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Once you are saved, you'll need to establish some personal habits that will help you grow spiritually. Think of your Christian walk as a battle wherein Satan, your enemy, will be working through your own fleshly desires to cause you to fail.

Here are 10 action steps you can take to help you create habits that will help strengthen your stand against the enemy:

1) Make a firm commitment to KEEP God FIRST in your life . . . forever!

Keeping God first is a daily battle, but it's the only way to maintain victory in your life. Matthew 6:33 says, "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you."

2) Start each day with prayer.

Start by talking to God in the morning and communicating with Him often through-out your day. Develop the habit of talking to God just as you would your closest friend, even about little things that don't seem very important. Trusting Him for the small things in life brings a special blessing and will increase your faith.

3) Take time (even if it's just a few minutes) to read your Bible each day.

This is important because the Word of God serves the same purpose as food does to our physical bodies. When you don't read your Bible, it is like skipping a meal– your "spiritual man" will become weak and you'll lack the strength you need to fight against Satan, your enemy.

If you struggle with being able to sit down and actually "read" your Bible, remember both the Old and New Testaments are available on cassette and cd. Listening to the spoken Word is an excellent way to fix it in your mind for instant recall.

If you prefer to read the Bible online, here are some links that are helpful:

• http://www.dailybible.com
• http://www.talkingbible.com

4) Attend worship services regularly.

Salvation is the experience of being born into God's church. Once you are saved, however, you need to be placed into a local body where you can become active in the work of God. It is important that you seek God's face in prayer and ask Him to lead you to a congregation where people live holy and the Truth is preached according to the Bible and not just men's ideas.

Once you've found a place to worship, you'll be amazed at how much strength and help you'll receive from meeting with God's people each week and being faithful in your personal worship to God.

If you have no place to worship in your local area, please take a moment to drop us a line and let us know where you're from so we can remember you in prayer. Also, feel free to subscribe to our FREE monthly publication, The Gospel Trumpeter.

5) Stay active in the work of God.

Staying busy for God is is an excellent way to keep from falling prey to Satan's snares. God has something for everyone to do, regardless of how small the work might seem. If you earnestly seek God's face in prayer, He will show you how to put your own personal talents to use for Him.

6) Study your Bible on a regular basis.

Bible study is different from reading a verse or two of Scripture every day. When you look up verses, learn the meaning of words, and study the context of different Scriptures, God will reveal the hidden treasures of His Word to you. What a blessing this is!

Since all of us have different schedules, not everyone studies the Bible the same way or the same number of hours each week. It is important to find a method that works best for you, one that you can commit to over time.

Here is a site that offers excellent study tools:

http://www.biblegateway.com

Don't forget! We offer a number of study materials online in *.pdf format that you can easily access and print for your own use. Also, we highly recommend the booklet How to Study by Brother Earl Borders.

7) Always walk in the light that God reveals to you.

From time to time, in your Christian walk, God will show you certain things you need to take care of in your life. This is for your own good and will only work to draw you closer to Him. For example, God may impress you to change a certain way that you dress. He may bring to mind something you did in your past that you need to make restitution for. Whatever it might be, God will always reveal His will in the situation and provide you with grace to help you accomplish it.

This is called "gaining new light and understanding" or "measuring up" to God's Word. The Scriptures refer to it as mortifying or crucifying our flesh. The main thing to remember is to never buck up against something God shows you. If you do, you will never move forward for God, only backward.

8) Choose NEW Christian friends.

Often, when people start their walk with God, they zealously go back to their friends and family and try to convert them. They soon fail and realize they weren't strong enough to handle temptation. The Word of God teaches us in 1 Corinthians 5:17: "If any man be in Christ, he is a NEW creature. Old things are passed away, behold all things are become new." This verse speaks of making a clean break with every part of our old, sinful life, including our not-so-good-to-be-around friends.

Once you are saved, without ever saying a word, your friends will automatically notice a difference. You'll soon find that you have little in common! God will help you make a clean break, but you have to want God more than anything or anyone else in life. (You can still treat people kindly without having fellowship with them.) As soon as possible, begin fellowshipping with people who love the Lord and have the same goals and interests in life.

9) Testify for the Lord.

Testifying is simply telling others what God has done for you. If you need help in this area, pray and ask God to give you boldness.

God wants us to be ready to give an answer when someone asks why our life has changed, or why our countenance is brighter, or why we don't do this or that. This is how God brings light and understanding to sinners–through His children. If you're struggling with sharing your testimony with others, it may help to have it typed up and ready to hand out when the need arises.

Also, if you've found a congregation in which to worship, you'll grow spiritually if you testify before the saints in a church service. This brings a wonderful blessing and is a great way to exercise your spiritual muscles!

10) Seek God's will for life's decisions.

Great peace comes from knowing you are in the center of God's will. If you develop the habit of talking to God often, you'll soon be able to discern the direction of His Spirit. Seeking God's will, or "trusting Him," for every decision you make in life is the most important attribute of a true Christian.

Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not on thine own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths."