2 Things Every Christian Must Do

Madison giving her best, "Now, you know better than that!" face.

1) Stop Cussing
When I got saved at 14 my mouth was horrible (Sorry Momma). When I was 17 is was still just as bad until I went to the youth and young adult retreat that our church held every summer. Something hit me that particular year. I could no longer justfy this new life that I had come to know with my lack of respect for God by the way that I used my mouth. I can still hear the scripture for that year in my head now, "I beg you my brothers, by the mercies of God to present yourself as a living sacrifice, which is your reasonable sevice." See for me the most reasonable thing for me to do, that was also a sacrifice, was to clean up my mouth. In my youthful zeal, I really wanted to please God. I wanted to show him how much I really cared about him. So, I decided to put my speech on a new path to see what the benefits would be. But, you know what? I thought it would be easy, but it wasn't. The first day of school after that summer, those WORDS starting flowing out of my mouth like water. From that day forward, I decided that I would take full control of my mouth and not give the excuse that I couldn't control it or people make me act that way. So, I took care of it. Admittedly, over the years, I have slipped a few times when I've been really angry. God forgive me for that! But I refuse to let it become a part of my everyday casual conversation. Therefore, I hope that we can all honor God with our mouths. People respect you and what you believe mere because of your ability to control that process that begins in your brain and ends with your mouth. Also, God can use MORE of you when your mouth is completely submitted to him. Personally, I believe that the longer you walk with God, the cleaner your mouth should become. Our growth in him must be progressive.

Question? Ever try to talk to someone about Jesus when they know you have a potty mouth? Doesn't work does it?!?

2) Stop Smoking
Same thing for smoking. See, for me, I believe that smoking and cussing go hand in hand. I have never met a smoker who didn't cuss. NEVER. I'm not saying there isn't an exception to the rule, but then again, that could be an easy assumption since most people cuss. If the cig controls your emotions more than you do, then there's something you need to work on. God can help us conquer anything, but we have to make ourselves available to the tools and the people who can help us achieve our greatest goals.

C'mon. Let's get some stuff together to make more of an impact on our surroundings. See I don't believe that these things negate our salvation, but they can make us inneffective in the battle for the hearts and souls of those that need to know JC.