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My Story
For the first part of my life I considered fame, wealth, and especially academic achievement as primary goals in life. I thought if I found love, had a family and devoted myself to becoming a success that that was all there was to life. Wrong.
People who say life is just a game are exactly wrong, but it is a contest in the sense that we can be so busy and distracted being led on tangents that we miss the real object and end up losing everything by that mistake.
The breakthrough came when I realized that God was not just a concept or religious idea, but a real person who loved me more than anyone had ever loved me or would ever love me. I saw this when I met some friends who were living out the life and love of Jesus every day. It was only then that it dawned on me that Jesus was a real person in space and time, and that He was risen from the dead, active and powerful to bring substantial healing to the lives of everyday people in this imperfect world. While he was on the earth he did this, and now continues to bring help and life through His Holy Spirit and through Christians.
People who say life is just a game are exactly wrong, but it is a contest in the sense that we can be so busy and distracted being led on tangents that we miss the real object and end up losing everything by that mistake.
The breakthrough came when I realized that God was not just a concept or religious idea, but a real person who loved me more than anyone had ever loved me or would ever love me. I saw this when I met some friends who were living out the life and love of Jesus every day. It was only then that it dawned on me that Jesus was a real person in space and time, and that He was risen from the dead, active and powerful to bring substantial healing to the lives of everyday people in this imperfect world. While he was on the earth he did this, and now continues to bring help and life through His Holy Spirit and through Christians.
Life beyond fads and fashion
I got my BA and MA in history from Ohio State. In the last twenty years I have developed an appreciation for the big picture of historical perspective. It has taught me to carefully analyze the beliefs and trends popular in my lifetime and measure them against the accumulated wisdom of the ages. I have been able to study what a number of great civilizations have held to be valuable and true.
On the other hand, the University was also a place where people had despaired of finding meaning in life. Most did not believe that it was possible to know anything about God. When I speak of God, I mean a personal God, who made us in His image, that actually exists in time and space. I don't mean an impersonal force or an idea. At the University, the people who cared to think about God either thought it wasn't possible to know anything about Him, or were sure that science had disproved His existence.
Among the powerful and influential it is no longer popular to believe in God or hold to traditional Christian beliefs. Many people believe that they can explain our existence apart from deity and especially in the absence of any personal God they will give an account to some day.
On the other hand, the University was also a place where people had despaired of finding meaning in life. Most did not believe that it was possible to know anything about God. When I speak of God, I mean a personal God, who made us in His image, that actually exists in time and space. I don't mean an impersonal force or an idea. At the University, the people who cared to think about God either thought it wasn't possible to know anything about Him, or were sure that science had disproved His existence.
Among the powerful and influential it is no longer popular to believe in God or hold to traditional Christian beliefs. Many people believe that they can explain our existence apart from deity and especially in the absence of any personal God they will give an account to some day.
The Real and Lasting Jesus
Both my intellectual study and my personal experience have led me to Jesus Christ as the ultimate answer to life and every meaningful question (apologies to the late Douglas Adams). He is the only person to rise from the dead. The historical evidence for his birth, life, death and resurrection are well validated.
Even knowing this I was reluctant to give my life to him. It is his love that really drew me to Him. He shows this directly through His Holy Spirit and through the love of other Christians. I have done a lot of ugly things in my life and probably will do some more in the future. It is the vast store of forgiveness and love that he keeps lavishing on us that is beyond resisting. It is hard for you to resist anyone who loves you unconditionally. You are almost bound to like that person. If the person is God it is the most amazing revelation that could ever occur.
Are you avoiding making a decision about God or have you rejected Him in the past? Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but through me." Jesus is the only way to live forever and the only way to find meaning in this life.
Even knowing this I was reluctant to give my life to him. It is his love that really drew me to Him. He shows this directly through His Holy Spirit and through the love of other Christians. I have done a lot of ugly things in my life and probably will do some more in the future. It is the vast store of forgiveness and love that he keeps lavishing on us that is beyond resisting. It is hard for you to resist anyone who loves you unconditionally. You are almost bound to like that person. If the person is God it is the most amazing revelation that could ever occur.
Are you avoiding making a decision about God or have you rejected Him in the past? Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but through me." Jesus is the only way to live forever and the only way to find meaning in this life.