Free Printable Salvation Tract

Here are two links to access a free printable salvation tract via Google Drive. One is in color and the other black and white. 

The tract is two pages. Print double-sided and then fold into thirds. 

Click Here for Black and White                       Click Here for Color 

When Your World Falls Apart, Rush to God

This is how I picture David's return with his men to Ziklag. The smell of fire was the first indication something was off, the city's unnatural quiet was the next. Dread settled in the heart of each man as they drew closer. Slivers of hope were crushed when it was confirmed the enemy had carried away their families. This was not just any enemy either. No, their families had been carried away by the Amalekites who King Saul had unsuccessfully attempted genocide against eighteen years earlier (I samuel 15) and David and his men had just slain (I Samuel 27:8-9). What kind of bitter hatred did the Amalekites harbor in their hearts toward the Israelites? In the face of staggering loss, the battle-hardened warriors broke down. Consumed by a tidal wave of grief, they wept until they had no more power to weep. I imagine loud guttural cries and deep heaving sobs, the wail of anguish, the sound of devastation. Eventually grief gave way to a call for action and David's men spoke of stoning him.

The enemy is precise with his timing. We have an excellent example in Job. Servant after servant delivered horrific news to Job the last conveying the death of his children. Now before David and his army ever arrived at Ziklag they were rejected by the Philistine princes and sent away from doing battle alongside them. After a three-day march home, David found Ziklag burned with fire and his precious wives kidnapped. He is consumed with grief and then betrayal as his men turn against him. Who will rescue his family if he is killed? Blow after blow comes his way. Had the future king ever been under more pressure? Yet, in the midst of this extreme turmoil, he encourages himself in the Lord. When his whole world comes crashing down, in the midst of overwhelming grief and unrest, David looks to God.

Encouraging ourselves in the Lord reminds us how powerful, glorious and awesome He is. Remembring the great things He has done on our behalf and others remind us of His faithfulness. God is good. He is our loving Father who protects, provides, and pulls us in close. We can absolutely trust He has very good things planned for us in the midst of very bad circumstances. The temporal may go to pieces but He has long-term goals in mind, spiritual blessings, that are worth so much more than anything this world has to offer. In the midst of devastation, we can lose sight of what is truly important but He never does, always wanting the very best for us.

After David encourages himself in the Lord he enquires of the Lord. This amazes me because David was an emotional man. Many of the Psalms he penned bear witness to his strong reactions. How easy it could have been to ride a tide of emotion and vengeance in pursuit of the enemy but he didn't. He could have crumbled under the immense pressure but that isn't what happened. David enquired of the Lord and the Lord answered yes, pursue the troop and everything will be restored to you.

I believe that because David sought God, he and his men were blessed with a supernatural strength. David and his army had just traveled three days and wept until they had no more power to weep. One-third of the army had to stay behind because they were too exhausted to continue, yet David and his men smote the Amalekites from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day. Isaiah 40:29-31 tells us that He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. When we place our trust in the Lord He will make provision for us. David recovered everything the Amalekites carried away and more. The enemy loves to make messes, but I have good news; our God has plans to use those messes to draw us closer. King David's son, King Solomon, wrote in Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Intimacy is increased when we trust God completely and He, in turn, directs us. His brush strokes become apparent across the canvas of our lives. Looking back we spot His fingerprints in the paint and know this story isn't ours alone, it's God's too.

When things shatter into pieces, this is when we need God the very most. His inviting arms are open. We can turn to our spouses or friends, eat our feelings or throw ourselves into the business of life but none of those things will bring restoration. They can bring relief but God provides healing. Do not confuse these two. The thing about relief is, it never lasts, you will have to find it over and over again. There is only One who can heal us. Psalm 147:3 says He healeath the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. 

God was so many things to David, his rock, fortress, high tower, strength and deliverer. He knew his help came from the Lord and that God was more than able to care for him. We need to find that place, where God is our everything, and our first reaction is to put our trust in Him. He will lead, guide, teach, provide, direct, protect and so much more. When our world falls apart we can trust, that though it is in pieces, it is also in God's very capable hands. I leave you with David's words. Psalm 71:3 In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; let me never be put to confusion. Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me. Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.

Are They the One for Me?

Have you ever met someone and wondered if they were the one God had for you? When I was almost eighteen, a youth pastor (who we will call Drew) was hired to bus tables at one of the restaurants I worked at. At that time I didn’t wonder if he was the one because I wasn’t a Christian and didn’t want to date one. However, I did want to know more about Christianity so I asked Drew about the validity of the Bible and all sorts of questions about God. He had good answers and he lived out his faith which got my attention. For example, he wouldn’t wait tables because he refused to serve alcohol. Even though his denomination did not teach against social drinking, he didn’t want to cause anyone to stumble. Also, he always wore his seatbelt and drove the speed limit because he wanted to obey the laws of the land. He never condemned my actions, like cursing and smoking, but when I asked why he didn’t, he kindly told me that the Bible taught against both.

One night Drew invited me to a revival where I was saved. I quit cursing, smoking and asked for Sundays off at one of my restaurant jobs. I was fired, but I didn’t mind because going to church was important to me. I wish the story could end here, at a point in which Drew and I were both Christians. Unfortunately, after I got saved I decided that I liked him and maybe he was the one God had for me. We spent a lot of time alone together and eventually our friendship became more, which led to us kissing in his truck. We agreed it wouldn’t happen again but it did. The guilt and conviction we felt should have led us to repentance but instead it began to separate us from the Lord as we made our relationship more important than our respective relationships with God. At this point, I had only been a Christian for about four months and ended up backsliding. Drew didn’t handle it well. After we broke up he began letting down his standards and tried his hand at waiting tables. He spent more time snowboarding and playing video games, whereas before his spare time was spent praying and playing his guitar as he worshiped God. One of the last things I heard about Drew was that he was drinking at parties. We are no longer friends and I am not sure where he stands spiritually, though I hope he has come back to the Lord as I eventually did. All of this could have been avoided if we had avoided being alone together and had put God first.

If the person you are interested in is causing you to draw away from God, there is a good chance they are not the one for you. If you feel guilt and shame after you spend time with them, you need to stop and reevaluate. If you get angry and defensive when people approach you with warnings or reprimands, you are in a very dangerous place. Romantic relationships can be addictive as you find yourself wanting to spend all of your time either with them or thinking about them. However, you cannot let your relationship become a god. You have to keep God first or you will have regrets. If you look at the woman in Proverbs 5:3-5 as a representation of lust you will see that, although she looks enticing, she brings death and destruction; much like a fishing lure crafted to entice a fish will lead to that fish being gutted, roasted and then devoured. The enemy has come to steal kill and destroy. Do not let him use you as a fishing lure to hurt the one you claim to love. If you are not willing to heed this advice for yourself do it for the one you plan to marry. Commit to keeping them safe and pure because they may not recover if you fail.

Lust is not like burning your hand on a hot stove where there is an immediate and painful response to your action. No, rather lust is like poison ivy that you run around in and then find the next day that there are repercussions. Eve and Adam gave into the lust of their eyes and they paid the price of spiritual death. Don’t see how close you can get to the tree because much like magnets, the closer you get, the closer you will want to be. God has created people in such a way that as they draw together emotionally they desire to draw together physically. This is a blessing inside of marriage but it can be a curse outside of it if you do not take precautions. 

I want to take a moment here to state that failing with someone before marriage doesn’t mean you have to marry them. Do not let a bad mistake lead you to a lifelong mistake. Who you marry is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. It will determine the course of your life and the lives of any children you have. Get back to the place where God is sovereign in your life so you can find His will for such a momentous decision. I understand that you may feel overcome with the regret and shame that comes with sin. But the longer you keep your sin hidden the more damage it will do. Nothing compares to being surrendered to God. Bring your works to the light, confess your sin (James 5:16 and I John 1:9) and let God help you deal with the fallout. He will have mercy and will bring healing. Over and over again in the Bible we can see that it is people’s response to hide from God when they have sinned and the devil will certainly encourage you to do so. However, God is calling you back because He loves you and desires your redemption. Jesus gives a picture of our Heavenly Father‘s heart in the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:10-32). He is scanning the hills for your return and you will be received with love and restoration.

David was anointed to be King long before he became King. However, if he had acted before God’s time it would have caused trouble. You may believe that God has chosen you to be _______’s future spouse. But if you act like their spouse before you take a covenant with them, it will lead to trouble. Ask yourself if you mind someone else touching your future spouse in the way you feel comfortable touching them. If the answer is no, you need to stop because you aren’t their spouse yet even if you intend to be. Drew and I were going to get married. We had plans and we were certain, yet it never came to pass. I don’t know of one married couple in the church who wishes they had pushed their boundaries more. No, they wish they had been more chaste and pure because they understand something that you will once you are married. No one should have ever touched your spouse like the covenant relationship allows, which includes you, before you take that covenant. The idea that it is acceptable to push physical boundaries with the one you are planning to marry is a trick of the devil. Your marriage is not certain until the covenant has been taken. James 4:14-15 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life: It is even a vapour that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.

The enemy would have us believe that we will be the one to hold fire close and not get burned, that though there are others that have come before us and fallen, we can go into the exact same situation and stand. But I am telling you that it doesn’t matter how spiritual you are, if you keep placing yourself in temptation’s den you will fall. Listen to those who are over you in the Lord, which offer advice and desire for you to take precautions. It isn’t that they doubt you or do not trust you; it is that they know from experience you are standing on dangerous ground.

In I Corinthians 13 amongst other things we are told charity suffereth long and seeketh not her own. In other words, love is patient and isn’t selfish. If you really love the one that you are in a relationship with you will uphold their reputation. You will not put them in a situation where others will question their purity. You will not give an opportunity for them to be vulnerable to temptation. You will not initiate or encourage any physical contact that God does not condone outside of marriage. You will wait upon the Lord and His timing so that you can start your marriage with purity and without regrets, the way He intends.

When I met Chris, the man who now is my husband, we both desired to keep God first. I can tell you that our relationship has drawn me closer to God and I now see that true love is not what I had with Drew, where we pushed boundaries and ended up destroying one another spiritually. True love is what I have with Chris, a relationship where God is kept at the center, which is His rightful place.