First, get a Bible and begin to read it.

The Bible is the Word of God, so if you're going to be a Christian you need to know what God says. Get a Bible that you can read and understand. There are many Bible translations available, but you should get one that is accurate and understandable. A translation that meets this requirement is the New International Version (NIV) translation. This is an excellent translation and is in modern English. There are also varieties of this translation depending upon what else you want in terms of additional features. Some useful features are

The NIV Study Bible with these features is to be recommended. It contains a lot of explanatory footnotes and charts to help you get started.

Another good translation is the New Living Bible Translation. The Living Bible has been around for several years, but the Living Bible Translation is relatively new.

If you enjoy reading Shakespearean English, and you are proficient at it, you might consider the King James Version, or the New King James Version. Along this line the Spirit Filled Life Bible is to be recommended.

Finally, don't start reading the Bible at the beginning. Begin by reading the Gospel of John. Then read the Epistle to the Romans, the Epistle to the Galatians, the Gospel of Luke, the Acts of the Apostles, Genesis, Exodus, Joshua, the Epistle to the Hebrews, and the Epistles to the Ephesians, Philippians, and Corinthians. After that, you are on your own!

Again, like Bibles, there are a lot of churches out there. You want to find one that is Bible believing, and Bible teaching and preaching. This means much more than just a church where the Bible is read. You want to find one where they believe that what the Bible says is true, and not some obscure truth, but true in the plain meaning of its words. The church you want is one that believes that the Bible is the inspired word of God. Then, you want a church where the truths of the Bible are preached and taught. How will you know? Well, first of all the word "gospel" means "good news" so what you hear over a period of time should sound like good news to you. But although this is necessary, it alone is not sufficient. The messages that you hear should also challenge you to grow in your faith and your life with Jesus Christ.

So find yourself a Church and begin attending regularly. Get into fellowship with other believers, and if you can, join a Bible study.

Your prayers don't have to be long and fancy. Just talk to God because that's what prayer is. Praise him for who He is. Thank him for what He has done. Confess to him your failings and disappointments. Tell him of your needs and the needs of others whom you know. Thank him for hearing you and the wonderful things he is going to do.

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