My Salvation Story.

When I was in college I had no doubt that I was in the right place educationally and relationally. I never heard of the Christian doctrine of being born again or forgiven. I grew up Catholic but was never really religious. One day at my apartment, two men came to my door and tried to explain a different kind of faith from the one I grew up in. I'm pretty sure that I began my search for God at that point, although these men were not the kind of Christians that I later began to know later in my life. However these men opened the door for me to receiving Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, even though they weren't that kind of Christian, when I got home from college.

I was studying musical theatre and was serious about becoming an actor, but during the end of my second year I began to become disillusioned with myself and didn't know it, but I was questioning my purpose for being in the program. As a result, I missed some mandatory classes I needed to be present for in order to be academically eligible to make it to the third and final year of my program. I was called as a young man into the office of someone who had the power to send me home early, and for good. To be honest, I didn't fully understand why I was about to be asked to leave the program, however the question the teacher/administrator asked me was "are you willing to accept the consequences?" I sincerely said yes, and that's when I found out I wasn't coming back for the final year.

I wasn't upset, although when I moved back home I remember being depressed for an entire day. I decided to go on a bike ride around my neighbourhood, I was sad and felt like I was lost. I remember sprinting on my bike on my last lap home, and it was my way of telling myself that I wasn't going to give up on myself! Sometime later at work, I heard the gospel for the first time, and about a week later I had made my peace with God.

I remember someone asking me at work what it was to be born again, and I gave him an answer to the best of my ability, even though now I know it was a weak answer. I knew something had happened to me as a result of me being saved, I was happy. Salvation is a free gift, and you can't lose it, even though I thought I had lost it after a short while. Having the Lord in my life since then has given me a real faith, and a confidence that God knows me, and I know him. I find myself in deep love with the Lord, a clear sign that my life now has the purpose that I was looking for, just before I was asked to leave college. I love God, and I love my brothers and sisters in the Lord, and I also love my friends. I pray for my enemies and I try to love them too. This is Mike.

Comments

Some Bible Verses on Money.

Bible verses about money. I bet you didn’t think the bible said that? Proverbs 23:5 When you glance at wealth, it disappears, for it makes wings for itself and flies like an eagle to the sky. 1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. Proverbs 13:11 Wealth quickly gained is quickly wasted — easy come, easy go! But if you gradually gain wealth, you will watch it grow. Psalm 62:10 Don’t make your living by extortion or put your hope in stealing. And if your wealth increases, don’t make it the centre of your life. Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Ecclesiastes 11:1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Malachi 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storeho...

My Story.

In 1999 I suffered a mental health crisis and admitted myself into the hospital where I live, in which I was given a mental health diagnosis. I didn’t want to receive medication at the time, but unwillingly accepted it. I was in the hospital for about two months, when I asked my doctor if I could go home, and he said yes, even though he thought it would have been better if I stayed longer. I was glad to be home though, but at 25, it took some adjusting to feel truly at home. One of the problems I was having at home was it was hard for me to eat the food in the house. I was having a psychosis where I felt the food wasn’t mine, and I literally had to go out to eat, or buy bread from the supermarket and take it home to eat it. Eventually this wore off, but I don’t remember how long. I was now on ODSP and had a check come to me every month in order to have financial support. I would occasionally have a crisis, and ask my mom to drive me to the hospital, but eventually th...

Why has the church lost its capacity and power?

The church has modernized itself and in the process has lost something very valuable. It has lost its capacity to be personable. The way we reach lost souls is by seeing them, by getting to know them, and by recognizing them, but people are getting lost in the church. The church has become a busy place and is also becoming a less holy place. To make disciples we have to get to know people, and technology in the church is depersonalizing souls, and depersonalizing God for them. Faith becomes a marketable commodity, whereas in the past, churches and their leaders nourished and valued personal faith. While faith is still valued, it’s becoming something that is marketable, which reminds me of the story of Jesus in the temple turning over tables (Matthew 21:12-17). The problem isn’t that the church doesn’t work or doesn’t want to share the gospel, it could be how we are doing it. The church is currently being run like a business, and each Christian metaphorically speaking has a profit...

The Super Blogosphere of a parallel word.

Search This Blog