasting journeys to help you grow into deepening and abiding intimacy with Jesus Christ.

Our prayers are with you as you begin this wonderful new journey of faith.

"The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace." (Numbers 6:24-26)