I grew up in a Catholic family, and
although we went to church regularly, I felt that there was something missing in
my faith. I received all of the traditional teaching, was baptized as a baby,
went through both Communion and Confirmation, but just never really “got it.”
By the time I graduated from high school, I rarely attended church.
During my final year of
college, I received several months of clinical training in Roswell, NM. While I
was there, I went with some friends to their church, and for the first time,
experienced Bible teaching from the Bible! Clearly, the Lord called me, because
I was so moved by the teaching that I went forward at the invitation. I was
asked a number of questions, but didn’t really know how to respond.
Essentially, I was given the right answers, and was baptized that day. I was
very excited! However, the church didn’t really have any kind of a discipleship
program for new Christians, and my life really didn’t change. In hindsight, I
don’t feel that I fully understood what was being asked of me, or that I truly
experienced salvation at that time, although I did consider myself a Christian.
I went on with my life and married Scot,
who was raised as a Southern Baptist, on August 1, 1987. However, we didn’t
make God, or church, a priority in our lives until our daughter Morgan was
born. After a few years, we began to feel that we should find a church in which
to raise her, and we became members of a local Southern Baptist church. As we
began to regularly attend both church service and Sunday School and were taught
Biblical principles, I finally understood that I was a sinner, and that only
through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ could I be forgiven and become a
child of God! I finally understood “the sinner’s prayer”! Scot and I began to
read our Bibles daily, which helped us grow in our faith, and we became more
involved with our church. I joined our choir, and became a leader in our Awana
Club. Both of these activities helped me grow in a major way – the Awana memory
verses are basically salvation verses, and the various hymns and contemporary
songs that we sang also built on that foundation. Some years later, I spoke
with our pastor about my previous baptism and my concern about whether or not it
was really valid. Based on that discussion, I was baptized by immersion on May
6, 2001.
What a joy it is to know Jesus Christ as my
Lord and Savior! I used to struggle terribly with “worry” and “negativity”
issues in my life. I am much better about both, now that I trust that the Lord
is in control of my life. I try to focus more on Him, His attributes, and His
blessings in my life. One of my favorite Scripture passages is Philippians
4:4-9 – “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your
gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about
anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present
your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers,
whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about
such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in
me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”