There is a popular belief today that everyone is a child of God. This cannot be farther from the truth and in fact probably one of the greatest deceptions that the devil has ever conceived. It is written clearly in *John 1:12 But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the authority (power, privilege, right) to become the children of God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name* So now, my question to all who read these words is, “Are you a child of God?” Simple, easy, Yes or No? Don’t brush it off with a shrug of the shoulders, some vague “I surely hope so.” Do not contend yourself with a false complacency, trying to assure yourself by saying, “Of course I am; I was born of Christian parents; brought up and baptized in the church; made a profession of faith as a child; attended church religiously, etc. etc.” The question that I want you to answer for yourself is “Are you in all honesty God’s child, adhering to Him, trusting in Him, relying on Him and His name for all things?” Are you conscious of these truths every moment of your life? Is it evident to those who are around you that you are in Christ and Not Of This World? It is written in *2 Corinthians 13:5 Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit?* Many who profess Christ go their own direction and do not have any evidence of being led by the Holy Spirit. To be led by the Spirit is the same as walking by His direction but carries additional emphasis on His leadership. We do not walk along with Him as an equal, but follow His leading as our Sovereign, Divine Guide. Those who are “sons”, children of God are led by the Spirit of God. Friends, we need to pray for willingness and obedience to follow His divine leading in “everything” that we do and so prove to Whom we belong. For me personally it seems at times that I am an 80/20 Christian. For the most part of the day I have an intimate awareness of God in my life, but towards the end of my day I get complacent and look for ways to have my mind escape to thoughtless activities. I am inspired but also convicted by the words of Charles Spurgeon, ‘How I marvel at the goodness of my God! How I adore that sacred power which has made me the child of two births, the subject of two creations: He first made me in the fashion of a man, and then made me in the image of the Man Christ Jesus.’ At the end of my life I pray that I can boldly say that I did all that I could to bring glory to God and also, just as importantly, did not do much to bring shame to His name, by the power of the Holy Spirit, in Jesus’ precious and powerful name I pray, Amen. In Christ Love, douglas.

To any who are interested, please feel free to reach out to me with prayer requests, questions, encouragement, or for information on how to come alongside me in financial support of the ministry activities that God has entrusted to me at pastord.blog@gmail.com