Where's God

 

Pandemics, earthquakes, tornadoes, civil wars, violence, famine, poverty, sickness, pain, death—the list of suffering in the world today gives rise to a universal concern, "Where's God?" To answer this question, we need to start at the beginning, in Genesis 1:1, where it is written that God was at work 'In the beginning....." creating a perfect world for humankind. When God had finished, this world contained everything humankind would ever need. In God's perfect world, sickness and death did not exist. It was a safe place where humankind could live together with God for eternity. 

So, what happened to that world?

Simple answer— humankind sinned, and caused corruption to defile God's perfect world (Genesis 3). Think of it like a computer file that works perfectly fine until one day it is corrupted by a malicious attack. When a computer file is corrupted, it is unuseable and no longer operates as it was intended. Likewise, that's what happened to the perfect world God created for us. This world is sin damaged so nothing operates as God intended. Humankind inherited a legacy of sin from the first family, Adam and Eve. And that legacy still binds and hinders us today.

What is sin? 

Although none of us were in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve sinned, still God passed judgement on all future humankind because He knew that in time, we would commit enough of our own sins to deserve punishment. Sin is willfully disobeying God's laws or commands. You may have heard of The Ten Commandments which were given by God to protect us; and if obeyed, they would stabilize our communities so that we could live peaceful, successful and happy lives. The Bible is full of examples of how humankind ultimately sinned against God, and suffered dire consequences. Even now, commiting acts like greed, robbery, murder, stealing, lying, hating others, premartial sex, homosexuality, adultery, rape, drunkeness, drug abuse are ways we sin against God today. In truth, we all have 'missed the mark' in some way trying to live up to God's standards. 

 "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard." Romans 3:23 

Sin has its consequences

God has said, "The soul who sins shall die." Ezekiel 18:20 ESV

And as if that weren't bad enough, sin also separates us from God. When Adam and Eve sinned, they were immediately kicked out of the Garden of Eden. Sin robs you of God's presence. Sin hinders your prayers. Sin prevents you from spending eternity in Heaven. Sin keeps you from enjoying what God has planned for you. God hates sin because of what sin does to you. 

 God's remedy for sin

God, in His great love and mercy for us, was not willing to let sin destroy His creation. God knew, even before the first sin was committed, that He would devise a plan to rescue and restore humankind to Himself. 

"Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him would not be lost but have eternal life." John 3:16  ESV

God's plan involved sacrificing His Son, Jesus, as payment for our sins. Jesus took the punishment we deserved. His death on the Cross was payment and pardon for our sin. Still, a pardon is worthless unless you accept it. The way back into God's good graces is through Jesus Christ, and accepting Him as your Savior. You may think of yourself as a 'good person,' but you still need Jesus to be fully reconciled to God. 

Peace with God 

The world's problems will never be solved through human effort. Jesus Christ is our only hope. True and longlasting peace only comes when you surrender your old life to Christ in exchange for a new beginning.

"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT

Ready to take that first step toward a new life? When you say this prayer, with a sincere and repentant heart, your sins are forgiven, and you are reconciled back to God:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and ask You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Thank you for the gift of eternal life with you. In Your Name. Amen.

To learn more about your new life in Christ, contact peacewithgod.net  Someone is there 24/7 to talk with you.  

The hidden dangers behind the rainbow flag

The United States was already a nation at odds with its Christian values and acceptance of openly gay persons into the society long before President Barack Obama bathed the people's White House in the distinctive colors of the rainbow flag—a symbol of gay pride. As confirmed by his own legislative record, President Obama did more to facilitate the incursion of the gay rights agenda into mainstream American society and politics than any other U.S. president before him. Obama's actions gave the gay community the ammunition it needed to launch a full assault on America's values, morals, and ultimately, its culture. This wholesale endorsement of homosexual rights, coming from the leader of the free world, enabled what is happening now in America to play out strategically in other countries around the world. According to Christian author, Dr. Michael Brown, "As America goes, so goes the world."

You see, our nation has had an incredible, unprecedented impact on the world, both for good and evil, and if America has a complete moral and cultural collapse the ripple effect will be felt around the world. —Dr. Brown

The ripple that started in America is spreading rapidly to cities around the globe. It's commonplace nowadays to see images of the gay lifestyle and see openly gay characters portrayed on television and in social media, movies and commercial advertisements, often with implicit sexual overtones. More and more businesses and commercial interests are displaying the rainbow flag or its colors in a welcoming nod to the LGBTQ community. The rainbow flag has become a strategic weapon in the arsenal of the gay rights movement.

Historically, flags have either symbolized the conquest of an enemy after a war, or been used as markers to indicate territorial rights to occupied land. Similarly, the rainbow flag is a symbol of  conquest and of victory in recognition of gays having fought for and won their place in mainstream  society. The rainbow flag is both a visual and a visceral sign of the gay community's growing influence in our society. On a recent trip to London, Lisbon, Barcelona and Tel Aviv, the rainbow flag was prominently displayed nearly everywhere I went, including  atop some government and public buildings, in the windows of  homes, and on commercial and business establishments. And as if that weren't enough, pride organizers pushed to have the rainbow flag flown atop American embassies abroad during gay pride month, but were denied by the State Department. Still some embassy officials defied the order and flew the flag anyway. The U.S. embassies in Israel, Germany, Brazil, and Latvia are among those embassies that requested permission to fly the rainbow flag on their flagpoles. 

One has to wonder, where is this all leading? What does the gay community really want?  What's behind the gay agenda?

Nothing so far would suggest that the gay community is satisfied  with cultural acceptance,  protected class status under the law, or having certain equal rights on par with heterosexuals. Of course not, they want much more. Ultimately, gays want to transform America into a pro-gay society with all the rights and privileges this would entail. Could this really happen? Some like social analyst James R. Aist say the possibility is there:

The ultimate and most all-encompassing goal of the gay agenda is to force our society to fully accept their lifestyle as morally, socially, and religiously equivalent to the heterosexual lifestyle. This goal is for not only acceptance, but also affirmation and celebration of homosexual behavior as normal, natural, healthy and desirable.

So what's their plan? Gay strategists, Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen, outlined the agenda for gay activism some 25 years ago in a gay magazine article entitled, "The Overhauling of Straight America." In the article, Kirk and Madsen suggests a series of strategies aimed at "desensitizing the American public concerning gays and gay rights." Gay activists have been employing the strategies laid out by Kirk and Madsen with good results. According to the plan, gays have been manipulating the attitudes of heterosexuals from being adverse to 'gay rights' to being staunch defenders. And we see this happening now. Gay activists tell us that they simply want the same right as heterosexuals to love who they want. Unfortunately, it doesn't stop there. They also want our children. Gay writer Daniel Villarreal wrote in Queerty magazine:

They accuse us of exploiting children and in response we say, “NOOO! We’re not gonna make kids learn about homosexuality, we swear! It’s not like we’re trying to recruit your children or anything.” But let’s face it—that’s a lie. We want educators to teach future generations of children to accept queer sexuality. In fact, our very future depends on it.

I and a lot of other people want to indoctrinate, recruit, teach, and expose children to queer sexuality AND THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. —Queerty, May 2011

Having influence over the sexual development and natural selection of pre-adolescents is a perfect strategy for gays because it ensures the continuation of homosexual ideals and practice into future generations.

What can stand in the way of  the gay community achieving everything it wants?

To gay America, Christians pose the biggest threat to homosexuality achieving total acceptance by the Church. Christian opposition to the gay lifestyle is based on scripture that condemns sexual acts between persons of the same sex. Understanding this, Kirk and Madsen  devised a strategy to cause division among churches along denominational lines over their interpretation of the scripture and acceptance of homosexuality. Some denominations going so far as to allow homosexuals to hold leadership positions in the church, while others strictly forbid even church membership. To further neutralize opposition, gays have branded  Christians as homophobic, and have filed lawsuits against Christians who refuse services to homosexuals that conflict with their religious beliefs. All of this is intended to silence the objections about homosexuality from within religious circles. As a result, fewer church leaders and pastors are speaking out against homosexual behavior whether in society, or in their own congregations. As long as mainstream churches are divided in their views about homosexuality as sin, they will never be able to present a united front against the practice, which is exactly what gays want.

How should Christians respond to the gay agenda?

The answer is "the same as Christ would." Jesus Christ condemned sin of all kinds, but never the sinner. And those whom He freed from their sins were told to 'Go and sin no more.' As followers of Christ, we are not under denominational constraints. We can choose to follow Christ instead of man. Those of us who have received God's grace for our own sins, should extend that same grace to the homosexual who is no different from us in his or her need of  the Savior and of salvation. Jesus  promised He would settle everything when He returns. In the meantime, we are to continue sharing our testimony about God's love and mercy for all sinners, and lead those who would seek Him to find peace with God.

Forever Friends: A friendship for the ages

I received some good news recently. My mother's best friend has died. She was 91. You may be thinking, "Why would someone's death be good news?" Good question. But before I answer, let me tell you about "Ms Alma" as I called her, and why their friendship was so special. Ms. Alma and Florence have been friends for about 60 years I guess.

In their younger years, these two beautiful women were social butterflies attracting the attention of the most eligible men in their circle. Alma and Florence belonged to several well known social clubs of the day, and loved to throw fancy parties for their other friends. Family life for Alma and Florence included their husbands, children, church every Sunday and large family dinners, especially at holiday time.

Throughout their long friendship, Alma and Florence were always there for each other through good times and bad, sickness and health. The day came when Florence suffered a major health crisis. Diagnosed in her late fifties with multiple sclerosis, Florence lost her ability to walk. This didn't stop Alma from coming to see her friend. Alma kept Florence's spirits up with stories about the good old days, frequently punctuating the air between them with fits of laughter.

When she came Alma always bought Florence's favorites — corned beef sandwiches or crab cakes. I loved watching those two feast on good food and good conversation. Before leaving Alma always gave me what she called "a little piece of change," usually five or ten dollars. I think it was her way of letting me know how much she appreciated me for taking good care of her friend.

The time would come when Alma developed health problems of her own, limiting her ability to get around independently. No longer could she keep up her regular visits to see Florence, but that didn't stop her. She still managed to call every week to check in with her friend. When Florence was blessed to buy a used wheelchair van, one of the first trips we made in it was to see Alma.

This time, we bought the food. One beautiful summer afternoon, we surprised Alma with an impromptu outdoor picnic. Because her house was not accessible for Florence's wheelchair, Alma's daughter helped set up a folding table with tablecloth on the sidewalk out front. We sat down to a meal of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, biscuits and sweet tea. We had fun that day, laughing and joking as Alma's neighbors glanced back at us with disapproving looks as they walked by. Obviously, they had no idea of the longstanding history between these two women, and why this was perfectly normal behavior for the two of them. Later that day, as Alma and Florence said their "goodbyes," I knew somehow that these two friends had probably seen the last of their best days on earth together.

Not long afterwards, Alma's health declined to the extent that her daughters could no longer care for her at home. Alma was placed in a nursing home conveniently within five minutes driving distance from our house. Florence and I visited Alma there often to play dominoes and eat lunch with her. It was almost like old times, except that both women were now in wheelchairs.

Later that year, Florence passed away at age 83. Alma's daughter brought her to the funeral. I will never forget the heartfelt tribute Alma made to her friend:

When they told me that Florence had died, I had to come. Florence and I were the best of friends. I really will miss her.

After Florence's death, I continued to visit Alma. She was always glad to see me. Our shared grief over the lost of our mutual best friend brought us closer together. The time came when I decided to move away from the area. I struggled with how to tell Alma I would be leaving. The night before my last visit with her, I had a dream. In the dream, I was instructed to share the gospel with Alma and lead her in a prayer for salvation, just as I had done with Florence some years before. The next day, when I arrived at the nursing home, Alma seemed especially glad to see me. It was as if she had been expecting me to come that day. With few words from me, Alma prayed to receive Jesus Christ, as her Lord and Savior. The look of pure joy on her aging face was both priceless and precious.

I never saw Alma again after that day. Some ten years later, I came across one of Florence's old phone books. Leafing through its pages, I came across a phone number for one of Alma's daughters, so I called her. When she answered, I found myself blurting out the words, "Is your mother still alive?" After she confirmed who I was, she said that her mother had died a year earlier. My call had come on the one year anniversary of her death. Alma was 91 when she died. I hung up the phone thinking:

What a joyful reunion Alma and Florence must be having in heaven right now.

I was glad to hear that Alma had died because I knew these two lifelong friends would be reunited once more. In life, they shared a special friendship. And now, in death, they share an eternity in the presence of God.

And I heard a voice from heaven saying, 'Write this down: Blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the Spirit, they are blessed indeed, for they will rest from their hard work; for their good deeds follow them.' Revelation 14:13

Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. John 14:1-2

A New Year's resolution for a happier new you

Each year on December 31st at exactly 12:00 o'clock midnight fireworks light up the night sky, champagne corks pop, horns and whistles blow, hugs and kisses are exchanged and well wishes for a Happy New Year echo all over the world. Most people view this annual year end ritual as a chance to start the new year with a clean slate.

Out of habit, many people revert to making New Year resolutions at the start of every year. But I wonder how many of those new New Year's resolutions are actually holdovers from last year's failed attempts? We often regurgitate the same resolutions from year to year (i.e."This year I will lose the weight.") hoping for a different result. According to Clinical Psychologist and researcher John Norcross:

Approximately 50 percent of the population makes resolutions each New Year. Among the top resolutions are weight loss, exercise, stopping smoking, better money management and debt reduction.

Sound familiar? Well, you are not alone. Millions of people are stuck in this perennial revolving door of making New Year resolutions, only to break them a few weeks or months down the road, and revert to the same old way of doing things or to the same habits they promised to change. Let's face it, our human efforts at self-improvement are at best superficial, external, and destined to fail every time. Psychology professor Timothy Pychyl calls resolutions a form of cultural procrastination :

[In] an effort to reinvent oneself, people make resolutions as a way of motivating themselves. People [really] aren't ready to change their habits, particularly bad habits, and that accounts for the high failure rate.

And then, there are those who believe that all it takes is willpower to succeed in keeping resolutions (And how's that worked for you?). If willpower alone is all that's needed, you would have succeeded with that first diet or the first time you tried to stop smoking, drinking, using drugs or whatever else you tried to will yourself to stop or start doing. New Year resolutions by themselves have no power, says author S. Michael Houdmann:

Resolving to start or stop doing a certain activity has no value unless you have the proper motivation for stopping or starting that activity.

For a resolution to succeed, it takes more than proper motivation. Once you decide you want to make a change, you need a specific plan, organization, time management, peer or professional support to make it work. In "10 Worst New Year’s Resolutions (And How to Make Them Work)," writer Ann Pietrangelo lays out a partial recipe for success. However, even Pietrangelo's formula lacks one key ingredient, and that is— spiritual resolve.

No doubt we are creatures of habit. However, spiritual resolve acknowledges that we are also creatures created by a loving God for a purpose. As such, we are ultimately accountable to our Creator. Spiritual resolve must under-gird any desire we have for a changed life. Without spiritual resolve and God's help, our human efforts are nothing more than a house built on sand. The Bible explains it this way:

When someone becomes a Christian, he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17 TLB

It takes spiritual resolve to surrender your old life in exchange for a new life in Christ. When resolutions fail, God alone has the power to change you. You don't have to go it alone anymore trying to make life work, you have a helper to guide you. Likewise, you don't have to wait until next December 31 at 12 o'clock midnight to take advantage of the offer. You can begin this new year with your sins forgiven and a chance to start your life over. Believe me, it doesn't get any better than this. I speak from experience. Happy new year, happier new you!

A Christmas miracle: When death took a detour

Miracle - A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency.— Webster's dictionary

I believe in miracles. I have enough faith to expect them to happen in my life in when I pray. Even though we don't hear enough about divine miracles nowadays, they do still happen. I know because I was the recipient of a divine miracle on Christmas Day 2002. The following is a true account of that miracle and the events as they occurred that day.

To give you a little background, by December of that year, I had been caring for my 83 year old mother throughout her 22 year battle with primary progressive Multiple Sclerosis (MS). MS had long ago taken away her ability to walk, but by 2002, Mom had also lost her ability to speak, feed herself, chew or swallow. At the same time, she started having seizures, which gradually became more persistent, unrelenting, and life-threatening. As a result, Mom was hospitalized and given high doses of phenobarbital to quell the seizures. We left the hospital 12 days later, just three days before Christmas.

Even though mother couldn't speak, her eyes told me that she was glad to be back home. We both were. After I made her comfortable in bed and checked her feeding tube, I took a break to rest. When I returned to check on her, I noticed that Mom was staring hard at the window at the foot of her bed. She appeared not to even notice that I had entered the room. This was not like her.

I stood by her bedside calling her name, but she paid me no notice. Instead, she was focused hard at the foot of her bed like she saw something something in her room that my eyes couldn't see. The look on her face more radiant than I'd ever seen her. She was literally glowing, smiling even. I stood there waiting for her to finally notice me. I said nothing about what I had witnessed. As I readied the IV pole for her feeding, she looked directly at me, and with a trembling hand waved me off. I knew what she was asking, so I said, "Mom I can't not feed you that's between you and Jesus."

The next morning, the home care nurse came by for a routine check of Mom's vital signs. 

After the nurse left, I bathed, dressed, and transferred mother to her wheelchair. She was happy to be out of bed. The long hospital stay had been tough on her, but I told her that we were not going to let MS get the better of us; that we were in this fight together to the end.
I combed her hair before leaving her in the care of the aide while I went to the store. When I returned, the aide said Mom had called my name and then went to sleep. After letting the aide out, I went to check on Mom. When I couldn't wake her, I realized that she was not asleep; she had slipped quietly into a coma. It was Christmas Eve.

I really didn't know what else to do except put her to bed and hope that she would pull through as she had done in the past. Even though things were not looking good at that point, I made a decision not to take her back to the hospital. Going back to the hospital was not an option for us. It was Mom's wish and mine that when death came he would find her at home.  I called my sister and waited for her to come. During the long hours I was alone, I held Mom's hand and talked to her. I believed that even in her comatose state, she could still hear me.

Later that evening, my sister joined me in a bedside vigil for our mother. Together we stood watch as imminent death was poised to take our mother from us. I don't remember why, but for some reason, I needed something from the drugstore. My sister volunteered to go. It was after midnight when she left for the 24-hour pharmacy a few blocks away. It seemed like she was gone for a longer than usual time. I wondered if she was somewhere crying? I went over to the window and looked out. It was snowing. It was then that I realized it was Christmas Day.

I returned to mother's bedside and reached for her hand. I was surprised by how cold it had become. I started rubbing her arms, her legs, her feet. I was startled by how ice cold they had become like the life blood had drained from them. I searched my Mom's face to see if she was still breathing— she was, but just barely. Her breathing had become shallow and there was a faint rattling noise when she exhaled. Hurrying to the other side of the bed, I checked the 1,000 ml drainage bag hanging hung there. It should have been full to capacity since Mom was still taking in fluids through her feeding tube. But it was bone dry, except for a reddish-brown stain at the bottom. My immediate thought was that her kidneys had shut down. For the first time throughout this ordeal, I allowed myself the thought that Mom was slipping away—that she was in fact dying. Instinctively in desperation, I cried aloud—

"Mom, it's Christmas Day. Please don't die on Christmas."

At that moment, a sudden urge hit me to use the bathroom. When I returned moments later, I grasped Mom's hand again, and immediately noticed something was different. Her hand was warm. Surprised by this, I began feeling for her arms, legs, feet, forehead—her entire body was feverishly hot. I hurried to the other side of the bed to check her drainage bag. When only moments before it had been empty, it was now filled to overflowing with pale, yellow urine. At that moment, I realized what God had done—stopping death in it's tracks.

God heard my cry and ordered death to stand down. I can only imagine my Mom engaged in a negotiation with the Angel outside the gates of Heaven, holding up one finger and pleading—

"Please God, can I go back for just one more day for my daughter."

Mom didn't die on Christmas Day. She died the day after on December 26 sometime around 2:00 pm. My sister and I were together when Mom breathed her last. This miracle was nothing compared to what Jesus Christ did lover 2,0000 years ago when He died for the sins of the whole world to reconcile us to God. And because of Christ, life doesn't end at death. Whosoever believes in Christ has eternal life. I can't wait to see mother again to find out what really happened on that fateful Christmas Day.

God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die. John 3:16 CEV

Dancing for the Lord beats 'Dancing with the Stars'

I grew up in a Baptist church
Where it was hard for me, you see
To raise my hands and stomp my feet,
When I felt the Spirit move in me.

We just didn't do that sorta thing
Back where I came from.

"Child, you crazy?" Grandma'd say.
"You better sit still and hush that fuss
'fore I get my strap and give you some."

So, I'd sit there like a lady
Beside her like she said,
But way down deep on the inside
I'd be dancing out of my head.

When I grew up, I left the church
And went out on my own.
Free at last to let it all hang out
After all now, I was grown.

I took a chance
Cause I wanted to dance.
And the world beckoned, "Baby come on.
Shake that body to the beat

Let the rhythm take control.
Wave your hands in the air
Like you just don't care.
Get down right hysterical."

I danced for the world for quite awhile,
I was having so much fun.
Can't nobody stop me now (this child of the night.)
I knew nothing of the Son.

Then, one day between the smoke and the noise
I heard a small voice inside my head say,
"Come home my child, this isn't for you."
And as my eyes searched the crowd,
I knew it was true.

So, I went home that night and prayed:
"Father God, please forgive me for all the years I spent
Dancing to the beat of a different drummer
With all my heart I now repent."

"Come into my heart, Lord
Use my feet and my hands.
Teach me how to dance for you
Just like King David danced."

I wanna dance like David danced.
I wanna dance like David danced.

Got my hands in the air
Moving in the Spirit like I don't have a care.
Giving God some serious praise for the rest of my days
I wanna dance like David danced.

(c) 2003 Carolyn K. Erwin

Peace of mind: You won't find it in an app

You may be familiar with a television commercial in the U.S. that features a character whose name is Mayhem. The commercial shows ole Mayhem going about town stirring up trouble and causing disasters for innocent, unsuspecting victims. After he's wrecked havoc throughout the neighborhood, Mayhem says

If you had [blank] insurance you'd be protected from mayhem like me.

Most of us buy insurance to protect us from the unexpected—catastrophic illness, car accident, house fire, travel mishap, and even death. We live each day with the element of surprise hanging over our heads. We leave home each day, drive to work, drop the kids off at school, board buses, trains and planes to go about routine activities— all without any certainty or guarantee of how our day will end.

Like Mayhem, there's a real life character who preys upon your life and mine for no other reason than to hurt, harm and destroy us. His name is Satan. You may know him by his other names—the devil, accuser, thief and father of lies. Satan is also called "the god of this world" because he rules the earth and is responsible for all the evil and wickedness we see in the world today. We can see his influence in people who steal, lie, cheat, quarrel, murder, bully, inflict harm on others and do evil things. The bible compares Satan to a roaring lion constantly on the prowl looking for someone to attack.

And it doesn't matter to Satan whether his victims are Christians, some other religion, or no religion at all. The devil is an equal opportunity destroyer who hates God, and wants to destroy everything that God created, including you. If you've ever questioned why there is so much evil and hatred in the world, Satan is the reason. Comedian Flip Wilson was famous for saying, "The devil made me do it." Little did he know just how right he was.

Anyone who keeps on sinning belongs to the devil. He has sinned from the beginning, but the Son of God came to destroy all that he has done.—1 John 3:8 CEV

But here's the good news. God has an insurance policy against Satan's attacks that's backed by faith in his Son, Jesus Christ who said this about himself,

The thief comes only in order to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come in order that you might have life—life in all its fullness. —John 10:10 GNT

More importantly, God's insurance policy comes with the ironclad guarantee that anyone who wants to be saved from Satan's onslaught can and will be saved. Anyone can activate God's insurance policy with a simple prayer like this:

God in heaven, I confess that I am a sinner. I believe your Son Jesus died on the cross for my sins. I ask you to forgive me, and help me to become the person you made me to be.

Makes it lot easier to have peace of mind when you know God's got your back.