No, I belive it's life long. I belive in free will......I believe He gives us the choice to begin with, and that we continue to choose to serve Him out of love. We don't lose our ability to choose, at salvation. I don't belive we become robots with no choice...which as David said, if once you are really saved to begin with if you have no choice...that's what it amounts to.
I think that's why it's all the more precious to God, because we serve Him because we choose too. Not because we have no other choice once we're saved, but out of love for the price He paid for our salvation.
And I know, those who disagree would say we don't become robots, we're not forced to or whatever. But if you maintain you can't lose your salvation, that's what it amounts to to me. In fact, a Southern Baptist minister sat in my home when I was Nicoles age and told my mother that even if I got on drugs later on in life and died in a druggen stupor I would be saved because I had been as a child. And that's not a isolated example, my grandmother told of going to funeral, after funeral of folks she knew personally that were "preached into Heaven" because they were saved as kids. Folks who hadn't darkened a Church door in many, many years and lived lifestyles that were anything but Christian. That I disagree with, whole heartedly.....
I understand what your saying. but the way i look at it is when you make that choice to follow God that his spirit begins to work in your life and thats a huge change. even if you dont see it at first you can look back on it and see how hes changed you and i feel that once that has happened it would be next to impossible to turn away. to me i think that to say you have to continually choose is not giving him credit that he is working in your life. thats why so many people believe that if you turn away you werent really saved because that spirit of God would be there working on you drawing you back. its like a parent when your saved you become a child of God. and as a father hes going to continually work in your life to help you grow as a member of the family not say oh well your leaving good riddence you know what i mean?
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