My Life's Story Started Once Upon a Hill |
|||||||||
|
(Don't want to read the whole story? Here's the
MAIN thing.) My life story began like most everyone else's. I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth, neither was I born to poverty. My family was a working middle class country family. My dad worked for Reynolds Tobacco Company in the packaging division's QA area. He grew up in a farming family with his dad having worked for Reynolds also. My mom grew up as a farm hands oldest daughter in Virginia. She worked hard, studied hard; and with the help of family, friends and church family went to college and nursing school and got a BA in nursing. Into this idealic family I was born. Raised with close family all around, knowing that Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles were always near. Raised in church, attending every Sunday. Perfect huh? When I say I was raised in church I mean that we were active in our local church and denomination. I sang in the choirs, played in the band, was a counselor at camp in the summers. I prayed and read my Bible often, but knew something wasn't right. See I know now that there is a God shaped spot in our hearts that nothing else can fill. You can't fill it with "godly" service, you can't fill it with dreams and aspirations. Our denomination was a liberal one. There were some pastors that believed that hell was a place of "seperation" from God. Our denomination believed all the right things regarding Christ's birth, ministry, death resurrection and gracious atonement for our sins. But they just didn't preach it. It makes me wonder if they really "believed" it. The title of this page is, "My Life's Story Started Once Upon a Hill", let me explain. In August of 1983 at the age of 17 I went with a friend, Robert, to a service at Gospel Light Baptist in Walkertown, NC. The speaker that night was Jerry Johnston, an evangelist that was visiting. That night he told the story of Nicodemus the pharisee that came to Jesus by night inquiring of the Kingdom of Heaven and what he must do to go there. Jesus told him that unless a man be born again he would not see the Kingdom of Heaven. Then Jerry Johnston explained what being born again meant. You see the Old Testament Jews offered sacrifices in the temple to atone for there sins. The Bible plainly tells us that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Me, you, and everyone that has been born since Adam and Eve. The Old Testament Law's found in Leviticus provided a way that the people could atone for their sin by the shedding of the blood of an innocent, perfect animal as a substitute for them. But God, thru his son Jesus made the one supreme sacrifice for our sins. Jesus came to earth and took on our earthly form. God the Son in a human body. He grew to adulthood without sin. He was all God and all man in perfection. That the prophecies should be fulfilled and that we may have forgiveness of our sins, he was put to death as the supreme sacrifice on a rugged wooden cross. Taking our place, because God his father cannot allow anything sinful into heaven. He took our sins upon himself, his life's blood spilled down the cross like the blood of lambs and bulls had spilled down the altar in the temple for the forgiveness of the people thru the centuries. On that cross, on the hill of Golgotha overlooking Jerusalem that day, my life in Christ began. Christ made that sacrifice for me and you, it is a gift. But GIFTS must be received. That sacrifice, that mercy, that grace is available to me and you today. We must only approach the Heavenly Father in prayer, confessing that we are a sinner, unworthy of his kingdom, asking his forgiveness for our sins. Asking that you may have the gift of eternal life in Christ. Giving your life to him to tell others of this gift of eternal life. Then turn away from known sins, seeking his guidance in prayer to help you along the way. That's what "Born Again" means, that when your life can start Once Upon A Hill. |
||||||||