Once upon a time, this old man was born into this world, as a baby, with absolutely nothing in his mind. Everything that is in my mind now is there because of some input from outside.
My manners came from Mom and Dad, my early education came through the government schools, experience, and lectures from parents. My higher education was acquired from books I chose to read and persons I chose to study, and teachers I chose to submit to. My faith came from God, through His Spirit.
You can probably see what I am driving at. Between birth and adulthood, I had many choices, just as you did. A most basic choice was to decide whether or not to believe what my parents, teachers, et al taught me and to make choices that would later determine whom I would turn to for my higher education.
Let me explain that I was born into a non- Christian home. I didn't know that fact as a child or young adult because my parents called us all Christians, but man's ideas don't make truth. My mother, now 89 still doesn't know what makes a person a Christian (Please pray for her).
Because my childhood home's religion was actually what I call "Churchianity"...going to church once per week and never associating with other church members during the week and not talking about Christ, God, the devil or anything spiritual during the week, I was taken over by the devil's deception, believing his lie that I was a "Good Christian". I had trouble understanding why I couldn't resist opportunities to steal, lie, cheat, soak up porno, chase girls, then women, cuss, get drunk, etc. Something was not right; I knew that and through it all was on a life's mission to find out "What is real, what is true?", as I put it in my mind.
The truth is, I had a large number of choices of faith/religion (faith believes God [Christianity] Religion works to please God [Judiaism, Islam, Hindu, Buddhism, Humanism, etc])
Throughout my young adult years, I was an angry young man; mean, unhappy and deperate to find out what was real, what the truth was. In seeking the answer, I searched in the minds of older men, in Positive Mental Attitude books, in illicit relationships with women, in bars, in the Catholic Church, the Ouija Board, Masonic Lodge, and other things. I scorned the sound churches that taught the Bible, God's Word. I was in the devil's deceptive grip.
Finally, at the age of 33, I was chasing a pretty woman, whom I had met on a new job. I put on my best smile (deception) and asked her out to dinner. She accepted and said that dinner should be at her house. "Alright!!!" I thought, this will be easier than I thought!
When I arrived for dinner and her pre-teen daughter was there also. She initiated a conversation with me and explained that she thought I was a nice fella, but that there would be no "messing around" with her, that her schedule was also quite full...with church six times a week.
I thought I was too big, tough and determined to slowed down by a church, so, as I visited, I asked if I could go with her. I was curious and wanted to see what there could be in church that kept an smart, pretty woman that interested. I made it clear, however, that I would go only once, possibly twice...just out of curiosity. That was in 1980. That night, the pastor preached the Gospel but I didn't understand it, but I went back the next night. He again preached the Gospel as he wound down, and when I doscpvered that Jesus Christ had settled my sin account on the cross, things happened; lights flashed in my head, the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders and I had believed on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for my own personal salvation before I knew what had happened. I was relieved, I was excited, I was free. After all those years, I now knew why Christ didn't jump off the cross
That next evening, I went into that church weighed down under the chains of sin and I departed free, excited, and happy. Sure, there have been sorrows for me as a Christian, but now I didn't have to face them alone! Hallelujah!
The reason I am a Christian is because God, His plan and His Word are perfect. As His Word was preached, His power worked in my soul and spirit, through the Holy Spirit.
After 27 years of diligent study, I can explain the facts better: God's Word was written apporximately 350 years before any religion's "Sacred Writings". After 350 years, men who were in the devil's deceptive bondage did the devil's bidding as they plagiarized and distorted the God's revealed Word. They were offering many religions, yet offering only one other way to God...through human works, which God says will not work (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5)
I am a Christian today because I was seeking the truth and God answered my questions with His Word, the Gospelof Jesus Christ. His Spirit empowered me to "repent towards God", and gave me "faith towards Jesus Christ" His Son, thus enabling me to know that I had been saved even before I was born...now that I believed Him, I received my redemption, my justification, reconciliation, and moved into my rightful place in God's family, as His adopted Son. Now, many years later, He brings tears to my eyes as I know that He has guided me in this article. Even though I have been a bad boy many times in those years, He remains faithful and has answered my prayer to guide me about what to write today. Only the basic skeleton of this article was in my mind when I started. The rest is God's guidance...Praise the Lord!
I kept on going to church with this lady, and went six times per week. We continued to have a very pleasant platonic relationship. She mentored me in the faith for a good while, until the devil convinced me that I needed to move 1,800 miles away, for my own selfish reasons. I moved to a scenic and pleasant place that I enjoyed very much, however, it also kept me from church and fellowship with other brehtren. Three years later I moved back and became very active in church again, was happier again, and I have now lived "happily ever after" for many years.
Rev. Bob Carpenter has been a busy minister since 1986, ordained in 1991 by Bible Doctrine Church of Little Rock. Bob is a busy missionary to the Philippines and is well known for maintaining the accuracy of the Gospel Click here to get your own unique version of this article.
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