Reader, I want you to know that God created you in His likeness
and you cannot live anyway that you choose without condemning yourself to Hell.
God does not want you to go to Hell, but if you don't repent of your sins, God
must send you to Hell because He is holy and only that which is holy and
perfect will be able to enter into His Heaven. God is loving, but He is
also just. God showed His love by sending His only begotten Son, Jesus, into
the world so that Jesus could pay for the sins of every person on this earth.
Jesus was born of a virgin woman named Mary; He lived a sinless life and then died
a merciless death on a cross at the age of 33 to pay for your and my sins, plus
the sins of every person in the world. God is just in that He must punish sin.
Thus, if you continue in your sin and do not repent of your sin and turn trust
in Jesus’ payment of your sins, then God must punish you, by sending you to a
place called Hell, where you will burn for eternity.
Now all this may not be clear to you if you have never heard it
before and that’s okay, if you are interested in getting more information about
what you have just read, please feel free to contact me and I will do my best,
with the Holy Spirit’s help to clear things up a bit. I would love to walk you
through the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the wonderful things that He has done
for us!
Allow me to share with you my own story about how I came to know
Christ:
I
was saved at the age of 9 shortly after being put into a foster home. God brought
me to a family that loved Him and lived a life so transparent that I could see
that God was real and that I needed His love.
I
remember the day that I was taken from my biological mother. I was young,
confused and very, very scared. I did not know what was going on and no one
told me anything.
I
remember being in the living room of a trailer across the tracks at the end of
St. Johnstown Road and hearing a knock at my door. I went to see who it was and
found it to be a couple of police officers and a social worker. I quickly went
to wake up my biological mother who was asleep on the living room couch. She
let the people in and my two brothers and I were usher outside to stand with
the social worker while the police talked with my mother. The police went all
through our home gathering some of our things in duffle bags, which I never
remember seeing what they put in there. The police came out with the bags and
my mother followed behind them. I remember seeing my mother stop at the doorway
of our small front porch and begin to cry. I asked the social worker what was
wrong; she just ignored me, probably not knowing what to say. Nathan, my oldest
brother was told what was going on, but Ronny and I were left out.
In
moments, we were ushered toward the police car. I was so confused. I thought I
had done a crime and they were taking me to jail; I raced through my memory
trying to think of what I could have done to deserve to go to jail. Much to my
relief, they seated us in the social worker’s car. Ron and I sat in the back
while Nathan took the front seat. Ron and I began to whisper trying to figure
out what was happening. I remembered talking to a counselor about some things
that went on in our home weeks before that day and I told Ron that. He told me
I should have never told the counselor and said that it was my fault. We sat in
silence the rest of the ride. I stared at the window, tears flowed down my
cheeks. I wondered where they were taking me. So many questions were in my
mind. Why was all this happening?
We
soon arrived in front of a large building called the Department of Social
Services where they took us to a small room containing a stack of chairs, some
single seats and a few toys. There they told us that we were going to be living
with a new family for a while. I would have none of what they had to say and
told them I did not want to and I was not leaving that room to go anywhere but
home to my mom. I resigned to sit on a stack of chairs until they would take me
home. I was angry and hated everyone in the room.
Soon
a family arrived. Miss Marianne, Jesse, Emily and Sarah were
the family I was now going to go live with. When they came in and I was told I
was to go with them, I still refused and said “That’s not my family and I’m NOT
going with them!” Miss Marianne (my mom today) tried to change my mind by
telling me all the wonderful things they had at their home that I would enjoy,
from the swimming pool, to having dogs and cats (which I loved at that time; if
you had dogs and cats and a pool, to me you were rich), but I still would not
go. It was not until the social worker lied to me and told me I was only going
to have to stay there for a few days that I started to be okay with it all. I
asked her if she promised and she said she promised. So I went with them on
that promise, that lie.
I
remember being in the car, the purple Plymouth mini-van. Sarah sat in the front
baby seat with Emily, and Jesse and I sat in back seat. I remember having
trouble with the seat belt (I never wore seat belts; this was new to me) and
Jesse helping me get it on. When we arrived at the house, it was like arriving
at a mansion. Remember, I lived in a small trailer my whole life before then.
They had cats, dogs, a pool, a big kitchen, a downstairs, and all these frames
on the wall with hard to understand sentences. I did not know they were Bible
verses and that one of those verses would be the one that God would use to save
me. We had hot dogs for lunch and I spilled ketchup on my shorts. I remember
meeting Mr. Rick (my dad today) and thinking it wonderful that these girls had
a dad that lived with them. I went to bed that night and cried myself to sleep.
Shortly
after being there, I remember being taken to church. I had only been to church
one other time before that; I thought it was weird. But this time was not so
bad. I remember the Preacher preaching the Gospel. I cannot remember
where he was in the Scriptures, but I know it was the Gospel, because God began to
talk to me and share with me the fact that I was a sinner and on my way to Hell
because of it. I did not want to believe it at first, because I went through my mind
thinking of all the good things I had done. Then, the thought came to mind that
maybe that is why I was taken away from my mom because I was such a bad sinner and
God was punishing me. I pushed that thought away for the time. God kept
bringing it back day after day.
I
remember sitting in the kitchen eating breakfast and every day I would read the
verse Romans 5:8. I would read it and try to understand it and eventually the
Lord taught me just what it meant. One night, in Mr. Rick and Miss Marianne’s
(Mom and Dad’s) room we were having devotions. This was not the first time we
had done this since I had been there, so I knew that Mr. Rick would begin with
prayer. I made up my mind that during that prayer I was going to ask God to save
me from the sins, come in my heart and make me His child. Mr. Rick told us all
to bow our heads and close our eyes and that is what I did and I talked to God
and He saved me.
