First, these few verses came easily after I prayed for words to share: It’s first I thought I’d be an artist I loved to sketch since a child.

But then a strange twist did turn My pen to writing—how wild!

God is my director and guide.

His creation soothes my heart.

His Word I search every morning To receive and then to depart In this column for inspiration With hopes to uplift and lead Readers to learn God’s power To internalize and to heed.

Demonstrate it with obedience So, faith will increase every day.

To be the light of this world Prayerfully, our focus will stay.

We have choices every day, but what does God offer? Here are a few steps that may just change your life: 1. Keep yourself from having idols. An idol is something or someone who you spend a lot of time with or what you think about a lot. In the 5th chapter of Galatians in the New Testament, is a list of things we should avoid in order to have a peace and happiness—idolatry, along with other things that bring troubles, such as jealousy, immorality, witchcraft, and drunkenness, etc.

2. Fully trust God. He created you, cares for you, and because He gave you a free will to make wise choices in this world, He desires that you choose Him to follow (Proverbs 3:5-6).

3. Choose your priorities— our emails, games, and other likes will always be there, but spending more time with them instead of with God’s Word and your family will always keep your life unbalanced and unsatisfied. Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Focus on knowing who is your God (or what).

4. Who or what is the Center of your Joy? Think about it. God’s joy is eternal and can offer you an exciting journey. See #3.

5. Be confident because God provides for us our most important needs (Philippians 4:19).

6. Prove yourself doers of God’s Word, not just listeners. The New Testament is full of suggestions on how to walk the walk.

7. Understand the true reason we are here. In Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, in the Old Testament, it says to fear God and keep His Commandments; this applies to everyone. Fear doesn’t mean to be afraid of God, but to respect, honor, and love Him with all your heart. He will be your judge, and He has the last say-so on where you go after you leave this earth. The Bible explains what is right and what is wrong—no matter what the world is telling you today. Heaven and Hell are real places. The short books of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians explain clearly what is right and what is wrong.

8. Know that God has unmatched plans for all of us who believe in Him and His Son, Jesus.

This world is getting more confusing every day as many in this world is working against our country’s values and Godly morals our Christian forefathers established while setting up our government. Don’t be afraid, though. These times were prophesied to happen in the Bible. If you don’t understand that, ask your pastor to preach it so you will now what the Bible says as to how to handle it. “So it was in the days of Noah…” Matthew 24:37. If you don’t have a Bible, Google that phrase about what kind of sinful stuff was taking place—and what God did about it. Then compare it to these days. Know how to prepare for the coming days. (See #7 above to be reminded of what God considers is sinful.)

When Jesus went back to heaven, He said He would send the Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us. We are to pray for that guide as we dig into our Bibles for understanding. God Bless you. Uplift people when you can. There’s always somebody else worse off than you.

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