L
LivingMartyr
Guest
I was born into a Christian family and came to the Lord at a very young age. But To be completely honest, I think I should have waited until I was a little older before accepting the Lord as my savior. Just because I didnt understand what being a Christian was really about. Dont get me wrong, I understood who God was, and I knew all of the different childrens Bible stories. But Something I didnt understand was that having a personal relationship with God, was one of the most important things I could ever possibly have. And for a long time I lacked some key elements for any degree of friendship between God and I.
The first was openness to God. One thing that Ive always had a problem with was stress and worrying over the smallest of things. I would never go to God for guidance and strength, I would always charge blindly into the problems with little clue about how I was going to go about fixing them.
The second was complete interest in God. I would occasionally read the Bible, but I would seldom get anything out of it. I know now that in order to grow closer to Christ, you have to immerse yourself in his word, and actually understand what you read. Someone once said If Christ is not the focus of our lives, then our relationship with God is either nonexistent or very shallow
Lastly, the third was respect for God. Without respect, you cant have a strong relationship with anyone, and I wasnt showing God respect with how I was acting and behaving outside of Church. I now understand and believe that proper respect for anyone or anything must begin with God and His Word. If I do not respect my God, who is the ultimate power in the universe, than how can I show respect to any other lower authority?
For a long time, I was what we know to be a weekend Christian; I would go to Church every Sunday, Pray, and worship God; claiming to walk under the banner of Christ, but however my faith was empty. At that time, if you had asked me why I attended Church, Id probably tell you because it felt like the right place to be on a Sunday morning, or that if my parents went, why shouldnt I go?
I think it was around the same time that I started coming to the Emmanuel Baptist, that on a Wednesday Youth Bible Study, something Clicked mentally and I begun to realize that what I was doing was taking me down a dead end road. I began asking my Christian friends, both at school and at youth, about Faith, God and how a Backslider could come back to Christ. I started praying a lot more and reading the Bible, and I started to realize that the God who made the heavens and the earth, had no trouble being seen and heard by those who honestly wanted to know him. The personal relationship that I didnt have for the longest time began to form in me, and Ill never forget how comforted and calm I felt when ever Id open my heart to God and release the burdens I carried inside. A lot of the stress, anger and bitterness I had towards people and life began to be replaced with hope and happiness. I felt healthier, mentally and most importantly spiritually; its hard to explain unless youve experienced it, but I felt completely changed.
One thing that Ill always regret not doing was going to my parents for help and advice when it came to God and Faith. I left them in the dark for along time, and I shouldnt have. I dont know if it was foolish pride, or the fact that I was scared that I had let them down, but I kept my troubles boxed up inside. I realize now that no matter how disappointed they are about the choices Ive made, theyll never stop loving me, and theyll always be there for me.
Someone once said to me that You cant tell someone about God and expect then to listen. You have to show them God. You have to live for Him and let then see . I dont consider myself a believer today because of someone who taught me the gospels or of the things Ive heard in the different Churches that Ive been to; although those things did give me a foundation to start rebuilding on. But the most important reasons why I can stand in front of you today, and testify that the Lord is my personal friend and Savior, are because I saw the life I could live in Christ, I saw the amazing ways God could work through me, and I saw the hope and love that only comes with a saved life.
Living Martyr - Testimony for Baptism, 2006
The first was openness to God. One thing that Ive always had a problem with was stress and worrying over the smallest of things. I would never go to God for guidance and strength, I would always charge blindly into the problems with little clue about how I was going to go about fixing them.
The second was complete interest in God. I would occasionally read the Bible, but I would seldom get anything out of it. I know now that in order to grow closer to Christ, you have to immerse yourself in his word, and actually understand what you read. Someone once said If Christ is not the focus of our lives, then our relationship with God is either nonexistent or very shallow
Lastly, the third was respect for God. Without respect, you cant have a strong relationship with anyone, and I wasnt showing God respect with how I was acting and behaving outside of Church. I now understand and believe that proper respect for anyone or anything must begin with God and His Word. If I do not respect my God, who is the ultimate power in the universe, than how can I show respect to any other lower authority?
For a long time, I was what we know to be a weekend Christian; I would go to Church every Sunday, Pray, and worship God; claiming to walk under the banner of Christ, but however my faith was empty. At that time, if you had asked me why I attended Church, Id probably tell you because it felt like the right place to be on a Sunday morning, or that if my parents went, why shouldnt I go?
I think it was around the same time that I started coming to the Emmanuel Baptist, that on a Wednesday Youth Bible Study, something Clicked mentally and I begun to realize that what I was doing was taking me down a dead end road. I began asking my Christian friends, both at school and at youth, about Faith, God and how a Backslider could come back to Christ. I started praying a lot more and reading the Bible, and I started to realize that the God who made the heavens and the earth, had no trouble being seen and heard by those who honestly wanted to know him. The personal relationship that I didnt have for the longest time began to form in me, and Ill never forget how comforted and calm I felt when ever Id open my heart to God and release the burdens I carried inside. A lot of the stress, anger and bitterness I had towards people and life began to be replaced with hope and happiness. I felt healthier, mentally and most importantly spiritually; its hard to explain unless youve experienced it, but I felt completely changed.
One thing that Ill always regret not doing was going to my parents for help and advice when it came to God and Faith. I left them in the dark for along time, and I shouldnt have. I dont know if it was foolish pride, or the fact that I was scared that I had let them down, but I kept my troubles boxed up inside. I realize now that no matter how disappointed they are about the choices Ive made, theyll never stop loving me, and theyll always be there for me.
Someone once said to me that You cant tell someone about God and expect then to listen. You have to show them God. You have to live for Him and let then see . I dont consider myself a believer today because of someone who taught me the gospels or of the things Ive heard in the different Churches that Ive been to; although those things did give me a foundation to start rebuilding on. But the most important reasons why I can stand in front of you today, and testify that the Lord is my personal friend and Savior, are because I saw the life I could live in Christ, I saw the amazing ways God could work through me, and I saw the hope and love that only comes with a saved life.
Living Martyr - Testimony for Baptism, 2006