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This past weekend, Albert Tate and Megan Marshman gave a message wrapping up our Game On series; each took turns hitting on key points of the past four weeks, including finances, our personal health, reconciliation, and forgiveness. 

This series has been about getting back in the game of our lives. 2020 was difficult for a variety of reasons, and many of us suffered in one way or another. However, through Christ, we can overcome our missteps and be used for even greater things than we ever imagined. 

Megan ended her teaching this past weekend with an incredible story: She shared about Clayton, a teen who was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Even though he was only given months to live, he lived bolder than ever. He proclaimed, “Jesus is King,” and he invited others to do the same. Megan concluded the story of Clayton with this statement: “If you call yourself a Christian, and you’re still breathing, you have work to do.”

Becoming a Christian isn’t a one-and-done event. We don’t surrender our lives to Christ and then go on as we were. Becoming a Christian is just the beginning of something, and as Christians, we’re never done–we’re never done learning, growing, or serving.

That statement can seem overwhelming: As Christians, we’re never done. Just reading it can feel exhausting. It’s easy to get caught up, signing up to serve at every event, taking every class offered, promising to be a hundred percent all the time, leaving no room for failure. But decisions like that can quickly lead to burnout.

When building a fire, you don’t throw on all your wood at once; you need to gradually feed the flame. As Christians, we tend to go from cold to hot and back again. Instead, let’s think practically: “Okay, I’m a Christian, and I understand my job on earth isn’t done yet, so what is one step I can take now? 

Let this be a challenge: Start with one step, and then follow that step with another step and another.

As we’ve talked about over the past couple of weeks, maybe that step is a healthier choice for a snack during the day; maybe that step is refraining from labeling a person; maybe that step is forgiving yourself for a mistake along the way; or maybe that step is applying yourself more at work. Whatever your step is, it’s a foothold on which to build. 

It may seem silly at first, but these small steps can make way for breaking years of habits. By taking them, your relationship with Christ will grow. You can become healthier, more forgiving, more peaceful, and more financially aware.

Now, will you accept God’s invitation to take a step–a single step–forward in faith?