How Do I Know When I am Ready?

[ashleyn90]

Hi all,

My name is Ashley and I am new here to these forums.

I have a question that I have been wondering for days now. How do I know when I am ready to receive Christ? How do I find Him, receive Him, and serve and obey Him? Whenever I read the Bible to listen to a hymn. I have a chill feeling. That someone is watching over me. I also feel warm inside. Is this a sign or something or am I coming down with a cold?

I am really confused.

 

[ViaCrucis]

Hi all,

My name is Ashley and I am new here to these forums.

I have a question that I have been wondering for days now. How do I know when I am ready to receive Christ? How do I find Him, receive Him, and serve and obey Him? Whenever I read the Bible to listen to a hymn. I have a chill feeling. That someone is watching over me. I also feel warm inside. Is this a sign or something or am I coming down with a cold?

I am really confused.

Christ is for you. As He is for everyone.

Because what's important isn't you "receiving Christ", what matters is that Christ has received you. And He has. He has received the whole world by His death and resurrection.

The Christian Gospel isn't do or say X, Y, and Z to "get saved". The Christian Gospel is that God has come down to meet man as man, in our suffering, sin, and death; and taken the whole lot of us in Himself by His dying and rising. Thus saving, rescuing, and setting about to setting the world to rights--which is finished on the last day when He comes again, the dead are raised, and there is eternal life in the World to Come.

This thing God is doing for the world in Jesus comes to us through the preaching of this Word of Gospel. And it happens to us in Baptism. "Believe and be baptized" is what the Christian Church says to all, because here by this Word and Sacrament what God is doing for the world in Jesus comes to you, me, everyone and makes us part of it. Which is why we say, "Believe the good news!" Because as St. Paul says in Romans 10, "If you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved." Not by your doing, but by the Word of God come to you, giving you faith, "For faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ".

So do not worry about being "ready" or not. What matters is that God loves you, God has come down to us in and as Jesus to save us, and rescue us. He says to us, "Believe this!" and in our believing, our trusting, He will do what He has promised to do. For the promise of God is for everyone, without exception; "Repent and be baptized, all of you in the name of the Lord Jesus for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call."

It's for you. Because it's for everyone. Believe the good news.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[Tree of Life]

Hi all,

My name is Ashley and I am new here to these forums.

I have a question that I have been wondering for days now. How do I know when I am ready to receive Christ? How do I find Him, receive Him, and serve and obey Him? Whenever I read the Bible to listen to a hymn. I have a chill feeling. That someone is watching over me. I also feel warm inside. Is this a sign or something or am I coming down with a cold?

I am really confused.

You know that you're ready to become a Christian if you find yourself believing that God has raised Christ from the dead and if you're ready to confess that he is the Lord.

If upon hearing and reading God's word you are convinced that you're sinful and in need of a savior and if you're ready to recognize the Lordship of Christ - meaning submit yourself to his authority in all of life - then you are ready to become a Christian. Indeed this is the evidence that God has been working in your heart to open your eyes to the reality of the gospel.

If you're at this point you should seek to become baptized and join a Christian community who can help you grow in your faith. Baptism is a ceremony signifying that you're ready to submit to Jesus as Lord and that you need his work on the cross so that you can be forgiven of all your sins.

This is an amazing place to be! Praise the Lord if it's true that this is where He's brought you. Think of it as a marriage proposal. Jesus is wanted to be united to you, taking all of your sin and giving you all of his righteousness. Your role is to submit to his leadership and trust him as savior. Are you ready to say, "I do"?

 

[St_Worm2]

Hi all,

My name is Ashley and I am new here to these forums.

I have a question that I have been wondering for days now. How do I know when I am ready to receive Christ? How do I find Him, receive Him, and serve and obey Him? Whenever I read the Bible to listen to a hymn. I have a chill feeling. That someone is watching over me. I also feel warm inside. Is this a sign or something or am I coming down with a cold?

I am really confused.

Hi Ashley, first off, WELCOME TO CF ..

That said, and if you don't mind, tell us a little bit about yourself. It sounds like you are going to church (and it sounds like a traditional kind of church if hymns are being sung). Have you been going to church since you were a little girl, or is this something new for you? Also, and please don't answer this one if it is too personal, is your interest in becoming a Christian fairly recent, and if so, what do you think is behind it? (actually, don't answer any of my questions if any of them make you uncomfortable in any way)

That's enough questions for now ..

As far as having "chills" and/or feeling "warm inside" and what that means, you will probably have to be the judge of that, because while that may be God reaching out to you in some manner, perhaps preparing your heart to become a Christian, it could also be (just like you mentioned) a cold coming on ..

One thing I can tell you about me is that for several months before I became a Christian, I began to notice changes in myself that I could not explain and could not figure out a reason for. Mostly these changes came in the form of my attitude toward things, not the least of which was my attitude change toward Christianity and God. I also realized I was suddenly surrounded by Christians, both personally and at work, and found what they had to say (their particular perspective on both Christianity and just life in general) very interesting (where not long before this I would have let their words bounce off me like water of a duck's back or would have been perturbed by them).

I also prayed (very weird for me at the time) because of a very tumultuous relationship I was involved in and I was hurting. I asked God to tell me what I should do and I can tell you that since becoming a Christian 28 years ago, I have rarely had a prayer answered in such an immediate and abrupt manner.

This has all been the long way of saying that, yes, I believe God can and does work in the lives of those who will soon become new creatures in Him (2 Corinthians 5:17), His children, born again from above (John 3:3).

I'm very glad you decided to join us here at CF. Please keep us updated and please don't hesitate to ask us more questions if you'd like to ..

Praying for you!

Yours and His,
David

"He who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me,
has eternal life, and does not come into judgment,
but has passed out of death into life."​

​

John 5:24​

 

[ashleyn90]

Thank you everyone for the welcome! I am blown away by the love and the welcoming that I have received from a lot of people.

Well, I am 24. I am now on my own for the first time in my life. I had my first job this year. I moved from Illinois to Pennsylvania last month. I have not seen my mother since June after I had to run from the house and call the cops. I have met the man of my dreams that I hope to marry someday. For the first time ever in my life. I am truly happy.
David, I am sorry, but you are wrong. My mother had raised my younger brother and me to be Atheist/ Agnostic. He still Atheist and my mother claims to be Agnostic. When I was younger, I even said I was Atheist. I have always had some sort of a belief in God. I most did this to please my mother and to avoid ridicule from her. She would tell me that there is no such thing as a God, that ALL Christians are hypocrites, and they push their religion down people's throat. I have realized in the past few months that this is the complete opposite in some cases.
After things with my mom, I had moved in with my friend who we claim each other as sisters. Her husband and her took me to Church and I went with them for the first time ever in my life to Sunday school and Church! The Sunday school teacher was really sweet and welcoming! She even gave me my first Bible for me to keep! I was really excited! I even have it with me now! I have been reading for it!
I did not go with them to Church anymore while I was there. Schedules became busy and when they could not go. I felt guilty. I felt that God really did not love or care about me. I felt a pain almost. So, I rejected going with them, even though I would regret not going with them.
I have always thought about God. After my mother pulled my hair (some was pulled out), had her arm around my neck, and tried to keep me in the house. I broke out and go help at a neighbors house. Then I found out that I had four scratches on my forehead and three scratches on my neck. I probably got those when my mother told my brother to help her keep me inside while I was trying to escape.
Later that night while I was at my friends, I started thinking about how I escape. I was sick the week before this all happen. I started thinking maybe my late grandpa gave me strength to get out of there. Or maybe it was from me doing yoga and Pilates those two weeks before I got sick. Or maybe it was God giving me that strength?
I still have no idea, but I have been struggling that my past has kept me from Him. My boyfriend had told me that he did not start believing in God again until he met me. Me, I am scared about telling anyone that I am close with that I do.
As far as being sick. David, I am currently aye-o-kay and I feel great! *knock on wood*. I usually feel that when I am reading the Bible or listening to hymns. Just as I am writing this. I am feeling a little bit of chills and the room I am in is a little warm.
Anyways, that is my story in a short nutshell as I can get it to be. I thank anyone who took the time to read all of that! Lol

 

[ashleyn90]

Thank you everyone for the welcome! I am blown away by the love and the welcoming that I have received from a lot of people.

Well, I am 24. I am now on my own for the first time in my life. I had my first job this year. I moved from Illinois to Pennsylvania last month. I have not seen my mother since June after I had to run from the house and call the cops. I have met the man of my dreams that I hope to marry someday. For the first time ever in my life. I am truly happy.
David, I am sorry, but you are wrong. My mother had raised my younger brother and me to be Atheist/ Agnostic. He still Atheist and my mother claims to be Agnostic. When I was younger, I even said I was Atheist. I have always had some sort of a belief in God. I most did this to please my mother and to avoid ridicule from her. She would tell me that there is no such thing as a God, that ALL Christians are hypocrites, and they push their religion down people's throat. I have realized in the past few months that this is the complete opposite in some cases.
After things with my mom, I had moved in with my friend who we claim each other as sisters. Her husband and her took me to Church and I went with them for the first time ever in my life to Sunday school and Church! The Sunday school teacher was really sweet and welcoming! She even gave me my first Bible for me to keep! I was really excited! I even have it with me now! I have been reading for it!
I did not go with them to Church anymore while I was there. Schedules became busy and when they could not go. I felt guilty. I felt that God really did not love or care about me. I felt a pain almost. So, I rejected going with them, even though I would regret not going with them.
I have always thought about God. After my mother pulled my hair (some was pulled out), had her arm around my neck, and tried to keep me in the house. I broke out and go help at a neighbors house. Then I found out that I had four scratches on my forehead and three scratches on my neck. I probably got those when my mother told my brother to help her keep me inside while I was trying to escape.
Later that night while I was at my friends, I started thinking about how I escape. I was sick the week before this all happen. I started thinking maybe my late grandpa gave me strength to get out of there. Or maybe it was from me doing yoga and Pilates those two weeks before I got sick. Or maybe it was God giving me that strength?
I still have no idea, but I have been struggling that my past has kept me from Him. My boyfriend had told me that he did not start believing in God again until he met me. Me, I am scared about telling anyone that I am close with that I do.
As far as being sick. David, I am currently aye-o-kay and I feel great! *knock on wood*. I usually feel that when I am reading the Bible or listening to hymns. Just as I am writing this. I am feeling a little bit of chills and the room I am in is a little warm.
Anyways, that is my story in a short nutshell as I can get it to be. I thank anyone who took the time to read all of that! Lol

 

[ashleyn90]

Sorry about the double posting.

 

[St_Worm2]

Wow Ashley, it sounds like you have some good people and some good things going on in your life right now (and I am especially glad to hear that you are happy), but I am also very sorry to hear that your home life with your family was in such turmoil that you had to run away from it.

As far as God is concerned, you never need to worry or feel bad about Him, like you've hurt His feelings by doing, or by not doing something you think you should have. He assigns great value to you (and me), not because of what we do (or don't do), but because of who we are to Him.

So don't choose not to go to church because you feel guilty or because you feel like He doesn't love or care for you anymore, because that's simply not true. After all, He sent His Son to do for us that which we are not capable of doing for ourselves (which included dying for us). How much more confirmation of His true intentions do you need than that ..

I'd better go, but I hope to get to talk to you more tomorrow if you have the time ..

Yours and His,
David

 

[theophilus40]

Jesus said he came to call sinners to repentance. Have you ever sinned? If so then you are one of those he came for and you are ready to receive him.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.
(1 Corinthians 15:3-4 ESV)
​

The penalty for sin is death. Jesus paid this penalty for you. His resurrection shows that God has accepted his payment. If you repent of your sin and put your faith in Jesus then God will accept his death as paying for your sins and you will be forgiven.

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
(Romans 10:9 ESV)
​

 

[bling]

Thank you everyone for the welcome! I am blown away by the love and the welcoming that I have received from a lot of people.

Well, I am 24. I am now on my own for the first time in my life. I had my first job this year. I moved from Illinois to Pennsylvania last month. I have not seen my mother since June after I had to run from the house and call the cops. I have met the man of my dreams that I hope to marry someday. For the first time ever in my life. I am truly happy.
David, I am sorry, but you are wrong. My mother had raised my younger brother and me to be Atheist/ Agnostic. He still Atheist and my mother claims to be Agnostic. When I was younger, I even said I was Atheist. I have always had some sort of a belief in God. I most did this to please my mother and to avoid ridicule from her. She would tell me that there is no such thing as a God, that ALL Christians are hypocrites, and they push their religion down people's throat. I have realized in the past few months that this is the complete opposite in some cases.
After things with my mom, I had moved in with my friend who we claim each other as sisters. Her husband and her took me to Church and I went with them for the first time ever in my life to Sunday school and Church! The Sunday school teacher was really sweet and welcoming! She even gave me my first Bible for me to keep! I was really excited! I even have it with me now! I have been reading for it!
I did not go with them to Church anymore while I was there. Schedules became busy and when they could not go. I felt guilty. I felt that God really did not love or care about me. I felt a pain almost. So, I rejected going with them, even though I would regret not going with them.
I have always thought about God. After my mother pulled my hair (some was pulled out), had her arm around my neck, and tried to keep me in the house. I broke out and go help at a neighbors house. Then I found out that I had four scratches on my forehead and three scratches on my neck. I probably got those when my mother told my brother to help her keep me inside while I was trying to escape.
Later that night while I was at my friends, I started thinking about how I escape. I was sick the week before this all happen. I started thinking maybe my late grandpa gave me strength to get out of there. Or maybe it was from me doing yoga and Pilates those two weeks before I got sick. Or maybe it was God giving me that strength?
I still have no idea, but I have been struggling that my past has kept me from Him. My boyfriend had told me that he did not start believing in God again until he met me. Me, I am scared about telling anyone that I am close with that I do.
As far as being sick. David, I am currently aye-o-kay and I feel great! *knock on wood*. I usually feel that when I am reading the Bible or listening to hymns. Just as I am writing this. I am feeling a little bit of chills and the room I am in is a little warm.
Anyways, that is my story in a short nutshell as I can get it to be. I thank anyone who took the time to read all of that! Lol

You are doing great for the circumstance you are in. You still seem in need of some truly unconditional Love, which you might get from your girlfriend, but do not expect this from your boyfriend since sex can mess that up.

It sounds like you are willing to accept pure charity, which is what God is offering and every true Christians has humbly accepted. There are things you have done which has hurt others in the past (this is sin) and these seem to burden you. Those burdens can only be relieved by God (you might try running away, drugs, sex, doing good stuff, or trying to forget). Nothing works but God’s pure charitable forgiveness (Love). You will automatically obtain this unbelievable Love yourself by accepting God’s unconditional unselfish Love (Christ has taught us: “…he that is forgiven much will Love much…”).

By moving away from self and toward helping the needy will you be able to put the past behind you.

 

[South Bound]

Hi all,

My name is Ashley and I am new here to these forums.

I have a question that I have been wondering for days now. How do I know when I am ready to receive Christ? How do I find Him, receive Him, and serve and obey Him? Whenever I read the Bible to listen to a hymn. I have a chill feeling. That someone is watching over me. I also feel warm inside. Is this a sign or something or am I coming down with a cold?

I am really confused.

It's not a matter of being "ready". It's a matter of being obedient.

Christ has commanded you to repent. Now. He didn't say "Oh, and if you're not too busy later on, golly, I'd sure appreciate it if you'd think about repenting when you feel like you're ready".

He said "Repent." Now.

The question is whether or not you're going to be obedient to that command or continue to rebel against it.

 

[ashleyn90]

Interesting south,

How does one obey God?

 

[oi_antz]

Hi Ashley, I see you are having a good conversation with the others, and when I read your question an answer came to mind. I see that no-one has really said it, though some have implied it a bit. Here is what I thought about your question:

I don't think it is for us to know when we are ready. I think it is for God to know and act on. I don't say this like He doesn't act on any other day, but when it comes to having faith, it is the acceptance of an offer, and usually some sort of commitment too, that we just aren't ready to do every day of our lives. So until the day that we are ready, He watches and waits, preparing us for the moment that He intends to face us with.

This comment from Jesus came to mind when I thought of your question:

John 3:5-8
Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.

.. and what I take from this wrt your question, is that nobody can give it or take it, except for God, and nobody other than Him can control it.

But, that doesn't mean we are totally powerless or without responsibility in the matter, because with any deal there is an offer and acceptance. It is the responsibility of acceptance that relies on us. This brings to mind another thing that Jesus said that is relevant:

Matthew 13:3-8
“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

I don't exactly understand why it was perceived to be so cryptic at the time, for me it seems very plain and simple. This parable says that the Word of God has gone into the world (which is the testimony of Jesus and the counsel of The Holy Spirit), and that is seed which falls upon the hearts of mankind. Mankind is the field, and God is the farmer. We each receive some seeds, and if the seed falls on fertile 'soil', then it will grow and produce much more seed. If however the seed falls on rock or is devoured by predators, it will not produce any offspring.

So you only have within your power the ability to prepare yourself for the Word of God (that is, the testimony of Jesus and the counsel of The Holy Spirit) to grow within you and give birth to a new life in Christ. The rest is up to God. St Paul understood this and described it like this:

1 Corinthians 3:5-7
What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

 

[TheyCallMeDavid]

Hi all,

My name is Ashley and I am new here to these forums.

I have a question that I have been wondering for days now. How do I know when I am ready to receive Christ? How do I find Him, receive Him, and serve and obey Him? Whenever I read the Bible to listen to a hymn. I have a chill feeling. That someone is watching over me. I also feel warm inside. Is this a sign or something or am I coming down with a cold?

I am really confused.

Every person on earth NEEDS to surrender to Christ and his Leadership in Ones life because where a person spends eternity depends on it ; it is ALWAYS a good time to do this and its very very unwise and dangerous to wait, for, life is so uncertain it could be over for Someone in the next few moments.

Being forgiven of all your many sins and going to heaven is a totally free love gift from God in his son, Jesus . If you simply remember 'A.B.C.' is will help you understand what you need to do :

A is for admit you have rejected God and his loving moral mandates on how you should live . Admit there is a dark side to your personality and that it is totally against Gods pure and holy nature . Admit that there isn't a thing you could do to earn Gods favor and forgiveness for your sins .

B is for believe that Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was done on your behalf and that it is totally sufficient to take care of all the sins in your entire life , and that it is a completed event once in history. Take what Jesus did and trust that he was capable of saving you of your many sins.

C is for confess that Jesus is the Son of God who saved you personally, chose to receive him into your heart and life, make him your King and serve him faithfully. Ask God to give you his power to live the Christian Life first by turning from all known lifestyle sin, then to be set apart for serving God and Others as opportunities arise. The evidence that you were truly saved is the change that occurs within you by living a different life now instead of according to our culture.

The specific Bible verses you need to accomplish this are : Romans 10:8-14 and Ephesians 2:8-10 and 1 John 5:13 .

Your next important step would be to find a great local Evangelical Church nearby where you can attend and grow in your new Faith-walk with others , make new friends, worship God with others, and serve in some capacity at this church. You will want to read your Bible daily starting with the book of John which will allow you to see the awesomeness of Jesus and how God wants you to live. Finally, you need to pray often and be always aware that Satan is going to try to draw you away from God anyway he can, so, watch for bad temptations to come along or for you to feel like you don't really want to go to church . Whenever you do sin, do what 1 John 1:9 says to do so you stay close to God in relationship and fellowship. Allow your new Church to take you in and disciple you so you can be a strong ambassador of God.

Praise God often that you have a wonderful eternity to look forward to regardless of all the pain and sorrow this life will bring.

Hope to meet you on the other side one day. Dave.

 

[ashleyn90]

Thank you Antz and David!

David, I have been reading from the beginning starting with the Genesis.

 

[ViaCrucis]

Thank you Antz and David!

David, I have been reading from the beginning starting with the Genesis.

If you're trying to read from the start and go through from Genesis to Revelation, that's probably going to end up boring you to tears. Genesis itself may not be so bad, Exodus tolerable. But about the time you reach Leviticus your eyes are going to glaze over.

Not saying you shouldn't, just that there are some real snooze fests when you start reading a book about ancient Israelite priestly codes of conduct, or reading long lists of geneological material, "So-and-so begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so...."

It's important, don't get me wrong.

When I recommend someone to reading the Bible, especially if it's their first time seriously attempting it, I usually suggest starting with one of the Gospels, I recommend Luke. A lot of people recommend John, but one will quickly notice that John is a really theologically dense text, and it's theologically dense right from the opening verse. With Luke I also recommend the Acts, the Acts is in a sense the sequel to Luke. Acts begins where Luke leaves off, as both are from the same author and addressed to the same person. After reading Luke and Acts, one of the Pauline epistles, Romans is awesome.

After Romans and you want to test the waters with some Old Testament, you can't go wrong with the Psalms. Each psalm is a lyrical poem (most were meant to be set to music, so basically the Psalms were Israel's hymn book) and they are vibrantly expressive of the experiences of being one of God's people. Many are songs of praise, many are songs of desperate prayer seeking refuge from one's enemies, they are songs of repentance, they are songs of hope, songs of lamentation. Some are even songs expressing a desire for violent revenge. They cover the human emotional map.

After that you could pretty much go anywhere. I'd recommend more of Paul's epistles, I'm partial to Ephesians and Galatians.

But I'd really suggest, if you're coming to the Bible seriously for the first time, go to one of the Gospels first. And again I'm really partial to Luke, and Luke also allows you to very smoothly transition into the Acts. Acts introduces you to Paul, and that is going to help get to know the guy who wrote most of the New Testament.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[dcalling]

Hi Ashley, welcome to CF! Sorry to hear your troubles, but what I can tell you is with God nothing is impossible (but can still be hard).

I was a atheist before and for many years I either rejected God or think I am not ready. Thinking back, believing in God will made my life much easier. I would suggest finding a good fellowship first, that helped me greatly during my initial struggle.

 

[dcalling]

If you're trying to read from the start and go through from Genesis to Revelation, that's probably going to end up boring you to tears. Genesis itself may not be so bad, Exodus tolerable. But about the time you reach Leviticus your eyes are going to glaze over.

Not saying you shouldn't, just that there are some real snooze fests when you start reading a book about ancient Israelite priestly codes of conduct, or reading long lists of geneological material, "So-and-so begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so...."

It's important, don't get me wrong.

When I recommend someone to reading the Bible, especially if it's their first time seriously attempting it, I usually suggest starting with one of the Gospels, I recommend Luke. A lot of people recommend John, but one will quickly notice that John is a really theologically dense text, and it's theologically dense right from the opening verse. With Luke I also recommend the Acts, the Acts is in a sense the sequel to Luke. Acts begins where Luke leaves off, as both are from the same author and addressed to the same person. After reading Luke and Acts, one of the Pauline epistles, Romans is awesome.

After Romans and you want to test the waters with some Old Testament, you can't go wrong with the Psalms. Each psalm is a lyrical poem (most were meant to be set to music, so basically the Psalms were Israel's hymn book) and they are vibrantly expressive of the experiences of being one of God's people. Many are songs of praise, many are songs of desperate prayer seeking refuge from one's enemies, they are songs of repentance, they are songs of hope, songs of lamentation. Some are even songs expressing a desire for violent revenge. They cover the human emotional map.

After that you could pretty much go anywhere. I'd recommend more of Paul's epistles, I'm partial to Ephesians and Galatians.

But I'd really suggest, if you're coming to the Bible seriously for the first time, go to one of the Gospels first. And again I'm really partial to Luke, and Luke also allows you to very smoothly transition into the Acts. Acts introduces you to Paul, and that is going to help get to know the guy who wrote most of the New Testament.

-CryptoLutheran

That is a very good suggestion. My initial preference were Judges, kings etc, they contain stories and I just love reading those. However most of my church suggests reading the Gospels first, and from your thread you are already happy reading Bible, so Gospel is a good start.

 

[ashleyn90]

So, read Luke first? Gotcha! Thanks Via!


So after I am down with Luke, then read John, Acts, Paul, Psalms, and then Romans?

Thanks to you too dcalling! Glad to see I am not the only one here!

 

[TheyCallMeDavid]

So, read Luke first? Gotcha! Thanks Via!


So after I am down with Luke, then read John, Acts, Paul, Psalms, and then Romans?

Thanks to you too dcalling! Glad to see I am not the only one here!

I also am in favor of this order of reading.