Congratulations!
We are so excited for you and proud of you for taking the step of faith to follow Jesus Christ! This is the most life changing decision you will ever make. It’s the one action that will allow you to experience the fullness of God’s love and gain a new perspective on life and what God has in store for you.
In the Bible Jesus said: “I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” – John 10:10 That abundant life began the moment you make the decision to follow Jesus!
You may still have questions and doubts. That’s ok! Don’t let them stop you from moving forward. Use your questions to fuel your journey and continue to discover abundant life- one step at a time. This booklet will give you an idea of what’s next. You will be guided through the next seven days and hopefully you’ll have a better understanding of God’s love and the decision you made today. We want to walk with you on this new journey so if you have any questions as you complete each day, let us know! You can talk to the leader who prayed with you, or contact your student pastor.
DAY 1: God Revealed Sometime s it ca n be hard to see God, but when you pay attention and look for Him you will see that He reveals himself in many different ways.
For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. – Romans 1:20-21
In this verse, we learn that God intended for his spectacular creation in nature to reveal himself, the Creator. This verse also reveals that as humans, we have refused to worship the Creator, or even give Him thanks causing our minds and our thoughts to become dark and confused.
If we take a moment to thank God for His creation, and to worship Him as the Creator, the darkness and confusion in our minds will fade to light. God wants to reveal Himself to us and speak to us in many ways. While we can see our Creator just by looking around, he can also speak directly to us through our thoughts and feelings. These are just a few ways God has chosen to speak to His people. He has always been there, speaking to you. Are you listening?
Now You: How has God spoken to you in the past?
What is God speaking to you right now?
Looking back, is there a time when you could see and feel God in your everyday life, even if you didn’t realize it was Him at the time?
DAY 2 : Identity of God Often, this wo rld tries to define G od for you. God has many names, and He does many things. Thankfully, God knew we could not grasp who He is, so He gave us the Bible to give us direction and instruction.
We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like a head does a body. He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross. - Colossians 1:15-19 (MSG) In this passage, God is described as the creator. God created all things, and made them for a special purpose, including you. He even mentions the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe. Nothing is so broken or lost that God doesn’t want it. He fixes everything together in harmony. God is also a loving Father, your safe-haven, and your provider. The beautiful truth of God is that He never stops loving you, and He never turns away from you.
God is also described in Romans as a loving Father. This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him! - Romans 8:15-17 (MSG)
For many people, the word father stirs up anger, bitterness, resentment or heartbreak. In this verse, we can see that God is a good father, the ultimate example. Whatever experience or lack of experience you’ve had with the father figure in your life, this verse if for you. He is your father, and He is good. He is your safe-haven and your provider. The beautiful truth of God is that He never stops loving you, and He never turns away from you.
Now You: What does the word father mean to you? How does it make you feel when the bible refers to God as your father?
Jesus Christ is the visible image of God. How would you describe Jesus?
DAY 3: The Trinity - God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit We live in a wo rld with p hysical boun da ries and li m itations. All p hysical o b ject ha ve a defin ed height and weight. Each person is completely unique. You may look, talk, sound and smell like another person, but you cannot actually BE another person. You are a distinct individual.
God is infinitely more complex than this. The Bible clearly speaks of God the Son, God the Father, and God the Holy Spirit, but emphasizes that there is only ONE God. They are different from each other, yet the same being. If we were to use math, it would not be, 1+1+1=3. It would be 1x1x1=1. God is a triune God. This is where the term trinity comes from; "Tri" meaning three, and "Unity" meaning one, Tri+Unity = Trinity.
Because we live in a physical world with these boundaries and limitations, this is hard for us to comprehend! Some have tried to give human illustrations for the Trinity. H2O can be water, ice and steam. Three different forms, but all are H2O. These are good examples, but they all fall short of fully expressing the complexity of the Trinity.
What we know for sure is that God lives without the limitations of our physical universe. In Him we have God the Father our Creator, we have Jesus our Savior, and we have the Holy Spirit who is our daily guide and our advocate. Each one unique, and altogether as one. God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature - Genesis 1:26-28 (MSG)
After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened[a] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” - Matthew 3:16-17 (NLT)
For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark. - John 12:45-46 (NLT)
But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. - Romans 8:9-11 (NLT)
“You’ve been with me all this time, Philip, and you still don’t understand? To see me is to see the Father. So how can you ask, ‘Where is the Father?’ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you aren’t mere words. I don’t just make them up on my own. The Father who resides in me crafts each word into a divine act. - John 14:9-10 (MSG) Now You: Describe how you have experienced God the Father, Jesus the Savior, and the Holy Spirit as a guide in your life.
DAY 4: Grace Our world tells us that you get what you give, what goes around comes around, and karma will find you. This is a tough way to live! It doesn’t leave much room for emotional human mistakes and can really cause a lot of stress for someone who wants to live an abundant life through Jesus.
We are imperfect and we fall into sin every day. Sometimes it’s as simple as having jealous thoughts, or anger in our heart, or even just a bitter attitude. If we believe what the world teaches us, we deserve all of this right back at us.
Thankfully, with Jesus the opposite is true. Through Jesus we can experience grace. Accepting grace means that God pardons us from what we actually deserve. We could never work hard enough, or do enough good deeds to make up for our daily human shortcomings. Through the grace we accept when we make a commitment to follow Jesus, we have the chance to start each day with a clean slate. As Christians we don’t get what we deserve (that would be bad news for all of us)! Jesus took the death we deserve when he died for us and instead we get what we DON’T deserve, God’s grace. God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. - Ephesians 2:8-9 (NLT)
And since it is through God’s kindness, then it is not by their good works. For in that case, God’s grace would not be what it really is—free and undeserved. - Romans 11: 6 (NLT)
I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. - Psalm 139:7-10 (NLT) Psalm 139 displays the beautiful grace of God. You cannot hide from God. Sometimes when we mess up, we want to hide from Him. You might be tempted to avoid church or other Jesus following friends because you don’t want to be punished or looked down on. God isn’t like that. He’s loving and forgiving. Grace means that even when you aren’t perfect, God still loves you and He takes care of you and protects you. He loves you as you are.
Now You: What are some things we do that break the heart of God?
Describe a time that you have experienced grace in your own life. How did it make you feel to receive grace?
Create a definition of Grace that fits your own personal life story.
DAY 5: A New Creation The day y o u re cei v ed this bo oklet, you took a step of faith because you believed in your heart that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and you wanted to have new and abundant life with Jesus.
Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! - 2 Corinthians 5:17 (MSG) This verse means that all of the baggage you’ve carried from hurts and failures, the guilt that has weighed you down and the darkness that may have crept into your life is dead and buried. The old life is gone and you belong to Jesus. You have been adopted into God’s family.
There may be a time in the next few weeks and months when you are confronted with the reality of your life before Jesus. This can come from lingering consequences from decisions made before your new life, or it could come as an enticing offer from a friend who doesn’t know Jesus.
We live in world where you will face many of the same temptations and have the chance to slip back into the same darkness you knew before. Following Jesus doesn’t suddenly make the world perfect. You will face many of the same people and struggles from your old life. The difference is not in the world, the difference is in you. Jesus is in you, you live under God’s grace, you are guided by the Holy Spirit. Pray for God to direct your path and give you strength against the things of this world that overcame the old you. Every day is a battle, but God has given you everything you need to win. And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. - Ephesians 6:10-12 (MSG)
Now You: Think about your past. What things have you done that you aren’t proud of?
What are the things in from your old life that might show up again? How you do you think God can help you battle those things?
Celebrate the new life you have in Jesus! Take some time to set some new goals for your new life.
DAY 6: Conviction vs. Guilt Now that y ou a re following Jesus, yo u migh t be feeling some guilt about decisions you made in your old life. Remember, the old life is gone and you are a new creation. God does not want us to experience guilt, but the Holy Spirit does give us conviction.
What is the difference between guilt and conviction? Guilt: Conviction: - Guilt is destructive and produces shame and hate. - Conviction from the Holy Spirit purifies your life. - Guilt makes you feel like you’re too bad for good - Conviction encourages you to seek freedom in things, or that you will never be good enough. God’s grace and redemption in his unconditional - Guilt lies to you about who you are. love. - Guilt tells you that there is no hope. - Conviction tells you that with Jesus you are pure. - Guilt destroys you from the inside out. - Conviction help you see hope in an abundant life - Conviction builds you up from the inside out.
So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. - Romans 8:1 (NLT)
God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God. - Hebrews 12:4-11 (MSG)
In the Bible, King David committed adultery and had his friend killed in battle. David was greatly grieved because he knew he did something that was wrong. He wrote this Psalm: Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. - Psalm 51:10-12 (NLT) David was convicted by the Spirit of God, and he ran back to God. Guilt will cause you to run away from God, but conviction will lead you to Him.
Now You: Describe a time when you felt guilty, what was your response to your guilt?
God accepts David even though he committed adultery and murder. What does that say about the character of God?
DAY 7: Abundant Life The mom e nt y ou believed that Jesu s died on the cross, you were welcomed into true life. Following the will of God for your life is not always easy but it is worth it. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of. - John 10:10 (MSG)
If someone gave you free pizza for life, would you insist on paying them every time you had a pizza delivered? Of course not! Free means you don’t have to pay for it, you don’t have to earn it. In the same way, you don’t have to earn your abundant life with Jesus. Don’t take the free gift of a new life try to pay for it or tie it down with rules and manmade expectations. So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law. - Galatians 5:1 (NLT)
On the other side of the freedom we have in Jesus, is the responsibility to reflect Jesus and show the world God’s love in us and through us. We should humbly accept this honor and strive to reflect the wholeness of life we have through our Savior. For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. – Galatians 5:13 (NLT)
It all comes down to this simple command: For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. – Galatians 5:14 (MSG)
Let God guide you. If you have made the commitment to follow Jesus, you have the Holy Spirit in you producing an abundant life which will have some trademark qualities. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! – Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)
You have a purpose! You were created to love and be loved by the Creator of the universe. As long as you are alive “the thief” will seek to destroy you, but you have everything you need through Jesus to overcome anything set to ruin you. God’s promises are true, and He lives in you.
Now You: What has the thief stolen from you?
What does a rich and satisfying life look like to you?
What’s Next? You’ve officially been living a new life in Jesus for a full week! Here are some next steps for you as you continue to grow in your faith and in your relationship with Jesus.
Start a Devotional: A devotional is any scripture based reading or study. In order to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, a devotional life is essential. You just completed a 7 day devotional! There is a 14 reading plan on the life of Jesus in the back of this booklet, and it’s a good place to start your independent study.
The YouVersion app is a good resource for topical devotionals and short reading plans.
“ When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. “Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” – Jeremiah 29:13-14 (MSG)
Connect to a Life Group: At Creekwood Students, life groups are a BIG deal! You were not meant to face life alone! Middle school life groups meet on Sunday nights. High school life groups meet on Thursday nights. To find the life group for you, talk to your student pastor, one of our amazing volunteers,, or go to www.creekwoodchurch.com/students/lifegroups and click the button below the group you would attend labeled “sign up”.
“For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.” – Matthew 18:20 (NLT)
Go Deeper ◍ 14 Day Bible Reading ◍ The Life of Jesus Day 1 ➙ The Birth of Jesus Read Luke 2:1-21 ◌ Day 2 ➙ Jesus at the Temple Read Luke 2:41-52 ◌ Day 3 ➙ Jesus is baptized Read Matthew 3:13-17 ◌ Day 4 ➙ Jesus is tempted Read Luke 4:1-13 ◌ Day 5 ➙ Jesus performs a miracle Read John 2:1-12 ◌ Day 6 ➙ The sermon on the mount Read Matthew 5-7 ◌ Day 7 ➙ Jesus talks about being a disciple Read Matthew 16:24-28 ◌ Day 8 ➙ Jesus shares his final meal with his disciples Read Matthew 26:17-35 ◌ Day 9 ➙ Jesus washed his disciples feet Read John 13:5-29 ◌ Day 10 ➙ Jesus is crucified Read Luke 23:26-56 ◌ Day 11 ➙ Jesus is resurrected Read Luke 24:1-12 ◌ Day 12 ➙ Jesus talks to people on the road to Emmaus Read Luke 24:13-25 ◌ Day 13 ➙ Jesus give the great commission Read Matthew 28: 16-20 ◌ Day 14 ➙ The ascension of Jesus Read Acts 1:1-11 ◌