We give God PRAISE because on 7/16/2023, I got baptized. My baptism was a public declaration of my faith in Jesus Christ. From here on out, I will boldly and unapologetically be sharing the Goodness of Jesus to the public, my platform, family, friends, and strangers.Â
Now that I am saved, I want to share 10 things that I will implement in my life as I live a Christ-filled life.
1. Swapping out Secular music and only Listening to Worship Music, Jazz, and Christian Podcasts
Months before my baptism, God had convicted me too fast from the music I was listening to for a few days because the music didnât glorify Him. After I fasted, I was then convicted to give up the music I was listening to completely. God wanted me to get rid of secular music for a reason. When I would listen to secular music, I wouldnât have a desire to spend time with God. I wouldnât want to pray, I wouldnât want to tell God what I was grateful for, I wouldnât want to read my Bible. God knew secular music was keeping me distant from Him so He wanted me to remove it out of my life so I can make my way back to Him and seek Him everyday. What is something that is keeping you distant from God? Fast for 7 days from it and be intentionally on prayer and spending time with God.
2. Speaking publicly, boldly, and confidently about the Goodness of Jesus.
Now that I am a Christian, I have made it my mission to share the Gospel (the goodness of Jesus) on my platform, to my family, to my friends, to strangers, and to the world. I will not be ashamed, embarrassed, or scared to offend anyone by speaking about Jesus. I take great pride in being Godâs child.
The reason why I am devoted to spreading The Gospel to everyone is for two reasons. The first one is I know now the only way you can enter The Kingdom of Heaven is to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. So I want to share The Gospel to as many people as I can in hopes they recognize Jesus is Lord, get saved, and spend eternity with Jesus rather than eternity in Hell with Satan.
The second reason why I am sharing The Gospel is because building a relationship with Jesus and getting to know Him is life changing! It is the best thing you can ever do for yourself! Once you realize who Jesus is and what He has done for us, your whole perspective on life changes where you start to live out Godâs will and overall live a grateful, peaceful, and joyful life. Have you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior?
3. Putting God at the center of my life and inviting Him in ALL areas of my life.
Again before I was saved, I didnât believe I had to invite God in all areas of my life. I believed I only needed to invite Him in my life spiritually which is a given and in my career because of the purpose He has for me. I never thought God had any business in my health/fitness life, my finances, my relationships, and my personal life. Boy was I wrong!
With growing closer to God, I now realized that in order to be successful in all areas of my life, I need to invite God in those areas. I have to honor God in everything I do including my job, my health/fitness, my relationships, my finances, my personal life, everything!Â
God is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. He created all of us and everything on this planet. He put all of us on this Earth for a reason so in order to navigate life how He intended on us to live, we have to pursue Him everyday therefore we can hear His voice guide us every step of the way. Is God at the center of your life? Are you inviting Him in ALL areas of your life?
4. Showing my gratitude for my temple (my body) + physical health by exercising everyday and eating nourishing foods.
Like mentioned in #3, Iâve been inviting God in all areas of my life, including health/fitness. So instead of just telling God how thankful I was He blessed me with two legs and great physical health to be able to walk and run. I decided to show God how thankful I am by doing cardio on the treadmill everyday. In addition, I try my best to eat a whole foods/plant-based diet. Now, with the food I am not at 100%. There are times where I go a few days where I am eating candy and soda everyday, but I always make sure to get back on track and ask myself, âAre the foods I am putting in my body nourishing and are they honoring God?â How can you show God you’re grateful for things in your life?
5. Treating people the same way God treats them
Iâve grown to have more compassion and to be more loving towards Godâs children. I realized that God has given me so much grace, unconditional love, forgiveness, support, guidance, and so much more at times when I donât deserve it. So if God can treat me and all His children in this way, I can pass on that same grace to my brothers and sisters in Christ. I will treat people the same way God treats them despite how they treat me AND not expecting anything in return. Are you giving your brothers and sisters in Christ the same grace God gives you?
6. Finding Joy in the Lord and in the Lord only
I no longer base my joy based on my circumstances. My joy doesnât come from how much money is in my account, how many friends I have, how many clothing pieces I own, or my career achievements. Yes, the things I listed are great to have and I do strive for these things, but my joy doesnât come from these things. My joy comes from the Lord and the Lord only. So whether I have $5 or $500 in my account, I am rejoicing in the Lord. Whether I am unemployed or have a job, I am rejoicing in the Lord. Whether I have only 2 pairs of pants or a closet full of clothes, I am rejoicing in the Lord. You catch my drift? âRejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!â (Philippians 4:4 NASB).
7. Staying rooted in a Christian based community
As a Christian, itâs important to stay in community with other Christians who are also living a Christ-filled life. Itâs important because we all will have our seasons where our faith runs low and where we start to distance ourselves from God. Thatâs when our community comes in to pray for us, help us stay on track with the Christ-filled life, keeps us accountable with reading our Bibles and going to church, and overall helping us learn more about God and ways on how to grow closer to Him.
Some great ways to find Christian community is to join a church and within the church join a community group. I would also suggest attending church events such as prayer night and Bible studies. If you donât have a community around you, comment down below. We can create a Christian based community here at Faith Meets Hustle where we can have Bible Studies via zoom.
8. Being okay with being separated from the world
As Christians, we do not engage in the same activities as the world. We are created to honor and represent God therefore we cannot participate in the worldly activities because the worldly activities do not glorify God.
| Worldly Activities | Godly Activities |
| Gossiping | Sharing the Gospel |
| Listen to Secular Music | Listening to Worship Music |
| Immodest Dressing | Modest Dressing |
| Worshiping false Gods and worshiping the Devil. | Worshiping the one and only Lord, Jesus Christ. |
9. Reminding myself that I am sinner and I need my Savior, Jesus Christ.
I always thought I was âperfectâ because I didnât drink, smoke and was a nice and happy person. It wasnât until I learned that Jesus died on the cross for my sins. He died therefore I didnât have to bear the consequence of sin which was ultimately death. I realized that I sin everyday whether I realize it or not and I will sin until death. I will make it a habit to acknowledge my sins, repent of my sins, ask for forgiveness, and ask God to help me with the sin I am struggling with the most. What always pops up in my head are the Kendrick lyrics, âI am a sinner who’s probably going to sin again, Lord forgive me.â
10. Intentionally praying for people throughout the day
Prayer is a powerful tool therefore I am making it my duty to pray for Godâs children everyday all throughout the day. I am being more intentional about not only praying for my family and friends, but for strangers, the youth, churches, pastors, persecuted countries, non-believers and on societal issues. If you are in need of prayer, please reply back to this email with your name and specify how I can pray for you. I will add you to my prayer list and will be praying for you this week.
If you havenât already, take a moment to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. In order to do so, you have to:
- Admit you are a sinner
- Ask God for forgiveness for your sins
- Believe that Christ died on the cross for your sins
- Receive Christ in your heart and in your life
Jesus is Lord and He loves you,
Anna N. Figueroa
Creator of Faith Meets Hustle