Testimonies

I grew up in the Presbyterian Church without 'hearing the Gospel'. While living south of Syracuse, NY in the April of 2005; Dave (a guy I worked with) gave me a bunch of Kent Hovind videos and a horde of pamphlets on a bunch of 'religious stuff' as I would have put it then. (Now I don't necessarily agree with EVERY thing that Hovind presented-so don't hold it against me please). At the end of video three when Hovind gives his spiel about salvation; I broke- I realized my need for a Savior and I began to devour every tidbit of intel I could get from Dave. I was 30 years old.

I started doing my own research on 'Bible versions' and Creation -v- Evolution and discovered a whole new world that I had never seen before. Things in my life started to make sense if you will; certain experience and events in my life through my 4 years in the military, working as a DoD contractor, going to secular college: all had new meaning.

I was on fire at first; but then became disenchanted with trying to find a Bible believing Church; THERE WEREN'T ANY!!! Compiled on top of losing heart, not finding a good Church home, and not having the guidance to get out of my own sinful ways-I regretfully backslid for many years.

At the end of 2011 I was losing my job for the 3rd time in 5 years. Praise be to God that He put me into what I would say is my current position. My schedule changed to where I wasn't working weekends anymore and I ran into a different 'Dave' from the Church from where I live now. I had gone there on and off, but never committed and had not graced the doors of the Church in many months.

Dave #2 told me about all the changes going on at the Church with a new Pastor and all; I decided to give 'going to Church' another chance. I was Baptized Mother's Day 2012 and committed myself to being a part of this thing called the Church. Thank you LORD for not giving up on me!
 
As w/bro Mike when I got saved I saw more in the Word then in the church ...... I knew God was bigger
I would pray telling God I know your bigger but I don't see it but I just know..... help me. My whole life I grew up in this one church & my ancestors even helped build the church so I struggled & cried & felt like I was being pulled by God to leave. So afraid of what people I knew my whole life would think.... (oh she lost it) lol seems silly now....
But after much crying I knew I had to leave & find a different church ... but where? So I set out on my journey like Abraham & God was faithful. At the next church I learned more of the Word.
Then God would connect me w/people & as time went on I started feeling that horrible feeling of I was gonna have to leave the people I've grown to love & move on to another church..... it was like "OH NOOOOOOOO GOD..... I CANT MOVE...... PEOPLE WILL THINK IM A CHURCH HOPPER" BUT to make a long story shorter I did move on & LEARNED EVEN MORE.....
THEN.......... it happened again..... and I was like "WHAT R U DOING GOD.... DO U KNOW WHAT THIS LOOKS LIKE ? .... (lol sometimes we say the funniest stuff to God... like He doesn't know.. lol) & I told God, that if He really wanted me to move on to another church He was gonna have to make it really clear, cause I just didn't think it looked good & that was just not in my nature.
Soooooooo God being the BIG GOD that I imagined He was, confirmed the next move by a Pastor I was watching on TV on day.
He said, "sometimes God when building your house will send you to a masonary church for a good foundation.... then maybe you'll later move to a church that is good in electrical work, & then maybe a church to learn about plumbing. Unfortuately most churches don't have it all (the 5 fold ministry) THATS ALL IT TOOK... I knew God was moving me on to build a better house (me). I never left a church for no other reason then God directing me to learn more. FINALLY GOD HAS PUT A 5 FOLD MINISTRY CHURCH IN MY TOWN & I KNOW HOW TO SUPPORT THE PASTOR & KNOW WHERE GOD IS GOING.... THANK U FATHER GOD, LORD CHRIST JESUS & HOLY SPIRIT.....:) that was just a part of my beginning growth, not at all what I expected. But now that I look back it was worth it.

God has this way of breaking up our old beliefs that we think are good & stretching us & growing us stronger in not having a reputation like WE think. Im not saying God would do the same w/others, cause I don't know their background or belief systems. BUT for me God knew my desires & what I needed & I AM thankful for His patience & unconditional love..... its His love that draws me.
 
I grew up going to church. My relationship was with the church, not Christ. I began drinking heavily in high school and continued to in college. I flunked out after three semesters and came home. I shared a house with a friend of mine. One night he was out of town and I fell asleep on the couch. A loud voice said wake up. I opened my eyes to see who was there, and I noticed a small flame coming up from behind the couch. We had no smoke alarm or fire extinguisher. I tried to put out the fire and was burned severely in the process. I was in the hospital for one month and one day.
I know it was the voice of God that woke me physically that night. Not longer after I answered him spiritually when I asked Jesus to be my Lord and savior.
 
I grew up in the Catholic Church and I always believed Jesus died for me, but never learned how to acquire salvation. My hearts desire was to be in a rock and roll band and play music. I did that for several years playing music professionally in night cubs, and along with that came drugs. While growing up I had a friend of mine and we would smoke pot and read the Bible to each other. That scared the Hell out of us. :) It just shows you how the Lord moves in our lives in mysterious ways. I met another guy who played bass guitar and he had the biggest bass amp I ever seen. On the front of his amp he had the words, "Praise the Lord". I was not a Christian at that time, and he was always asking me to go to concerts and to Church. I went to Church one time with my electric guitar and amp. We jammed with the choir. I did not know any of their songs, and they did not know my favorite song, "Smoke on the Water". They never asked me to return! My friend asked me to go to a concert, but he did not tell me it was a Christian concert, but I went anyway. They had a alter call at the end, but I did not go forward to ask Jesus into my heart. I was very moved and I believed every thing they said. As scripture tells us, "John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God,.." I received the Word of God but I did not exercise that power to become a child of God. Many years later I had another friend who asked me to come to his Church. It was an Assemblies of God Church ,and I had never been in a protestant Church before, and I always wondered what these people did since they did not have any statues, or candles and all the eye candie they have in a Catholic Church. I sat in the very last row of this Church, but this time when they had the alter call I flew down the isle and was the first person there. I finally decided to exercise that power that was given to me many years before to become a child of God.
 
For me to do this, I must leave out much detail: the road to Messiah took so many twists and turns.

I decided I hated G-d at age three and went the other direction with fervor. Through my first years, I did everything I could to assure that G-d would hate me, because I feared accidentally becoming a believer. However, at age 14, by the miracle of G-d, I decided I wanted to be a believer. It really was not my decision: I would not have made it, but He turned my head, and I started seeking Him. Sitting alone in the back seat of a car in Oregon, 1963, I earnestly asked Him to be my Savior, and life immediately took a different direction.

I did not live right. Oh, I tried and managed to 95% of the time, but that other 5% was murderous to my soul. Unfortunately the church in which I was reared, and continued to attend, had an unbiblical view of sin and of the believer's life. In that time, I married my first husband, and when I was 22 we were expecting our first child. I cried out to G-d for help, because I feared I would abuse our baby, and He heard. Again, my life took a different turn that not only benefited me but also saved our daughter and our son from abuse.

Soon, our lives took another sharp turn when my young husband was killed, and I took on family responsibilities by myself. The next 9 years were concentrated in rearing our children and going to school, then my old friend's wife passed away, and we married a year later, moving to his town. As soon as I walked into his church, a church of the same organization I had belonged to all my life, I knew something there was hideously wrong. My first inclination was to never return, but church and marriage protocol said I had to attend his church and not tear apart our newly-formed family of my two teens and his two. (To this day, I question if I should have left anyway.)

Life in his church, for myself and my children, would best be described as a four-letter word that ends in double hockey-sticks. Our children grew up there, eventually marrying and having their own children. His moved away; mine stayed. Then one Sunday, it all came to a head, and the pastor excommunicated me. Unknown to me, my son and his wife had already made up their minds that they were never returning to that church. I begged my husband not to leave because of my excommunication, and he stayed as did my daughter and her family. I desperately needed not to be influential in their decisions.

When my husband left 1.5 years later, we began studying the Bible with gusto, discussing it, debating it, starting at the basics and moving through. We have both, because of our studies and debates, changed our minds re the old beliefs. Today, we are stronger in the L-rd because of this. It was hard, but it was good for both of us.
 
Wow, God is good, nice to hear your testimonials.

I was raised in the Christian Scientist cult, but even as a child I was rotten to the core, so much so they told my mother to stop bringing me! LOL

I never thought about God, but there were so many instances in my life that I should of died and didn't, as a teenager on New Years Even '67 I was OD'ed on a very potent form of LSD called STP, I knew I was dying, I could feel the nerves in my body turning off as first my toes lost feeling, then my ankles, I held myself up with my arms leaning over a table, behind me was a grey chasm and I knew it was the entry to Hell and if I were to fall into it I would be lost forever (how did I know that, CS does not teach or believe in Hell), my body continued to shut down, I could no longer feel my legs or my abdomen touching the table, I was terrified beyond words to describe it, then my hands and wrists went numb and I fell backwards, as I was falling I cried out the only religious thing I knew, "Father," ...and was instantly straight....., I walked out of the kitchen into the front room where my so called "friends" were, I was so confused, what just happened, as I started to open my mouth I looked up at the corners of the ceiling and the demons that had been our "spirit guides" were terrified with only the faces visible sticking through the wall, on my left was the front door and I felt or knew I needed to go outside, I turned and opened the door and I felt as if a foot had kicked me in the rear and I heard a voice say to me, "I'll talk to you later," as out the door I went! (I know some of this may be unbelievable and or shocking to some of you, just LSD induced hallucinations, but demons are real and drugs are just a door that allows them into our dimension)

Then I was drafted because I had flunked out of College, got married, because I was told it was the thing to do, ...that way I would have someone to send me cookies and letters (sic), came home, went to work, had a child, but was still rotten to the core if not worse, any exacid freak will tell you that if our brains aren't fried we come away with the silly notion we are Jesus Christ, so I lived in fear of my 33 year, positive I would die like Jesus did, combine that with all of the guilt in my life, my wife divorcing me and taking my two daughters who were the only good that had come out of my rotten despicable life, to marry her draft dodging boyfriend that Regan granted amnesty to, ......January 1982 I turned 33, in June I went nuts, diagnosed as Schizophrenic Paranoid Depressive, I now understand it was the grace of God that allowed me to be an out patient and not be committed to a hospital (what were they thinking, I was a raving lunatic), later that week a lover took me to church where they gave me a Bible with the words of Jesus in red, I found if I read those words in red I could sleep (I hadn't slept in 5 days), 18 months later they declared me healed, they thought it was because of their therapy and drugs (I took their drug one time and I came on just as if I had dropped acid, now what does that tell you about their drugs?), but I know now it was Jesus that healed me, I walked out of the therapist's office with his congratulations still ringing in my ears and considering what he told me about starting my life again, ...I had been given a second chance (ha!).

What was I going to do with this second chance? Inside of me I knew I was still the rotten, mean, vile, unstable person I was before, however also inside of me I felt the need to become "religious" so I contacted my lover that had taken me to church at the beginning and started attending church again, I was welcomed as their "golden boy," man were they fooled, soon I was in the "ministry," I taught an adult Bible study, was in charge of the youth, helped out in Sunday School, organized the Saturday morning men's breakfast and work day and played in the Worship band, ...the pastor encouraged me to go to college to get my "degree" and become "ordained" and the incredible thing was I was considering it, ...I hated school!

Then in July of '86 I was born again, ...being so close to the pastor allowed me to see the other side of the backwards collar, at that time I was listening to Bible studies on my radio at work, but Sundays I was hearing hm shoot Scriptural arrows at the people in the congregation that disagreed with him, hmmmmmm, one day I prayed and asked Father to put me in a church that taught what I was hearing on the radio and where the Love of God was sincere, ......and He did, He moved me out of California into Nevada to a tiny church of 35 people where I heard about grace for the first time and experienced the Love of Christ working in the Church!

Thank you Jesus and Praise you Lord!

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen and Amen

May the Lord richly bless you my brother and sisters in Christ like He has blessed me,

Gene
 
I hope it offends no one that I put this song here, but as I learn more about believers, I learn that many are brought to the L-rd because they learn, as I did, and like JustPassingThru, to understand His love.
 
Thanks you guys for sharing your stories!! I haven't read all of them just yet, but i got through about half

I will share this realization moment with you because I've been dying to tell somebody so I can find out if anybody else has had this experience. It falls short of a full testimony, but here it goes...

During graduate school I was in a really bad place. I was struggling to find a job, struggling to keep up in class, where I was doing very poorly, and I was unhappy socially. When I got invited (rare) I'd go out and drink too much, spending money I didn't have on expensive drinks, and feeling unhappy, always leaving the party feeling regretful and sad, thinking what was the point of that. I had gone out with a guy and drank too much and let things go too far, and missed class the next day. And for what, the guy wasn't interested in me any more , so that went nowhere. It was a form of self-sabotage I believe. I did vow to not act in that manner ever again - getting drunk and doing reckless stuff I wouldn't do while sober. But it was around that time, that I started feeling like this is not right. I had this feeling inside that this had to be the rock bottom. [and I should note that I was never an "alcoholic" or anything - it's just that when I did go out, i'd not know my limit and i'd think that i'd have more fun if intoxicated, and I was insecure... And another thing I should note is that my "rock bottom" was pretty tame compared to what I know a lot of my peers think is no big deal. But i had always had a nagging feeling inside me that I didn't like this lifestyle, even if it wasn't totally "badass" (lol)] I was losing sleep out of anxiety and guilt. I had already made a habit of going to Catholic Church every week, and it made me feel calm and protected during that hour or so, but I also felt very little, like I was going through the motions. (I happen to still think that Catholic masses are the same routine each time, except for the reading of the Gospel, which takes about 4% of the time you're there. the rest of it is identical to every other mass, if you ask me. No offense if you attend a Catholic mass, i'm just saying I couldn't get into it.)
At around that time, during the same month as that date with that guy, I actually began to forego my bed and started setting up a blanket on the floor, Japanese style, except without a cushion. I didn't tell anybody. Not even my roommate knew what I was up to. And I know it was a weird thing to do. But there was something oddly comforting in it. I am not sure if I was trying to punish myself - as in, I thought I didn't deserve a soft bed, or if it was the idea of having to clean it up in the morning and set it up in the evening that forced me to get into a routine, rather than laying in bed all day. I also would cry myself to sleep fairly regularly. I felt very lonely and scared.
Well, here's the part where I am wondering if anybody else can relate or if I am completely crazy. don't be afraid to tell me. One night when I was laying on the floor, and I think i was crying, I felt this presence come into the room and hovered over me. I didn't SEE anything, but i just KNEW that it was God (or the Holy Spirit?) and it spoke to me, well not actually SPOKE to me, it was like it transmitted the message into my brain without me actually HEARING it, if that makes sense. The message I received was that I do not need to be afraid because everything is going to be ok, and He is taking care of it. I'm sorry to say that the memory is gettiing fuzzy. I really really wish I had memorialized what happened, but I didn't so i'm almost forgetting exactly what happened. But whenever i start to do things or am tempted to do worldly things that go against God, I think, don't you remember that night? when I was visited by the Holy Spirit? It was THE turning point for me.
I never actually explained it to anybody else. And when it happened, I was very unfamiliar with anybody else's testimony or Bible stories. All I had to work with was that "encounter" and at the time I just KNEW who it was. And I was pretty amazed. A part of me still can't believe it 100%, because it's like one of those things you can't explain through earthly logic.

so the thing about how SOMETHING came over me that night and told me (for lack of a better word) that im being looked after and I should stop being so scared /sad... is this consistent with other people's experiences? what do you think?
 
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porcupine73 said:
Mine is on my 'information' tab in my profile, for some reason if I try to copy and paste it, it 'mutilates' the Scripture quotes.
[/URL]
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I read your testimony on your profile. Wow, I can really relate to yours in certain ways, especially how you were before that one day that you listened to the Christian radio station. I didn't care too much for God or church either and at a certain point, about a year and a half before my realization, i started going to church too, and I didn't know why. The challenge for me right now also is not to go back to my old habits. It's so easy to do because our society is so secular. I pray about keeping on the narrow path as well. :-)
 
Hi jmilly that is an interesting testimony thank you for sharing. What happened after that? I.e. did God lead you to Scripture? I think I saw in one of your other posts that you joined a Christian group on campus? :)
jmilly said:
Thanks you guys for sharing your stories!! I haven't read all of them just yet, but i got through about half

I will share this realization moment with you because I've been dying to tell somebody so I can find out if anybody else has had this experience. It falls short of a full testimony, but here it goes...

During graduate school I was in a really bad place. I was struggling to find a job, struggling to keep up in class, where I was doing very poorly, and I was unhappy socially. When I got invited (rare) I'd go out and drink too much, spending money I didn't have on expensive drinks, and feeling unhappy, always leaving the party feeling regretful and sad, thinking what was the point of that. I had gone out with a guy and drank too much and let things go too far, and missed class the next day. And for what, the guy wasn't interested in me any more , so that went nowhere. It was a form of self-sabotage I believe. I did vow to not act in that manner ever again - getting drunk and doing reckless stuff I wouldn't do while sober. But it was around that time, that I started feeling like this is not right. I had this feeling inside that this had to be the rock bottom. [and I should note that I was never an "alcoholic" or anything - it's just that when I did go out, i'd not know my limit and i'd think that i'd have more fun if intoxicated, and I was insecure... And another thing I should note is that my "rock bottom" was pretty tame compared to what I know a lot of my peers think is no big deal. But i had always had a nagging feeling inside me that I didn't like this lifestyle, even if it wasn't totally "badass" (lol)] I was losing sleep out of anxiety and guilt. I had already made a habit of going to Catholic Church every week, and it made me feel calm and protected during that hour or so, but I also felt very little, like I was going through the motions. (I happen to still think that Catholic masses are the same routine each time, except for the reading of the Gospel, which takes about 4% of the time you're there. the rest of it is identical to every other mass, if you ask me. No offense if you attend a Catholic mass, i'm just saying I couldn't get into it.)
At around that time, during the same month as that date with that guy, I actually began to forego my bed and started setting up a blanket on the floor, Japanese style, except without a cushion. I didn't tell anybody. Not even my roommate knew what I was up to. And I know it was a weird thing to do. But there was something oddly comforting in it. I am not sure if I was trying to punish myself - as in, I thought I didn't deserve a soft bed, or if it was the idea of having to clean it up in the morning and set it up in the evening that forced me to get into a routine, rather than laying in bed all day. I also would cry myself to sleep fairly regularly. I felt very lonely and scared.
Well, here's the part where I am wondering if anybody else can relate or if I am completely crazy. don't be afraid to tell me. One night when I was laying on the floor, and I think i was crying, I felt this presence come into the room and hovered over me. I didn't SEE anything, but i just KNEW that it was God (or the Holy Spirit?) and it spoke to me, well not actually SPOKE to me, it was like it transmitted the message into my brain without me actually HEARING it, if that makes sense. The message I received was that I do not need to be afraid because everything is going to be ok, and He is taking care of it. I'm sorry to say that the memory is gettiing fuzzy. I really really wish I had memorialized what happened, but I didn't so i'm almost forgetting exactly what happened. But whenever i start to do things or am tempted to do worldly things that go against God, I think, don't you remember that night? when I was visited by the Holy Spirit? It was THE turning point for me.
I never actually explained it to anybody else. And when it happened, I was very unfamiliar with anybody else's testimony or Bible stories. All I had to work with was that "encounter" and at the time I just KNEW who it was. And I was pretty amazed. A part of me still can't believe it 100%, because it's like one of those things you can't explain through earthly logic.

so the thing about how SOMETHING came over me that night and told me (for lack of a better word) that im being looked after and I should stop being so scared /sad... is this consistent with other people's experiences? what do you think?
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porcupine73 said:
Hi jmilly that is an interesting testimony thank you for sharing. What happened after that? I.e. did God lead you to Scripture? I think I saw in one of your other posts that you joined a Christian group on campus? :)
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yes, that's what I did. basically when it happened, it was close to the end of the semester and finals time so I was focused on that, but i spent a lot of time looking up people's testimonies on youtube and watching some sermons. Literally, as soon as finals were over, I looked into Christian groups and found that one, and i think i emailed the people whose contact info was listed on Christmas Eve, lol. I joined the group, and the people were great. It was all I could ask for at that time. It was perfect. But now that time has passed i'm realizing those people were meant to be in my life just for a season. If you saw some of my other posts, I have since felt those people have not been as friendly to me. I just don't want to force it if it wasn't meant to be. it seems like i'm getting plenty of signs to just move on already.

right now i'm in a Bible study group and attend church regularly but my current goal is to do a quiet time every day. I don't do that. and I want to read the whole Bible. I think if I am disciplined about doing a quiet time every day, it will help with that goal of staying on that narrow path.
 
That's great, time alone with God is wonderful. Yes being familiar with Holy Scripture is only to the believer's benefit. Without being familiar with it can be easier to get tricked by false teachers/false prophets. What did God lead you to believe about Jesus Christ?
 
porcupine73 said:
That's great, time alone with God is wonderful. Yes being familiar with Holy Scripture is only to the believer's benefit. Without being familiar with it can be easier to get tricked by false teachers/false prophets. What did God lead you to believe about Jesus Christ?
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That He is loving and patient even to people who don't deserve it.
 
I believed in the Lord Jesus as my Lord and Savior when I was around seven years old. I can still remember vividly that moment at summer camp when the invitation (altar call) was given. I didn’t go forward, though. I just sat right where I was seated on that hard wooden bench in the Pavilion at Beulah Beach Camp grounds, on Lake Erie, in Ohio. I wept, poured my heart out to God, repented of my sin, asked for his forgiveness, and invited him into my life to be my Savior. I know I was transformed of the Spirit of God at that very moment. I wanted nothing more in life but to follow Jesus wherever he would lead me.

I was very involved in church as a child, as a youth, as a young adult, and into my more mature adult years. My birth family was there just about every time the doors were open, as the saying goes. Yet, my home life was difficult. There were abuse and neglect issues. Yet, that only drew me closer to my Lord. I drew on his strength and comfort all the time just to make it through each day. It wasn’t all bad, though. I have happy memories, too. I was not a perfect child, though. I battled with temptations of my flesh, and sometimes I gave in. Yet I know I went to the Lord in prayer, asking for his help, guidance, wisdom and strength to help me to resist Satan, to flee temptation, and to draw near to God.

I took God and his word very seriously. That made me an odd ball, peculiar, different. I was never popular. Yet, I wanted to do what he said and what his word said. I had a strong child-like faith that believed God and took him at his word. During missionary conferences, the call to go to the mission field pulled on my heart strings. I cried out to God, committing myself to follow my Lord wherever he would send me. “I’ll go where you want me to go, dear Lord, o’er mountain, or plain, or sea; I’ll say what You want me to say, dear Lord, I’ll be what You want me to be” (Mary Brown), I would sing. And, yet, it was not his will for me to go to a foreign mission field at that time in my life. My work was on the home front.

I married Rick Love in August of 1972, nearly 42 years ago. We have four children. We have lived many different places. For many years we were very involved in church ministry together, singing in the choir, in ensembles, singing duets or in small groups, teaching Bible studies or working with children, youth and then college students. We had and have our battles, too. No marriage is perfect. Yet we have had many good years together, too, and I have an abundance of happy memories of our times together, and with our children, with our children’s spouses, too, and with their children, i.e. with our grandchildren, now totaling twelve – seven girls and five boys. I love our family times together. My grandchildren bless my heart on a regular basis. I know I am very blessed, and I don’t take that for granted.

Because of my close walk with the Lord, though, and because I took him and his word so seriously, I faced a lot of rejection in my life. I am not saying I was perfect or that people were not rejecting my personality, or that I didn’t have room for improvement, or that I never failed. I did, and I still do, yet I often stood out like a sore thumb because of my relationship with my Lord and because of my seriousness concerning his word. It hurt to get rejected and to be misunderstood, though. And, although I knew my Lord was there, and that he would comfort me, encourage me, counsel me and help me through these times, I struggled to truly grasp his sovereignty over my life, and so there were times when I just wanted to give up and run away from it all. There were times when I did just that, too.

I went through a period of several years where I was on an emotional roller coaster ride, it seemed. I would walk with the Lord and obey him and be in fellowship with him for a time, and then I would regress and would escape into sinful behavior patterns, only to come back to the Lord and follow him again, only to fall back into sin again and to disobey him. I would never have imagined at an earlier point in my life that I would have ever gotten to this low point in my life where I did some of the things that I did in disobedience to my Lord, but I did. Yet, in his love and mercy, “He reached down from heaven and rescued me; drew me out of waters so deep, I’d sink. He delivered me from Satan and my slavery to sin;” and he gave me hope once again. I shut the door on my past, and I never went back.

Then, the Lord Jesus called me to be a missionary, to take his gospel to the ends of the earth, but not by sending me physically to a foreign country. He called me to write down what he teaches me through his word each day, and to give it to a “runner” (the internet) so that the runner could “Run With It.” He spoke to me through Habakkuk 2:2-4:

Then the Lord replied:

“Write down the revelation
and make it plain on tablets
so that a herald may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time;
it speaks of the end
and will not prove false.
Though it linger, wait for it;
it will certainly come
and will not delay.​

Then he did something I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams. He gave me dreams and visions as allegories to illustrate Biblical truth in a way which was relevant to the world around me, and that was applicable to my life and to the life of the church. He showed me things I would not have known had he not revealed them to me through his Spirit. And, with great fear and trembling, but in the power and working of the Spirit within me, and with child-like faith, I dared to share what I believed he was revealing to me through his word and by his Spirit, i.e. how the word of God is being fulfilled in our day, and how it is to be applied to the real life situations which are going on in our world.

He also gave me numerous songs, too, to write as my testimony for him, and for my encouragement, and for the encouragement and strengthening of the body of Christ. The words and music came from him and from his word, so all praise and glory go to him. Most all of the songs, if not all, contain the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus has had me sharing that gospel in writing for eight years this past June 27th. It is the gospel taught by Christ and by the apostles, but it is not a popular message today, and it is becoming even less popular as the days go by and so many are altering it to make it pleasing to humans.

Many throughout the world are being killed for that gospel. And, it is because they “keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus” (See Rev. 12:17), they do not deny his name, they refuse to bow to “the beast,” and they will not take its mark. Amen!

He Reached Down / An Original Work / February 3, 2014
Based off Psalm 18

How I love You, Lord,
My Rock and my strength.
My God is my fortress;
I hide in Him.
He is my shield and the horn of
My salvation, whom I praise.
I have found my refuge in Him.

He reached down from heaven
And rescued me;
Drew me out of waters
So deep, I’d sink.
He delivered me from Satan
And my slavery to sin;
Gave me hope of heaven with Him.

My God turned my darkness
Into His light;
Opened up my blinded eyes;
Gave me sight.
As for God, his way is perfect.
He gives strength to stand secure.
I have found my vict’ry in Him.

My Lord lives!
Praise be to my Savior God,
Jesus Christ, who died
On a cruel cross.
He is my Rock and the source
Of my salvation, whom I trust.
I will give praise always to Him.

http://originalworks.info/he-reached-down/
 
SueJLove said:
I believed in the Lord Jesus as my Lord and Savior when I was around seven years old. I can still remember vividly that moment at summer camp when the invitation (altar call) was given. I didn’t go forward, though. I just sat right where I was seated on that hard wooden bench in the Pavilion at Beulah Beach Camp grounds, on Lake Erie, in Ohio. I wept, poured my heart out to God, repented of my sin, asked for his forgiveness, and invited him into my life to be my Savior. I know I was transformed of the Spirit of God at that very moment. I wanted nothing more in life but to follow Jesus wherever he would lead me.

I was very involved in church as a child, as a youth, as a young adult, and into my more mature adult years. My birth family was there just about every time the doors were open, as the saying goes. Yet, my home life was difficult. There were abuse and neglect issues. Yet, that only drew me closer to my Lord. I drew on his strength and comfort all the time just to make it through each day. It wasn’t all bad, though. I have happy memories, too. I was not a perfect child, though. I battled with temptations of my flesh, and sometimes I gave in. Yet I know I went to the Lord in prayer, asking for his help, guidance, wisdom and strength to help me to resist Satan, to flee temptation, and to draw near to God.

I took God and his word very seriously. That made me an odd ball, peculiar, different. I was never popular. Yet, I wanted to do what he said and what his word said. I had a strong child-like faith that believed God and took him at his word. During missionary conferences, the call to go to the mission field pulled on my heart strings. I cried out to God, committing myself to follow my Lord wherever he would send me. “I’ll go where you want me to go, dear Lord, o’er mountain, or plain, or sea; I’ll say what You want me to say, dear Lord, I’ll be what You want me to be” (Mary Brown), I would sing. And, yet, it was not his will for me to go to a foreign mission field at that time in my life. My work was on the home front.

I married Rick Love in August of 1972, nearly 42 years ago. We have four children. We have lived many different places. For many years we were very involved in church ministry together, singing in the choir, in ensembles, singing duets or in small groups, teaching Bible studies or working with children, youth and then college students. We had and have our battles, too. No marriage is perfect. Yet we have had many good years together, too, and I have an abundance of happy memories of our times together, and with our children, with our children’s spouses, too, and with their children, i.e. with our grandchildren, now totaling twelve – seven girls and five boys. I love our family times together. My grandchildren bless my heart on a regular basis. I know I am very blessed, and I don’t take that for granted.

Because of my close walk with the Lord, though, and because I took him and his word so seriously, I faced a lot of rejection in my life. I am not saying I was perfect or that people were not rejecting my personality, or that I didn’t have room for improvement, or that I never failed. I did, and I still do, yet I often stood out like a sore thumb because of my relationship with my Lord and because of my seriousness concerning his word. It hurt to get rejected and to be misunderstood, though. And, although I knew my Lord was there, and that he would comfort me, encourage me, counsel me and help me through these times, I struggled to truly grasp his sovereignty over my life, and so there were times when I just wanted to give up and run away from it all. There were times when I did just that, too.

I went through a period of several years where I was on an emotional roller coaster ride, it seemed. I would walk with the Lord and obey him and be in fellowship with him for a time, and then I would regress and would escape into sinful behavior patterns, only to come back to the Lord and follow him again, only to fall back into sin again and to disobey him. I would never have imagined at an earlier point in my life that I would have ever gotten to this low point in my life where I did some of the things that I did in disobedience to my Lord, but I did. Yet, in his love and mercy, “He reached down from heaven and rescued me; drew me out of waters so deep, I’d sink. He delivered me from Satan and my slavery to sin;” and he gave me hope once again. I shut the door on my past, and I never went back.

Then, the Lord Jesus called me to be a missionary, to take his gospel to the ends of the earth, but not by sending me physically to a foreign country. He called me to write down what he teaches me through his word each day, and to give it to a “runner” (the internet) so that the runner could “Run With It.” He spoke to me through Habakkuk 2:2-4:

Then the Lord replied:

“Write down the revelation
and make it plain on tablets
so that a herald may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time;
it speaks of the end
and will not prove false.
Though it linger, wait for it;
it will certainly come
and will not delay.​

Then he did something I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams. He gave me dreams and visions as allegories to illustrate Biblical truth in a way which was relevant to the world around me, and that was applicable to my life and to the life of the church. He showed me things I would not have known had he not revealed them to me through his Spirit. And, with great fear and trembling, but in the power and working of the Spirit within me, and with child-like faith, I dared to share what I believed he was revealing to me through his word and by his Spirit, i.e. how the word of God is being fulfilled in our day, and how it is to be applied to the real life situations which are going on in our world.

He also gave me numerous songs, too, to write as my testimony for him, and for my encouragement, and for the encouragement and strengthening of the body of Christ. The words and music came from him and from his word, so all praise and glory go to him. Most all of the songs, if not all, contain the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus has had me sharing that gospel in writing for eight years this past June 27th. It is the gospel taught by Christ and by the apostles, but it is not a popular message today, and it is becoming even less popular as the days go by and so many are altering it to make it pleasing to humans.

Many throughout the world are being killed for that gospel. And, it is because they “keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus” (See Rev. 12:17), they do not deny his name, they refuse to bow to “the beast,” and they will not take its mark. Amen!

He Reached Down / An Original Work / February 3, 2014
Based off Psalm 18

How I love You, Lord,
My Rock and my strength.
My God is my fortress;
I hide in Him.
He is my shield and the horn of
My salvation, whom I praise.
I have found my refuge in Him.

He reached down from heaven
And rescued me;
Drew me out of waters
So deep, I’d sink.
He delivered me from Satan
And my slavery to sin;
Gave me hope of heaven with Him.

My God turned my darkness
Into His light;
Opened up my blinded eyes;
Gave me sight.
As for God, his way is perfect.
He gives strength to stand secure.
I have found my vict’ry in Him.

My Lord lives!
Praise be to my Savior God,
Jesus Christ, who died
On a cruel cross.
He is my Rock and the source
Of my salvation, whom I trust.
I will give praise always to Him.

http://originalworks.info/he-reached-down/
Click to expand...


I like it mmmm hhhmmmm Good words :) mmm hhmmm
 
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