This post will outline my life before I submitted myself to the Lordship of Jesus Christ as my savior, and explain the ways Jesus Christ has once again brought glory to himself by extending grace to an undeserved sinner. As I write this post, I want you to know two things. First, this post will attempt to illustrate the damage and destruction that sin did to my life. In other words, this post will not glorify sin, but will glorify the Savior as any testimony should. Second, I want you to know that the same Jesus Christ that saved me can save you too. If you are reading this, I pray that Jesus Christ will use this testimony to draw you to his always open, loving, merciful, and gracious arms.
I was convicted of my sin when I was little boy, and began my journey as a follower of Jesus Christ when I was a young man in Brownwood, Texas. I did everything that was required of me. I went to the front to profess Jesus Christ as my Lord. I was baptized in 1995 (baptism represents the work that Jesus Christ had done in my life, but does not save you). I went to church and youth group religiously. On the outside, I looked like a good Christian, but on the inside, something still wasn't right. My heart wasn't fully committed to Jesus Christ at that age. I was trying to live for Jesus Christ by doing the "Christian" thing, but trying to live how I wanted also.
In high school, I basically told God thanks for saving me, but I am going to live my life how I wanted. To clarify, I wanted God to be the God over my salvation, but the rest of my life was off limits to him. I lived this dual life for approximately seven years (high school and college). I would declare myself a hypocrite. You know the people that say the church contains people that walk with Jesus Christ on Sunday mornings, but live with the devil the remaining six days? That was me. It pains me to think that I could have led people away from Christ during those seven years than bring them to Jesus Christ.
During those seven years, I began to live a life of constant sin. I was binge drinking, partying, drinking alone, involved in pornography, lustful living, cussing, lying, gossiping, talking horrible about people in order to make myself look better, and I was doing all this while going to church on Sunday mornings. I would go out and party on Saturday night, and come in Sunday morning hung-over in order to try and make the guilt go away in my heart. My life began to spiral out of control. The sin that originally appeared to be fun left a path of destruction in my life and in the lives of those around me. God created us to worship, and throughout this time of being the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-31), I worshiped Jeremy instead of my Savior, Jesus Christ. I hurt a lot of people in the wake of my sin, including those that I loved the most. At the time, sin seemed to be fun and exciting, but over time, it became addictive and detrimental. A gaping hole in my heart began to emerge where nothing had the ability to satisfy what was missing. I was a fool to think I could trap God in a box. Psalm 53:1 states, "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good."
Then, something amazing happened to me. I began to feel the weight of my sin. This weight led me to cry out to God just like the prodigal son when he told his father, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son" (Luke 15:21). I had been broken from the sin in my life. God led my wife and I to a local church in North Carolina that began to disciple me, and teach me the glory of God. I confessed my sins, and now I understand this biblical truth, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved" (Ephesians 2:4-5). The guilt and scales finally fell off. I found the only way to plug the hole in my heart from years of sinning. That was through confession and repentance (a change of direction in my life) and the work of Jesus Christ on the cross for all those sins. Not only did I realize he died for my sins, but through his resurrection (resurrection means Jesus Christ flat-lined on the cross, but three days later his heart began to beat and he is alive today) he defeated sin, death, and Satan. Through my faith in him I was made new. Brand new. I think of an incredible verse to explain how God brought me back to him, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).
God reached down when I was at my lowest and drew me towards his open and outstretched arms to bring me back to him. However, it was different this time. This time I knew that if I was going to proclaim Jesus Christ as the Lord of my life he was going to take ownership over every aspect of my life for his glory. John confirms this when he stated, "Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning, no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him" (1 John 3:4-6). God began to work in my life in a mighty way. Just like the Lord delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt in Exodus 14 is the exact same way that God delivered me from the bondage of sin. I began to grow in my walk with the Lord. I began to ask him what he desired from me. I have memorized, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). I confessed my sins to my wife and to my friends, and they began to pray and help me grow in the image of Christ (James 5: 16-20). No longer do I drink alcohol or engage in pornography. No longer do my lips and my life intentionally defame the Lord that rescued me from my sin.
God began to grow me in every aspect of my life. I began to follow Jesus Christ with everything I had. I began to hate sin more and more each day. Then, God did something that I still can't believe. God called me to ministry. I said, "God, seriously? You want me to serve you in that capacity? You know where I have been, you know how I have rebelled against you, you know my past, and there is no way you can use me." I began to seek council, and I enrolled in seminary at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Throughout this time, I confirmed God's call in my life. The church that I was volunteering at in Southern California ordained me as a pastor. I am now passionate about serving my King in youth and family ministry in a local church in South Carolina. I desire to help students be exposed to Jesus Christ in our ministry, to equip them through discipleship to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ, and to evangelize this entire world for the glory of God. Never in my entire life would I believe God could use me, and he has continued to develop me into a man after his own heart. I desperately want to teach students about a life committed to following Jesus Christ so that they do not ever go down the path of destruction that I once did. I believe that is why God called me to ministry. I believe he wants me to invest my life and my testimony about his grace, mercy, love to the next generation. I believe he wants me to challenge the next generation to live for his glory, and faithfully serve him throughout their entire Christian life. That is how God has changed me.
Am I perfect? Absolutely not. Am I a new creation in Christ Jesus? Absolutely. Jesus changed my life. My life may be easily summed up with these words from Paul, "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16). I still struggle with sin and temptation, but the more that I grow in my intimacy and love for King Jesus the more I hate any sin in my life. The more I see my King's love for me the more I love him and the more I try to reciprocate that love to others (Matthew 22:37-40). The more I love the steadfast, merciful, gracious, just, and righteous God the more I desire to keep his commandments with the help of the Holy Spirit (John 14:15). As I write this, I am ashamed of my prodigal son years, but much more appreciative of the grace that I have received through Jesus Christ.
Do you know why I wanted to share this with you today (if you are still reading)? I want you to see how Jesus Christ can take a sinner and by grace through faith save me when I didn't deserve it. Guess what? You don't deserve it either. But, God loves you so much he died for every sin you have ever committed. He wants and desires you to come to Jesus Christ today. God desires that you will surrender your entire life to him by believing that he is the Son of God, that he lived a perfect life on earth, that he died on the cross for your sin and my sin, that he came back to life on the third day, and now sits in a place of honor and glory at the right hand of the Father in heaven. He offers a free gift that will change your entire life. Not only should you believe, but this belief should lead you to repent. That means that your belief should lead you to turn from your sin, and live for Jesus Christ. This gift of salvation is offered to you today. Paul says, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). Not might be saved. Not could be saved. But, will be saved! What is holding you back from the greatest news this world has ever been told? God died so you could live with him for eternity.
If you are a believer reading this, I pray this would give you the courage to share your testimony online. This will help you reflect on the awesomeness of God. This exercise will bring up many emotions about your salvation. It will make you thank God and love God more deeply when you see how much he has worked in your life. All believers have a past, but when we accepted Christ, we have a much grander future. Let me leave you with the words of our King, "Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things" (Luke 24:47-48). May we never keep silent about our savior Jesus Christ!
I was convicted of my sin when I was little boy, and began my journey as a follower of Jesus Christ when I was a young man in Brownwood, Texas. I did everything that was required of me. I went to the front to profess Jesus Christ as my Lord. I was baptized in 1995 (baptism represents the work that Jesus Christ had done in my life, but does not save you). I went to church and youth group religiously. On the outside, I looked like a good Christian, but on the inside, something still wasn't right. My heart wasn't fully committed to Jesus Christ at that age. I was trying to live for Jesus Christ by doing the "Christian" thing, but trying to live how I wanted also.
In high school, I basically told God thanks for saving me, but I am going to live my life how I wanted. To clarify, I wanted God to be the God over my salvation, but the rest of my life was off limits to him. I lived this dual life for approximately seven years (high school and college). I would declare myself a hypocrite. You know the people that say the church contains people that walk with Jesus Christ on Sunday mornings, but live with the devil the remaining six days? That was me. It pains me to think that I could have led people away from Christ during those seven years than bring them to Jesus Christ.
During those seven years, I began to live a life of constant sin. I was binge drinking, partying, drinking alone, involved in pornography, lustful living, cussing, lying, gossiping, talking horrible about people in order to make myself look better, and I was doing all this while going to church on Sunday mornings. I would go out and party on Saturday night, and come in Sunday morning hung-over in order to try and make the guilt go away in my heart. My life began to spiral out of control. The sin that originally appeared to be fun left a path of destruction in my life and in the lives of those around me. God created us to worship, and throughout this time of being the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-31), I worshiped Jeremy instead of my Savior, Jesus Christ. I hurt a lot of people in the wake of my sin, including those that I loved the most. At the time, sin seemed to be fun and exciting, but over time, it became addictive and detrimental. A gaping hole in my heart began to emerge where nothing had the ability to satisfy what was missing. I was a fool to think I could trap God in a box. Psalm 53:1 states, "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good."
Then, something amazing happened to me. I began to feel the weight of my sin. This weight led me to cry out to God just like the prodigal son when he told his father, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son" (Luke 15:21). I had been broken from the sin in my life. God led my wife and I to a local church in North Carolina that began to disciple me, and teach me the glory of God. I confessed my sins, and now I understand this biblical truth, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved" (Ephesians 2:4-5). The guilt and scales finally fell off. I found the only way to plug the hole in my heart from years of sinning. That was through confession and repentance (a change of direction in my life) and the work of Jesus Christ on the cross for all those sins. Not only did I realize he died for my sins, but through his resurrection (resurrection means Jesus Christ flat-lined on the cross, but three days later his heart began to beat and he is alive today) he defeated sin, death, and Satan. Through my faith in him I was made new. Brand new. I think of an incredible verse to explain how God brought me back to him, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).
God reached down when I was at my lowest and drew me towards his open and outstretched arms to bring me back to him. However, it was different this time. This time I knew that if I was going to proclaim Jesus Christ as the Lord of my life he was going to take ownership over every aspect of my life for his glory. John confirms this when he stated, "Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning, no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him" (1 John 3:4-6). God began to work in my life in a mighty way. Just like the Lord delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt in Exodus 14 is the exact same way that God delivered me from the bondage of sin. I began to grow in my walk with the Lord. I began to ask him what he desired from me. I have memorized, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). I confessed my sins to my wife and to my friends, and they began to pray and help me grow in the image of Christ (James 5: 16-20). No longer do I drink alcohol or engage in pornography. No longer do my lips and my life intentionally defame the Lord that rescued me from my sin.
God began to grow me in every aspect of my life. I began to follow Jesus Christ with everything I had. I began to hate sin more and more each day. Then, God did something that I still can't believe. God called me to ministry. I said, "God, seriously? You want me to serve you in that capacity? You know where I have been, you know how I have rebelled against you, you know my past, and there is no way you can use me." I began to seek council, and I enrolled in seminary at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Throughout this time, I confirmed God's call in my life. The church that I was volunteering at in Southern California ordained me as a pastor. I am now passionate about serving my King in youth and family ministry in a local church in South Carolina. I desire to help students be exposed to Jesus Christ in our ministry, to equip them through discipleship to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ, and to evangelize this entire world for the glory of God. Never in my entire life would I believe God could use me, and he has continued to develop me into a man after his own heart. I desperately want to teach students about a life committed to following Jesus Christ so that they do not ever go down the path of destruction that I once did. I believe that is why God called me to ministry. I believe he wants me to invest my life and my testimony about his grace, mercy, love to the next generation. I believe he wants me to challenge the next generation to live for his glory, and faithfully serve him throughout their entire Christian life. That is how God has changed me.
Am I perfect? Absolutely not. Am I a new creation in Christ Jesus? Absolutely. Jesus changed my life. My life may be easily summed up with these words from Paul, "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16). I still struggle with sin and temptation, but the more that I grow in my intimacy and love for King Jesus the more I hate any sin in my life. The more I see my King's love for me the more I love him and the more I try to reciprocate that love to others (Matthew 22:37-40). The more I love the steadfast, merciful, gracious, just, and righteous God the more I desire to keep his commandments with the help of the Holy Spirit (John 14:15). As I write this, I am ashamed of my prodigal son years, but much more appreciative of the grace that I have received through Jesus Christ.
Do you know why I wanted to share this with you today (if you are still reading)? I want you to see how Jesus Christ can take a sinner and by grace through faith save me when I didn't deserve it. Guess what? You don't deserve it either. But, God loves you so much he died for every sin you have ever committed. He wants and desires you to come to Jesus Christ today. God desires that you will surrender your entire life to him by believing that he is the Son of God, that he lived a perfect life on earth, that he died on the cross for your sin and my sin, that he came back to life on the third day, and now sits in a place of honor and glory at the right hand of the Father in heaven. He offers a free gift that will change your entire life. Not only should you believe, but this belief should lead you to repent. That means that your belief should lead you to turn from your sin, and live for Jesus Christ. This gift of salvation is offered to you today. Paul says, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). Not might be saved. Not could be saved. But, will be saved! What is holding you back from the greatest news this world has ever been told? God died so you could live with him for eternity.
If you are a believer reading this, I pray this would give you the courage to share your testimony online. This will help you reflect on the awesomeness of God. This exercise will bring up many emotions about your salvation. It will make you thank God and love God more deeply when you see how much he has worked in your life. All believers have a past, but when we accepted Christ, we have a much grander future. Let me leave you with the words of our King, "Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things" (Luke 24:47-48). May we never keep silent about our savior Jesus Christ!
Comments
Post a Comment