I was born and raised in a family that did not know, obey, nor worship Jesus Christ, but rather banked on the American Dream. I was taught to live morally, to do good unto others, to work hard, and to be a useful member of society. My family attended church on a regular basis for a while, most likely for reasons of being upstanding citizens than anything else, but stopped going after deeming it unnecessary.
As I entered my teenage years, my reason for not being a Christian was that such a religion was too restrictive; I couldn’t lie, I couldn’t steal, I couldn’t enjoy the pleasures of sin. On top of that, all the Christians I knew were quite hypocritical, and were just as mean to me as everyone else. My life throughout junior high was one of depression, self-pity, and glutting myself on the unfulfilling pleasures of sin. The first presentation of the gospel to me was by one of my friends during a casual conversation on the topics of life, death, Heaven, and Hell. She informed me that all humans have violated the commandments of God and are deserving of Hell, and that Jesus Christ is the Savior, and that the only way to Heaven was to trust in Christ as Lord and Savior. I listened and afterwards thought no more of the topic.
At the end of the 8th grade, I began to attend a youth group at a nearby church because I was interested in a girl who also attended. As time went on, the infatuation ended, but I still stayed at the youth group because of the friendships I had developed there. Eventually, in November of my freshman year in high school, the youth group went on a retreat, where emotions ran high during the song sets, and where I confessed Christ. The emotional response during the retreat, however, did not save me, as Romans 1:16 says the “gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,” not mere emotional responses to music. Nonetheless, God was gracious in the following weeks and months, as He began to open my eyes to the abomination my sin was to Him, and that I very much deserved Hell for every possible reason. Along with the realization of my own sinfulness, He showed me that Christ took my place as the object of His wrath on the Cross, and that faith in the Person and work of Jesus and submission to Him as Lord of my life is the way of salvation. The mercy of God was extended to my undeserving soul, and upon realization that it was offered to me, I gladly responded.
Life as a believer hasn’t always been easy, but the superior pleasures of knowing Christ make everything in the world pale in comparison. Continually living by faith in His promises is challenging, but His grace is very abundant in enabling me to do so, and His Word is ever so sweet, ever so encouraging. My heart is prone to wander, but the Lord is always faithful to capture it.
I find Titus 3:3-7 to be an extremely fitting summary of my personal testimony. “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:3-7).
As I entered my teenage years, my reason for not being a Christian was that such a religion was too restrictive; I couldn’t lie, I couldn’t steal, I couldn’t enjoy the pleasures of sin. On top of that, all the Christians I knew were quite hypocritical, and were just as mean to me as everyone else. My life throughout junior high was one of depression, self-pity, and glutting myself on the unfulfilling pleasures of sin. The first presentation of the gospel to me was by one of my friends during a casual conversation on the topics of life, death, Heaven, and Hell. She informed me that all humans have violated the commandments of God and are deserving of Hell, and that Jesus Christ is the Savior, and that the only way to Heaven was to trust in Christ as Lord and Savior. I listened and afterwards thought no more of the topic.
At the end of the 8th grade, I began to attend a youth group at a nearby church because I was interested in a girl who also attended. As time went on, the infatuation ended, but I still stayed at the youth group because of the friendships I had developed there. Eventually, in November of my freshman year in high school, the youth group went on a retreat, where emotions ran high during the song sets, and where I confessed Christ. The emotional response during the retreat, however, did not save me, as Romans 1:16 says the “gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,” not mere emotional responses to music. Nonetheless, God was gracious in the following weeks and months, as He began to open my eyes to the abomination my sin was to Him, and that I very much deserved Hell for every possible reason. Along with the realization of my own sinfulness, He showed me that Christ took my place as the object of His wrath on the Cross, and that faith in the Person and work of Jesus and submission to Him as Lord of my life is the way of salvation. The mercy of God was extended to my undeserving soul, and upon realization that it was offered to me, I gladly responded.
Life as a believer hasn’t always been easy, but the superior pleasures of knowing Christ make everything in the world pale in comparison. Continually living by faith in His promises is challenging, but His grace is very abundant in enabling me to do so, and His Word is ever so sweet, ever so encouraging. My heart is prone to wander, but the Lord is always faithful to capture it.
I find Titus 3:3-7 to be an extremely fitting summary of my personal testimony. “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:3-7).