Spiritual Vision

Do you ever get that goopy stuff in your eye and you can't see clearly? It kind of interrupts your life, don't you just despise that?!?

In 1 Samuel 3:1 it says, “And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.”

The last part of it says that there was no open vision. You'll see in this story that Eli was not only losing his physical sight but also his spiritual spiritual sight. Eli’s sons were living wickedly and he knew that they were, but he was doing nothing about it.

Then the Lord sent a little boy named Samuel into Eli’s life. Samuel grew up in the temple with Eli and Samuel learned the way of the Lord.

1 Samuel 3:2 “And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;”

Physically, Eli’s eyes began to wax dim which means to be blind. Also, he was spiritually blind. He loved the lord but his sons did not and they were living wickedly and taking advantage of the temple and Eli knew it and he did not do anything about it, which is why I believe he began to be spiritually and physically blind.

Through all the disappointment, God was with Eli when he gave Samuel a dream.

1 Samuel 3:3-14, "3 And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was,

4 and Samuel was laid down to sleep; That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.

5And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down. 6And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again. 7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him. 8And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. 9Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 10And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. 11And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. 12In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. 13For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 14And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever."

Now God is very angry with Eli because he did not stop his sons from doing wrong. These next verses will tell you what God asks Samuel to do.

"15 And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to shew Eli the vision. 16 Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I. 17 And he said, What is the thing that the LORD hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that he said unto thee. 18 And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good. 19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD. 21 And the LORD appeared again in Shiloh: for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD."

We have to be careful about sin, because we will be spiritually blind and we don’t want that, we want to be able to hear God and to study his word. We need to apply Jesus to our eyes so we can see clearly.

Miss Monica June is a young teen girl who is homeschooled and is pursuing her artistic talent of jewelry making. She enjoys cooking and encouraging others to share about their education at From The Learning Room.

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How to Build Faith

by Sisterlisa

How do you speak to a person about trusting in the Lord if they have no faith? It takes faith to believe in the Lord and it takes faith to please the Lord. Sometimes it may seem like people won't listen to the plan of salvation, so how can you help build their faith?

Romans 10:17, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

In order to build faith we must hear the Word of God. We must have a foundation in which we build upon. If we attempt to toss out a few verses to someone who has no faith their steps to salvation may not be very sturdy. A good way to help build someone's faith is to speak the very Word of God to them in your conversations. This is why memorizing God's Word is so crucial if you have a desire to lead souls to Christ. Some verses that I like to keep fresh in my mind for this purpose are:

John 1:1, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Genesis 1:1, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

1 John 5:7, "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

Romans 10:13, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Luke 5:32, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

There are so many good verses to memorize, all of them are. Yet when you acquaint yourself with the necessary verses that coincide with the plan of salvation you'll have plenty of spiritual ammunition to quote that will build their faith in God's Word. There's no need to remember where it is found in the Bible, the numbers of chapters and verses were not inspired by God, just the words.

Here is a challenge for you. Take the following verses, which are the most popular used verses when leading a lost soul to Christ, and find 2-3 more verses that confirm the truths told in those verses and memorize them. We would love to know which verses you chose so please feel free to post below in the comment section which verses you chose.

Romans 3:10 (KJV) “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.”

Romans 3:23 (KJV) For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 6:23 (KJV) For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 10:9 (KJV) “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

1 John 5:13 (KJV) “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”

Romans 10:13 (KJV) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Sisterlisa is the owner and Editor-in-Chief of Growing in Grace Magazine and owner of AGMinistries, a devotion blog for women. She is married and homeschools her four children while remaining active in community service and serves in the deaf ministry at her church.

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Faith Factor: Backyard Bible Club

People have been hosting backyard bible clubs for a long time. A backyard bible club is basically a vacation bible school that you host in your own backyard, hence the name. This is a great way to spread the gospel to the kids of our own neighborhoods. It's a lot of fun and it is a great experience to see God work through such young lives. Here are some ideas that you can take into consideration if you are planning on doing your own BBC.

~ Sing Bible songs.
~ Teach a Bible lesson.
~ Arts & crafts.
~ Relay races.
~ Puppet shows.
~ Snacks.

Those are just a few of the many different things that you could do. Use your imagination and have fun with it.

A few years ago we hosted our own backyard bible club. The kids of our neighborhood loved it. We did it once a week for many weeks in a row during the summer time. We did it all the way up until school started again. It was a great experience and I am sure that the kids in your neighborhoods would love it just as much as ours did.

You can get a VBS kit that can be used for backyard Bible Clubs here.

Lady Jess is a teen lady who is homeschooled along with her siblings. She assists her mother in teaching her younger siblings, is an interpreter in her church's deaf ministry, and sings in the choir.

Faith Factor Tips

Most people want to be wise. Even I do! In this following verse it teaches you a way you can be wise.

~Proverbs 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
(emphasis mine)

You can win souls to be wise and we need to obey the Bible. I love to go out to tell people about Jesus, because one day when we all go to Heaven that person will be happy that I told them about Jesus. It should be a blessing to go out soul winning and telling people about Jesus. Here are some tips on how to be bold when sharing your faith.




TIPS:

1. Understand what it means to lead someone to trust in Jesus and study up!

2. Pray that God will cross your path with someone who is ready to receive Christ as their Saviour.

3. You could go to a Christian book store and purchase tracts to carry with you hand out through out the day.
. Hand out at grocery store

. At the book store

. And wherever you are like when you are out and about.

4. Give the person a tract and if they are interested and not in a hurry you can share your relationship with the Lord. You can see some verses that I have used before here: “The Plan of Salvation”

5. Read books and resources about sharing your faith with others. Two that we have found helpful are:
'Soulwinning: The Heart of God' by Pastor Michael Ray This book explains about heaven and hell and the heart condition of the person.
The Way of the Master with Kirk Cameron This ministry equips others to effectively share their faith with others.

I'll share more tips next month.

Faith Factor: Evangelize with Jewelry

There are so many creative ways we can help spread the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. One way I like to do this is with jewelry. I made these earrings with just a few simple tools and some small pony beads.

You'll need:
small pony beads in these colors: yellow, black, red, white, and green.
earring hooks
earrings posts
jewelry making tools
clear small beads
small silver spacers

My mom got me a bead tray to help me sort out my beads. This helps so that your beads don't roll off the table, and you can arrange them neatly in the groove until you get the pattern just the way you like it for whatever project you're making.

First place the clear bead on the post, then the rest in the order listed above. Add the silver spacer last then use your tool to curve the post into a small loop.

Slide the loop into the loop of the earring hook and close with your tool.

I have three pairs to send to three special winners.
Here's what you'll need to do to enter:

1. Post about this giveaway on your blog.
2. Place the graphic in your side bar.
3. Leave a comment in the box below with your link so we know you've completed the sign ups.
4. Commit yourself to sharing the gospel with others as they ask about your earrings!

Each color is a symbol of the verses God gives us to learn about our Saviour.

Yellow- God loves you and wants you to go to heaven. Yellow stands for the gold streets in heaven. John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Black- We all make mistakes. When we do bad things the Bible calls that sin. Sin is not allowed in heaven and has a payment. Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" Romans 6:23a, "For the wages of sin is death;"

Red- Is for Jesus blood which is shed for you. Jesus knew we were already sinners, but he still died to pay our sin debt. He had the hard part. Luke 22:20, "Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you."

White- He washes our sins away so that we can enter heaven. Isaiah 1:18, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."

He died as a gift for us. Ephesians 2:8, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: " But as with any gift, if you don't receive it, then it's not actually yours yet. The gift must be received.

Once you realize that you are a sinner, confess to God your need for the Saviour, and by faith trust in His death as the payment for your sins.

Green- Go tell someone else what decision you made. Mark 16:15, "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Acts 4:20, "For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."

Deadline to enter is October 15th!

Grab the code and spread the word!

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Faith Factor: The Lost of Other Languages

Just about a month or so ago I was able to begin interpreting for the deaf on Sunday mornings in my church. My mom has been signing for almost 14 years now and has taught us a lot of sign language. She is going to be teaching a class of sign language in our church's adult Bible Institute in just a few weeks. So far I only interpret the song, 'Amazing Grace' at the close of the service, but I am praying about signing the announcements on Wednesday evenings too.

My mom volunteered for us to interpret the children's stories at the library this year and we're looking forward to that. One thing I want to say is that God did not give me the ability to sign just for entertaining myself , but to reach the lost deaf in our community.


When God separated the people at The Tower of Babel he confused their languages. People had to find one another and regroup with their own people. This must have made it very difficult to communicate with people from other lands. The Bible has many passages where he talks about interpretors of languages. Not everyone has the ability to learn another language well. Exodus 4:11, "And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD? " The Lord has made the deaf, yet not all deaf understand God's Word. We feel strongly about allowing God to use our gift of sign language to reach the lost deaf of our community.

Do you have knowledge of another language that God can use in your life to reach the lost of your town? I have known many people who have attempted to learn sign language and yet struggle with it. I personally believe that my ability to sign was given to me as a gift from the Lord. 1 Corinthians talks of interpretors and although there are differing opinions on what those passages are referring to, I do believe that my gift of interpreting falls under those blessings of God. It would be a waste for me to have this gift and not use it to teach the deaf about the Lord.

Pray about how god can use you to reach the lost of your town with the language that you know. Do you know Spanish, Japanese, or Korean? Pray about how god can use you to reach someone for His Kingdom's sake.

The Faith Factor: Winning Souls

There was a time when my daughter, lady Jess, prayed for her daddy to trust Jesus as his Savior. I heard her praying one night when she was just six years old. She was kneeling over the bedside sobbing! I have never seen a child so young pray so hard before. During those difficult years of our lives, her faith grew so big!

The prayers of children are so sweet. If you have a young sibling or even a cousin who is younger, take some time to pray with them and really listen to what they are saying to the Lord. Their hearts are so tender.

We each need to have our faith grow. The Bible says in Romans 10:17, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

So how do we increase our faith? By hearing the Word of God.

1. Read your Bible faithfully. Read it out loud.

2. Memorize scripture and quote it to your family and friends.

3. Listen to good teaching or preaching tapes or CD's.

4. Pay attention in church service and take notes. When you go home take your notes and reflect upon what the Lord gave you. Re-read the verses the teacher/preacher shared with you and pray about how God might be speaking to you.

If we want our faith to grow then we need to practice what God teaches us, hearing His Word.
As your faith grows, you will begin to walk by faith and not by sight. Faith is believing without seeing.

Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

If you have read any of our past articles from The Faith Factor you'll know that we emphasize sharing the Gospel with others. If you pray for God to cross your path with someone who wants to get saved, He will do that! God wants people saved and if we, as Christians, really want to lead a person to Christ, then just pray and ask God to use you to do that. Each day pray about it. As you come across someone, the Holy Spirit will guide you and tell you who to talk to. Be bold! Don't be nervous, Christ has gone before you and begun a work in their heart about it. You have the victory, just claim it!

If you make winning souls a priority, He will use you to accomplish that task.

If you are willing to commit yourself to be a soul winner, then grab this button and add it to your site.

Leave us a reply and we will pray for God to use you to lead a soul to Christ.

Be sure to come back and tell us once God has used you to lead a person to the Lord so we may rejoice with you!

Here is a way I have been able to lead a person tot he Lord using the M&M Story. I have attached a link to the PDF version of the M&M Story at the end of that article for you to take and memorize.

Keep an eye out for more articles about how to win souls to the Lord here at Growing in Grace!

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A Saved Patriot

A gentleman in our church sings a beautiful song in honor of our country and our Savior every year which I love! I can't share the lyrics due to copyright constraints, but it tells the story of Old Glory from a Christian perspective. Many churches have a Christian flag and the colors are the same; red, white, and blue.

The main meaning behind these colors, in a Christian's life, are these;

Red is for the blood of Jesus, who willingly offered to pay our sin debt.
Romans 5:8, " But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

Just as our soldiers willingly offer themselves to go into battle for our freedom, Christ went to battle for our freedom from sin.

White is for our forgiveness, as he washed away our sins.
Isaiah 1:18, " Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."

Ephesians 1:7, " In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;"

Romans 5:8, " But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. "

Our soldiers go into battle, already knowing that not everyone in America is thankful for our freedom. People still commit crimes and are sent to prison everyday, but our soldiers stills fight for our freedom. Christ already knew we were sinners, and he still offered to pay our sin debt.

Blue is for royalty as we can become a child of God, born into his family.

John 1:12, "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:"

The people of our nation, although from different nationalities, still come together under one flag and are proud to be an American. The people of this land are Americans, and we are truly a family in this nation. When a person confesses that they are lost without Jesus and choose him to be their Savior they become a part of the family of God. We are all under one banner, his banner over us is love!

Remember that old Sunday School song?

He brought me to His banqueting table,
His banner over me is love
He brought me to His banqueting table,
His banner over me is love
He brought me to His banqueting table,
His banner over me is love.
His banner over me is love.

He lifted me up into heavenly places,
His banner over me is love
He lifted me up into heavenly places,
His banner over me is love
He lifted me up into heavenly places,
His banner over me is love.
His banner over me is love.

Jesus is the Rock of my salvation,
His banner over me is love
Jesus is the Rock of my salvation,
His banner over me is love
Jesus is the Rock of my salvation,
His banner over me is love.
His banner over me is love.

If you have never prayed and trusted in Jesus to be your Savior, you may do so today.

1. Confess that you're not perfect. The Bible calls that sin.
Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."

2. Realize that your sin has a payment.
Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ is Lord."

3. Understand that Jesus willingly died for you , even though He already knew you are a sinner.
Romans 5:8, "But God commendeth is love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

4. Here's the best part! Just call upon him!
Romans 10:13, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Simply express that to the Lord as you pray,
"Dear God, I know that I'm not perfect and you call that sin. I understand that sin must be paid for with death, but I don't want to pay for my own sin. I willingly receive Jesus' death on the cross as the payment for my sin. Please forgive me and thank you Jesus for dieing for me. In Jesus' Name, Amen."

If you just now received Jesus as your Savior, please let us know by replying below. Just as we raise our flag this Fourth of July and are proud that we have our banner of freedom, we can also know that His banner over us is love!

A Date to Remember

I'm honored to bring you this month's story to The Faith Factor. This story occurred when Miss Monica June was just a baby, so she asked me to write about this date to remember.

There was a time when Miss Moni's dad didn't walk with the Lord. He had previously been introduced to the Lord in 1990, but his relationship with the Saviour didn't have a stable foundation. After many years of trying to live life his own way, like so many of us do, he was faced with needing to make a change.

There was a time when he wasn't in our lives at all. He had chosen to walk his own journey without the family and we didn't know if he was dead or alive. We prayed every day that God would send a Christian into his life. We knew that even though we didn't know where he was, God did know. There was a night when I had tucked Lady Jess into bed, prayed with her, and kissed her goodnight. She was about five years old at the time and I could hear talking coming from the room. Of course, being the mother that I am I thought she was still up playing when she should have been sleeping. I approached the door when I realized she wasn't playing. I cracked the door just slightly and quietly. As I peeked inside the room I saw her down on her knees next to the bed praying with tears in her eyes and barely a breath as she said, "Daddy, please bring my daddy home!" She was crying so hard she could barely speak.

She was using force to bring her prayers to her lips and she prayed again, "Oh God PLEASE save my daddy, I miss him so much. Please bring my daddy home."

As a mother I wanted to rush to her side and hold her in my arms, but I sensed the Holy Spirit telling me, " Let me be the one who holds her." I closed the door and I walked away. I knew this was a moment that she needed to have with the Lord. I didn't ask her about that moment until she was a bit older. It wasn't long after that when I received a letter from my husband. He explained that he was in another state and that he started attending church. The pastor there counseled him to, "go home and make right with your wife and children. Be the husband and father God wants you to be." Within a few weeks he had moved back to our area and lived with his dad. We continued to pray for him and he sought work in our community.

A dear gentleman of our church named Mr. Kempton, who is now with our Lord, faithfully visited the girls' daddy. He would pick him up for church and help disciple him. One Saturday morning as we arrived at the church for our outreach ministry, we saw Mr. Kempton walk in with her daddy. (The church also had men's Bible study that morning.) She looked up at Mr. Kempton and with gleeful delight and sincerity said, "Oh Mr. Kempton, thank you so much for bringing my daddy to men's Bible study." This dear saint of God began to cry. He was so touched by Jessica's sweet countenance.

About a week later, on a Saturday night, I began to pray with ferverance and detail. I begged God for the soul of my husband. I knew that he had a previous relationship with the Lord, but his life lacked evidence of salvation. I recalled a verse that promised me that I could come boldly to the throne of God.

Hebrews 4:16, "Let us therefore come unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."(KJV)

I sought the Lord for my husband to not only come to church the next morning, that he would come forward during the invitation to be saved. I prayed for a man named Mr. Colombo to be the one that would met him for prayer and that he would be baptized. This was a very tall order after seeing my husband walk away from God for such a long time. I was asking for what others called, 'The Impossible'. I ended my prayer with thanksgiving and went to bed.

The next morning was Sunday. We went to church as we did every week and when we arrived my husband was there for Sunday School. Jessica and Moni were in their classes and I taught a class during that time as well. The second hour was the church service and I sang in the choir while the kids remained in their children's church. After the preaching was over and the invitation had begun a woman asked me to prayer with her. I went to pray with this sweet lady and then when I returned to my seat, all my friends were staring at me with smiles on their faces. One friend motioned to me to come pray with her. As I knelt down she began to cry out these words, "Your husband just got saved Lisa!" I was astonished! "Where is he? Who prayed with him?" She replied, "Mr. Colombo prayed with him! I saw his lips moving, I could see that he was praying top be saved!" I began to sob uncontrollably. I asked her to pray that he would be baptized and she said, "He is, look" As she pointed I saw Mr. Colombo leading him to the back room to be baptized.

She prayed and praised God for this tremendous victory and then I went to get my children from their classes. As I knocked on the door and the teacher opened she saw the tears in my eyes and was concerned, "What's wrong Lisa?" With a release of emotions I answered back, "My husband got saved today!" She began to cry herself and she turned to shout to Jessica, "Jessi, your daddy got saved come quick!!!" All the children rejoiced as Jess ran to the door with giddy laughter. We ran back to the auditorium and the lights were dim. We went to the very front row where Jess hopped on the lap of the friend who had just prayed with me. Suddenly, my five year old Jess began to sob.

Our friend asked her why she was crying and she was crying so hard that she had to once again force the words out, "I'm just so happy my daddy finally got saved!"

As my husband entered the water, I shouted like a cheerleader at a football game, "THAT'S MY HUSBAND!!" I was so happy that I couldn't hold back the excitement. A soul had been saved! The entire church cheered as well. It was a date to remember. Each time I tell this story I cry and as I sit here now typing this for you, I have piles of tissue at my side. We thanked God for the victory that we saw that wonderful Sunday morning and our family was restored. But not just our family, it was the family of God that had been healed. Our church family had prayed for so long! It has been many years now, but whenever I tell this story the emotions flood back as if it was yesterday.

Is there someone you have been praying for? Does it seem like God isn't hearing your prayers? Have you lost hope and given up on ever getting the answer you desire? There was a time when I had given up as well, but a woman once wrote in my Bible, "Don't Give Up Praying! Mrs. Delashmit" She was the wife of an evangelist who had at one time been a Hell's Angel. God gloriously saved him and his testimony is one that my husband never got to hear before Dr. Delashmit went to be with our Saviour. However, he has listened to his testimony on tape many times and has given the tape to many others to listen to.

My husband now works at a Recovery Mission aiding and counseling men with broken lives and helping them to restore their own families. It is clearly evident that he walks with the Lord now and we have been so blessed by the new man God gave to our family.

Mark 9:29, "And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting."(KJV)

You can order tapes and CD's of Dr. Jim Delashmit's songs at Valley Baptist Church.
To hear the story 'From Dope to Hope', of how God delivered Dr. Delashmit from the life of a Hell's Angel, you can contact me. I had been saved during a night that he preached in our church. I'll be sharing my salvation story in an upcoming issue. If you would like your salvation story to be featured in GGM, send your story to us.

~Spiritual Mother’s Day Present~

On a Wednesday night church service, after the message, the Pastor asked if anyone hadn’t trusted Christ as their Savior. I was thinking if I had or not, and I didn’t know! That next morning, I told my mom, with tears in my eyes, that I just didn’t know where I would go. She said, “Well that would be a good thing to know wouldn’t it?” So she told the plan of Salvation to me and I trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior! After the prayer my mom said to me, “You know what, I got saved on this same day 10 years ago!” I was so excited that we could share that day as our “Spiritual Birthday!”

Salvation, It's Elementary

Each week I have an opportunity to go on an outreach in my community to invite people to my church. Sometimes I get to tell them how they can know for sure they can get to heaven. Some people call this evangelism. One very important thing to know before doing this is if YOU have trusted Jesus as your Savior yet. This month I would like to share with you how Lady Olivia made her decision. In her story you'll learn how easy it is to teach a young girl how to accept Jesus as their Savior. It's a wonderful way to share His love with those who may be too young to even read yet.

I have always known about Jesus. My mom says that His name was actually
one of my first words! When I was a toddler, or so, my mom would sing songs to me like "Jesus Loves Me" or she and dad would tell me all kinds of stories about Him. But there was definitely a time in my life when I
really wanted to know God, not just know about Him.
I wanted to know Him personally, but first I had to:

1. Admit I was a sinner and was in need of God.
2. Believe that Jesus died and rose again for my sins.
3. Confess Jesus as Lord of my life.

It was as easy as ABC and because I was only six and learning my
alphabet and how to read, this was an easy way to understand how to be
saved. Now, I pray to Him every day by just talking to Him. I praise Him every
night which means I like to sing to Him before I go to bed.
He is always there when I need Him, like when I have problems at school
with friends. He also helps me when I take a test or have to make a
speech. Jesus is real to me. I am sure glad I know Him. You can get
to know Him too. ~Lady Olivia

If this was your first time learning about how to trust Jesus as your Savior and you have just believed in Him as you read this, please let us know.

Now for a giveaway!! We have a small New Testament Bible with God's Precious Promises especially highlighted from the publisher. It's a handy tool for leading a person to the Lord and it's free to one person who would like to have it. Simply have your mom e-mail our moderator to submit your name for the drawing.

The Faith Factor

Have you ever wanted to share your faith with a friend or loved one? I sometimes have gotten nervous when trying to explain salvation to another person.

In the upcoming weeks and months we'll be learning fun and creative ways to share your faith with others, but before we go any further it is very important that you know that you have a personal relationship with Jesus yourself. Sisterlisa wrote this delicious message that she entitled, "The M&M Gospel" Be sure to read to the end, for there is a giveaway in this message! If you have a fun way to share your faith with others and would like to have it published with GGM, please contact our Editor for further details.

As I was sitting on the swing at the park one sunny afternoon, my friend walked up and asked me to hold out my hand. Unsure of what she was going to do, I resisted. "It's ok, I have something for you," she said. I slowly put out my hand and I saw a brown bag dump into my hand and several colorful candies tumbled into my palm. They were small candy coated chocolates called, M&M's.

There's so much I would like to tell you about M&M's and something in particular that their company may not even know about. First of all, America's favorite little candies have a history behind the sweetening craze. We all like to hear the story about how we came into this world and their story is so much fun! Another interesting tid bit of information is that in 2004 the M&M's lost their color for a while causing all the M&M's to be Black and White!

Once you've read the history of the M&M, you can now become one! Now don't get too wild and crazy, but be sure to have a lot of fun! Now that you have created yourself into a virtual M&M, you can now customize your own bag of M&M's. Be sure to get your parents permission before ordering, but just for fun you can play with their interactive M&M creator. They're especially fun for sending out a unique message to a loved one. (Min. ordering is 4 bags at $11.99 per bag.) They're a bit pricey, but could prove to be a valuable way to show someone how much you care.



Next comes the part I've been hungering to tell you! The M&M's tell a wonderful story by their colors!


The Dark Chocolate M&M: There's a darkness in this world that we all battle from day to day. This battle is the war between our flesh and our spirit and that entity we fight with is called sin. Sin is a dark nature within us that we cannot escape on our own. "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Dark chocolate is bittersweet and sin has it's pleasure for a season, but is not profitable for our relationship with Jesus. In fact, we cannot get to heaven on our own, because of sin.

The Yellow M&M: The yellow M&M reminds me of Heaven for a couple of reasons. The first reason is that the streets of heaven are made of pure gold. The second reason is that the Son of God sits at the right hand of the Father and loves us very much! Jesus wants us to be in Heaven with all His heart, but sin is not allowed in Heaven. God has always known that we sin, but makes Him sad because He knows sin cannot enter His heavenly home. Then Jesus raised his hands and said, "I'll go Father. I'll go to earth and teach the people how they CAN know for sure they can get to heaven to be with you." The Father and Son both know that there is a payment for sin and that payment must be fulfilled. Someone must pay that sin debt, but it has to be someone that has never sinned. That's when Jesus came to earth in the form of a man and lived a perfect life.

The Red M&M: After Jesus was grown and had begun his ministry here on earth, He knew the time was nearing that the sin debt would need to be paid for. Many people did not believe that He is the Son of God, as a matter of fact, they thought He was lying to them when He told them that "Whosoever believeth in me shall not perish, but have everlasting life and that no man cometh unto the father but by me." The people did not believe him and the penalty was death. Jesus knew this was going to be his fate one morning, but he willingly went forward, recalling His words to the Father, that He would volunteer to pay the sin debt so that all mankind could be in heaven one day. Jesus was lead to Calvary, after being beaten so severely that people could not even tell that he was a man. On the cross of Calvary that day, Jesus stretched out his arms and died for you and for me. His shed blood was the sacrifice needed for our sins to be forgiven.

The White M&M: Yes there IS a white M&M, it's just not in the classic bag you see in stores today, but rather through the customized option on their site and in some candy stores throughout America's malls. The White M&M brings me great joy, for it is the white that indicates the washing of our sins. Jesus's blood washed us white as snow, so that our sin is not seen by the Father anymore. It's the proof that we are forgiven for our sin nature and our ticket to enter the pearly gates of Heaven.

One thing I could never understand is that the old motto of the M&M's candies is, "They melt in your mouth, not in your hand." Yet, my M&M's always left a smudge of chocolate on my hands. My mom could always tell if I had gotten into the M&M bags. Although we are forgiven by the Father, we still sin each and every day. After all, we're not perfect and we will always make mistakes. When we sin it does leave it's mark on us, whether it be through the tone of our voice, the expressions on our faces, and even the images within our own minds. That daily sin will not cause us to lose our home in heaven, but it will cause us to have a difficult time communicating with the Savoir. His Holy Spirit resides in the hearts of all those who have trusted in His death as the payment for their sin. The Holy Spirit wants to talk to us every day and express God's love and mercy to us through various ways. When we live in sin, making no effort to communicate with the Father, it makes it difficult for us to hear Him speaking to us.


The Green M&M: It's very important to keep your hands clean. Anytime that chocolate smudges onto your hands, wash it off right away. We do this by GOing to the Lord and confessing our sin and apologizing to God right away. If we go any length of time without saying we're sorry for our daily mistakes, it leaves chocolate fingerprints on everything we touch.


If you have never believed in the Lord with your heart and you'd like to today, just tell Him. Just talk to God like you would talk to a friend or your mom. Tell Him you believe He is real and that He died for you. Admit you aren't perfect and that you know you can't get to heaven on your own because of your sin. Trust that He will say yes, because His very own Word, the Bible says, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."


Once you have believed in Him with your heart and have communicated to Him that you want him to save you from sin and let you in heaven, He will ALWAYS be with you! You will still make mistakes every day, but God has forgiven you. Just remember the Green M&M telling you to GO to the Father and say you're sorry when you do make mistakes. His love and mercy is never ending!

Now for the giveaway! We are giving away 5 customized packs of Salvation M&M's accompanied by mini versions of this lesson for one reader to share with 5 people she knows needs to hear the gospel message. She will also receive this lesson printed in full color on classic white cardstock, perfect for framing.


Simply blog about this article and let us know you've shared The M&M Gospel message LINK with your readers and you'll be entered for this drawing! Our winner will be announced February 15th!


The M&M Gospel Lesson was written by Sisterlisa through the guidance of the Sweet Holy Spirit. All rights belong to Him, but if you'd like to download the free pdf file here, to remember it for your Faith Sharing opportunities, you may do so. Any print version of The M&M Gospel message or digital reproduction should credit the Holy Spirit and Growing in Grace Magazine.