I was raised in a Christian
home in the small town of Alburtis, Pennsylvania. For as long as I
can remember, my parents took my brothers and sisters and me to
church every time the doors were open. Since the first day of
kindergarten, I was sent to a Christian school. As you can
imagine, with all these Christian influences, I learned a lot
about God at an early age. I was taught about God's Son, Jesus
Christ, who came to earth to die on the cross for my sins.
In 1986, at the age of five, I did what I had been told that I
was supposed to do - I said a prayer of salvation. (Note:
"saved" and "salvation" are biblical terms referring to
the forgiveness of sins by God and the rescue of a person from the
power and penalty of that sin. This is God's requirement for
everlasting life. It is another way of referring to a person who
is a "born-again Christian.") But this wasn't
real to me. I prayed simply because I knew it would please my
parents. I hadn't yet realized that, in God's eyes, I was a
sinner and deserving of Hell.
For seven years, I based my salvation on that prayer. Through
middle-school and early adolescence, I was often teased and, at
times, cruelly made fun of. I grew very insecure and angry. I was
living the way a Christian was supposed to on the outside, but on
the inside I was a sinner. I was full of bitterness and hatred for
those who had hurt me. I knew a lot about God - but I did not know
Him personally. I had no peace inside.
In September of 1993, the church I attended held revival
meetings with a special speaker-Pastor Gordon Silcox. After the
first night of meetings, my best friend, who I already thought was
saved, came to me and told me that she had just gotten saved. That
threw me and my phony salvation for a loop! If my best friend-who
from the outside seemed to be living a Godly life- hadn't really
been saved, then how could I - with all my bitterness and hatred
- be truly saved? Needless to say, I didn't sleep much that
night. God was letting me know that I wasn't saved- but I
refused to admit it.
On September 27, 1993, the second night of meetings, Pastor
Silcox preached on Hell, the destiny of those who did not know God
in a personal way. I knew then that I didn't know God personally,
and that the only way I could know Him personally was to receive
Jesus Christ as my Savior. I realized that I was a sinner and that
I didn't deserve God's love or His gift of eternal life. I sat and
squirmed through the entire message, and when the invitation came,
I was one of the first ones up the aisle. That night, as I knelt
at the altar, I repented of my sins (I saw my sins as offensive
and dishonorable to a holy God, and desired to turn from them). I
accepted God's offer of salvation, and turned my life over to His
control. A new peace flooded into my heart.
The Lord was already starting to change my life. The bitterness
and hatred did not disappear overnight - but, over time, God
slowly replaced it with His love and joy.God has also given me a
new direction in life. I believe God's desire for my life is to
serve Him - specifically, in some area of full-time service,
either as a Christian school teacher, or as a preacher's wife or a
missionary's wife.
God has given me tremendous peace and a joy that I can't
explain. I wouldn't trade God in my life for all the riches this
world has to offer. I now know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I
am saved, and when I die, I will go to heaven to see and praise my
precious Savior for all of eternity.
If you find yourself lacking the peace and fullfilment that comes
only in a personal relationship with Christ, consider Acts,
chapter 16, verse 31, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and
thou shalt be saved..." God wants you to come to Him, but
first, you must come to the end of yourself, and place a
relationship with Him above all else. John, chapter 3, verse 16,
says, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life." Please turn from your sin
to Christ, and, please, do it today!
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