Salvation
I was a wondering 19 year old kid. I had just gotten my boyish heart broken because I thought I was in Love. Looking back I am sure it was just a crush. I had yet to discover what Love really was. I had no idea what this present life was, and not even a shred of an idea of what eternal life was. I was busy trying to find my way in this life. I was exploring way to make it all make sense. I already learned my first lesson that life wasn't about the opposite Sex (the first of many).
So, I thought life was about having fun, and people around me were having fun by drinking alcohol. I soon found out that God had other plans. Before this life exploration through alcohol started I found out that I had inactive tuberculosis. I couldn't do anything about it until I got to my first unit at Ft. Hood Texas. That in its self was one of many times God had worked in my life to bring me to the point and place were he wanted me. Well I waited until a year in to my exploration through alcohol before I went and got my inactive TB check out. When I did I got put on this medicine (INH) that would take care of this inactive TB.
The only hitch was that I couldn't drink any alcohol for six month. Well hanging out with my so call friend wasn't so much fun any more since I couldn't drink. I still went to Austin with them since none of us could drink down there. We would just go to the Clubs and dance with the women. Well it had been a few months since I started the INH and about six since my little broken heart.
Having a slight Christian up bringing I thought I should go to church. So I walked across the street to the chapel. I sat down in the third pew from the back on the left. I didn't want to sit in the last pew and the second to last was taken up buy this guy and his family, he had eight kids. He soon introduced himself to me as Lauris Shepherd and handed me a flyer about this bible study I had no plans on attending. A few minutes later another fellow came over and introduced himself and tried to hand me a flyer just like the first guy. I just waved my little flyer to let him know I already had one. As soon a service was over I was gone I didn't want to stick around and talk to those fellows.
Well Thursday rolled around and I was laying in my barracks room. I looked over on my night stand and saw that little flyer, and I thought to myself "may be I will meet a nice girl there". Boy did God have other plans. So I walked across the street to the chapel again and sat down at a connection of tables. First some guy shared something from the bible then people split up in to different groups. I stayed in the main room. The guy Lauris showing me and illustration called the Bridge. It shows in a picture how Jesus can bring us to God. He showed that I couldn't get to God by good deeds or anything I could do. I started thinking well may be this is a lot easier then I ever thought it was. I all way thought it was some big hard process. He was telling me all I have to do is believe. Well I was brought up that Jesus was the Son of God and that he lived pure sinless life and died for me. Well I believed that, all that took was head knowledge. What was so hard about that. The snag for me was when Lauris redefined the word Believe for me. He said it meant three things.
The first was REPENT, which means to turn away from, in military terms rear march.
The second was to RELINQUISH, which means to give up the control of my life to Jesus.
The third one was RECEIVE, which meant that then I could truly receive Jesus in to my life as my lord and savior. Well I had a slight problem with the first one I wasn't ready to Repent let alone Relinquish. I was ready to receive, that was about it. Well I continued to go to these bible studies and doing things with this incredible group of Guys. My intentions was to meet some women, instead God introduced me to some awesome men (which some of them are still the greatest of friends today). I was trying to find my answers to life in having fun, and I never thought Christians had fun. By hanging out with these Christians I realized that they do have fun, and more fun than I ever did drinking. I realized one night in my barracks room that Jesus is what this life is all about.
So that warm September night in Texas I Repented relinquished and received Christ in to my heart. At that moment I finally realized what True Love was all about.
Rom 5:6-8 explains it all very well it says this:
You see, at just the right
time, when we were still powerless,
Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man,
though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:
While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (NIV)
Christ died for me and he died for you as well.
Any questions? Write to:
George Clevenger
C co 52nd AVN
Unit # 15203
APO AP 96271Or e-mail at N2JCRU@aol.com
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12/12/03