A Prayer to Give Your Life to Jesus Christ Because He Loves You - Your Daily Prayer - December 26

A Prayer to Give Your Life to Jesus Christ because He Loves You
By Chris Eyte

Bible Reading:
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. - Isaiah 55:1

Perhaps you visit the Crosswalk website regularly - or it’s your first time. No matter, it’s great that your online ‘surfing’ has led you here. Welcome! I want to ask your permission to consider some truths about the Christian faith. And I am writing and talking to those of you who hate religion, or anything to do with Jesus. I would love you to take some time now and consider reality with me. The Father of the heavenly lights, unseen to our frail eyes, does indeed exist. His presence hovers over you. In Him, we live and move, and have our very being (Acts 17:28). The collection of books known as the ‘Bible’ also records the history of the Creator’s relationship with people of all races, languages and cultures. I would recommend reading the book of John to understand who he is.

No doubt you have suffered some powerful life experiences. The loss of loved ones. Struggles with money. Constant battles with health. Horrible experiences of abuse. A sense of darkness when you look at the wars and famines and misery in the world. Where is God in it all? Whatever has happened in your life up to now - I believe that Jesus Christ is calling you to rest with him. Reignite your relationship with God and discover his eternal love! He knows more than anyone what it is like to suffer, as you have. ‘God With Us’ is the meaning behind the very name of ‘Jesus.’ He clothed himself in human flesh two thousand years ago and took the blame for our atrocities.

No one has led a perfect life, do you agree? For every good deed we’re proud of, there are hundreds more we could have done but ignored. We’ve suffered wrongs too, that’s true, but we’ve also hurt others. This plague of selfishness is deadly and contaminates everything, showing in all sorts of ways, from mass murder to little untruths. The only way to really stop an infection is to kill it. That is what Jesus did. He allowed himself to become degraded by evil and then buried the disease in his own dead body - so that we could be free.

There was a man called Thomas who didn’t believe Jesus came back to life after he was hung to death. In fact, he said: ‘Unless I put my hand in his hands, and feel the scars where the nails went in - I won’t believe. And I won’t believe unless I see the scar where the Roman soldier lunged a spear.’ Then Jesus appeared next to him, showed his hands and his side, and said: ‘Happy are those who believe without seeing me.’ I was a ‘Doubting Thomas’ myself. I led a small group at a church, even gave a talk at an introduction to Christianity course - but I knew that I wasn’t really a believer. Then, at a church meeting, I said to God, “Either you show yourself as real to me, or I will spend the rest of my life saying you are not.” And then a gentle but strong breath came out of nowhere and knocked me to the ground. I lay there with a feeling of fire across the top part of my body, which stayed for hours. It was undeniably real.

Even then, I didn’t become a Christian. It took time for me to understand that knowing God means knowing his love and grace: knowing Jesus for who he is, not just what he does. Seeing things doesn't always mean believing things though. Jesus did amazing miracles for the crowds in Israel, back in the ancient times of the first century. He healed those blind, deaf, lame, dumb, mentally tortured, and even dead were raised - and the crowds still screamed at the Roman governor, telling him to kill the Messiah!

We can’t rely on the natural things of the flesh to find truth. It’s only by spiritual revelation that we can understand that God exists and he loves us.  And so we need to make a covenant, a promise of devotion to him from our hearts. For the simple reason that he is devoted to us. So wherever you find yourself in life today: I invite you to make a commitment from your inner self to the liberator Jesus Christ and invite the Holy Spirit into your life. You know as well as I do that this world is plagued by darkness in the midst of all the beauty. God will judge mankind and there will be no gray areas. Either we are with Jesus or we are not.

It will soon be closing time at the bar. The bell will ring, and everything will change. Please don’t delay this anymore - take the opportunity to open your heart to the love of the Father. Spend moments in prayer with me, to start or restart knowing Jesus: “the way, the truth and the life.” Jesus once said this: “Come to me all you who are weary, and heavily ladened, and I will give you rest.” So come to him and rest!

Let’s Pray:

Father of the heavenly lights, who is Father of me. I recognize in my heart the truths of the ‘gospel’ as told by Christians. You came into this world as Jesus Christ to reclaim us from evil. I turn my heart away from the devil and commit my whole self to you because you love me. Today I thank you from my heart for what you did when you hung on the cross for me. Forgive me. I know that you do. I surrender my life to you right now and always. Thank you that I am adopted as your child and a dearly loved member of your family. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit. I wait upon you now. Amen.

Photo Credit: ©Emmanuel Phaeton/Unsplash

Christopher Eyte lives with his wife Céline and three children in Swansea, Wales, UK. He has worked as a journalist for many years and writes his own blog (hislovefrees.life) encouraging others in their walk with Jesus. He became a Christian in February 2002, after a friend explained God's amazing grace!

Editor's Note: We're proud to announce we've just launched a new nighttime companion to Your Daily Prayer: the Your Nightly Prayer devotional. You'll soon be able to subscribe to receive Your Nightly Prayer via email, or as a podcast, but for now you can find it on the website at crosswalk.com/devotionals/your-nightly-prayer. We hope it's a relaxing and soothing way to wind down your day with rich meditations on who God is.

Related Resource: Jesus Calling - Stories of Faith

Kerry Washington. Andrea Bocelli. Reba McEntire. Mark Wahlberg. Tony Dungy. Matthew McConaughey, What do all of these people have in common? They are all people of faith who have leaned on God in both the good and challenging times—and they’ve shown up to tell their story of faith on The Jesus Calling Podcast. The Jesus Calling Podcast provides a place for people from all walks of life to share the heartaches, joys, and divine moments that keep them going. 

Inspired by Sarah Young's classic devotional book, the Jesus Calling podcast has brought encouragement and peace to millions. New episodes drop every Thursday! Listen today on LifeAudio.com or wherever you find your podcasts.

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