One encouraging thing to think about is that there is a God who hears the prayers of those who trust in Him. He listens because He cares. He cares because He desires that the lives we live for Him be characterized by love toward others. What follows is an explanation of this hope, and how you can be assured that God is listening when you pray.

[ God's Love for Mankind ]
In the Bible, John 3:16 tells us that our Creator, God, not only made us but He loves us! He has loved us so much, in fact, that He decided to send His one and only Son to come and sacrifice His life for us, even to the point of death. Why did He do this? You see, God established a commandment years ago which stated that if a person sinned they must die.

[ Sin ]
Mankind is sinful. Our sinfulness isn't merely based upon the fact that we do bad things, but upon the fact that mankind was corrupted immediately following creation. Subsequently, because God is perfect and holy He can not allow imperfection and unholiness to be around Him, even in His presence! But, because He so deeply desires a relationship with us He decided to experience death on our behalf through His Son so that we could be forgiven if we place our trust in Him. Take a look at [ Genesis 3:1-24 ], [ 1 John 1:5-7 ] and [ 2 Corinthians 5:17-19 ]

[ Is Trusting Christ the Only Way to Experience Forgiveness? ]
In the Bible there are specific statements regarding this - one which says that "there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" [ Acts 4:11-12 - read from verse 1 for the context ], and another where Jesus says concerning Himself, "No one comes to the Father except through me" [ John 14:6, read the entire chapter for context ]. From these two proclamations, and many others which speak of the uniqueness of Christ, we see that it is only through a trusting relationship with Jesus that we can know the forgiveness of God.

[ What Must I Do Now? ]
The first step toward entering a relationship with God is acknowledging what was stated earlier - that you are a sinner and that your sinfulness separates you from a relationship with God. You can confess this to God by praying to Him directly with words such as this:

 Dear God, I desire to know you, to have a relationship with you,
 but I realize that because of my sin this is not possible.
 Yet, I also know that you have made a way for my sins to be
 forgiven, and that is through your only Son, Jesus Christ.
 God, I ask for your forgiveness, not based upon any good that
 I can or will ever do, but that Christ's death be counted
 as my own, and my forgiveness be through Him alone.

 God, I ask that you come to live inside of me so that
 I might live for you.

 In Jesus' name I pray, Amen

If you prayed this prayer from your heart Luke 15:7 tells us that there is rejoicing in heaven! We'd like to rejoice also. If you just prayed this prayer we want to help you grow in your relationship with God.
[ Click here ] to let us know of your decision and we will email you a list of churches in your area where you can be baptized and develop lasting friendships with other believers who love and trust Christ. In the meantime, begin reading the book of [ John ] either online or with your own Bible (You can actually listen to it as well by following the link!). This book in the Bible provides a clear explanation of who Jesus is, the role of the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost), and the will of the Father for you and for the world.