I was saved Feb. 1996 at
34 years of age, but I made a profession of faith when I was about 8 years
old.
I grew up going to
church every time the doors were opened. They always preached on heaven and
hell, and if you weren't saved, you would go to hell. Well, I didn't want to
go to hell, I wanted to go to heaven, so I prayed to be saved. But, '
Well a few years passed.
The company my dad worked for always had a company picnic every summer.
There was always a lot of alcohol at these picnics. A friend and I started
slipping a few beers out and drinking them, and that was the first time I
got drunk. I got real sick, and said I'd never drink again. I did anyway.
When I was 15 years old, I was introduced to marijuana. I liked it and
started smoking it quite a bit. When I got my driver's license, I got a job
in town and always tried to make sure I worked on Sunday mornings and church
nights. Most of my coworkers partied, so we would come in to work stoned
thinking it was cool.
I met my wife in high
school, and we married as soon as we graduated. We partied all the time. We
had agreed that before we had our first child, we would quit partying. Well,
my wife quit, but I kept on smoking pot and drinking all the time. This went
on for years. We had three children, and they were growing up fast. I was
missing it because all I could think about was getting high and drinking. It
had taken over my life. I'd get up in the morning, and the first thing I'd
have to do is smoke some pot to get going. As soon as I got off work, I'd go
straight to the liquor store. If I didn't work that day, I'd be drinking
before noon. Anytime we went out to eat, I made sure we ate where alcohol
was served. I knew that the marijuana and alcohol had taken over my life. I
always wanted more, and it was never enough. All I could think about was
getting high and drunk.
My wife was really
getting sick of it, and I was surprised she didn't leave me. I'd come home
many times when I was so drunk, I couldn't even stand up. And you know, I
was tired of it. But I just couldn't quit partying. Well, my wife had been
asking me to go to church for quite a while, and I knew that was what I
should be doing. But I thought that it was boring because I knew going to
church didn't mix with what I liked to do. Nonetheless, I knew I had to do
something because I was going to lose my family if something didn't change.
I told Kelley we'd go to church.
That next Sunday, we
went to church, and after the service, something inside me was telling me I
should go forward during the invitation, but I didn't. We went home, and the
Lord was convicting me. It was the sixth time we went to church when I went
forward during the invitation. My heart was broken, I was helpless, and I
knew it. I got down on my knees and cried out to the Lord, help me I'm a
sinner. Jesus Christ saved me right there, and I knew something was
different. We went home that afternoon, and I was a different person. The
Lord set me free from the bondage of sin and death. I didn't have the
craving for alcohol and marijuana anymore - none. It was completely gone. My
whole life was changed. And it is because I accepted Jesus Christ as my
Savior.
After Jesus saved me, my
life was better than it had ever been, and I knew where I was going when I
died. In First John 5:13, it tells us that we can know we have eternal life,
and that is so true because I knew I had eternal life when Jesus Christ
saved me. Its been three years now since Jesus Christ came into my heart,
and I still feel as good as that first day when He came into my heart. This
has been the three best years of my life.
What about you, do you
know Jesus Christ as your saviour, do you know you have eternal life with
Christ?
