I could write so much here as I have kept journals since I was 9 or so. But, in respect of your time and to highlight the most important things, I'll try to keep it brief.
I grew up in a small town in FL until the age of 14. I am the oldest of 4 children, 3 girls and 1 boy. My family wasn't wealthy by any stretch of the imagination but for the most part we had enough.
I wasn't reared in a Christian home either. We didn't pray at home, read the Bible together, or live by God's precepts, but Mom did make it a point to take us to Church relatively often for a period of time. I give her great credit because she didn't just drop us off to go by ourselves, she went with us. For me, just as for Rusty, going to Church was a way of socializing. We lived in the country and going to Church was a way we got to see people other than our family. It was in Church that I heard of God and Jesus, sin and our need for repentance. I wasn't sure what all that meant but every Sunday after the sermon, there was an invitation to walk to the altar to the song "Just As I Am" and ask Jesus to forgive me.
I was 12 years old when there was a young lady visiting our Church who came to sing for us. She sang the song "Jesus my Everything". I'm sitting in the pew, tears streaming down my face, knowing that I wanted to know this Jesus that she sung so beautifully about. At the end of that service, I went to the altar and asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins and take over my life. I was baptized not long after on a chilly Feb morning in a baptismal that had no hot water. I remember coming up out of that water and taking in the deepest breath of my life. I'm not sure if it was solely due to the cold water or the feeling I was taking the first breath of new life, but it's a breath I remember to this day! A dear lady from Church, Mrs Banta, gave me a Bible as a baptism gift. It was "The Living Bible" a paraphrased version, but it was very easy to read and understand for a 12-year old. I cherish that Bible to this day. She also encouraged me to come to her if I had any questions about what I read, or about Christ, or about life in general. She was one of God's faithful servants!
Life for my family got really difficult not long after that. Mom and my stepfather divorced (after many many years of fighting) and we found ourselves without a home and no money. I was so happy to be out from under that man's roof that I was okay with not having anything else. Again, God used Mrs Banta as a wonderful servant. She gave us a roof over our heads, brought us groceries and made sure we had what we needed. It makes me tear up today to know how much of a sacrifice that lady must've made for us. We were no relation to her at all, had nothing to give her in return, and yet, she gave to us unselfishly. This my friends, is the love of Christ. She not only helped me with my spiritual growth, but she met a very physical and emotional need.
During this time, I grew especially close to Jesus. I would steal away to private places in the woods, in the pasture, along the river, where ever I could get away from everyone, take my Bible, read and pray. Jesus was as real to me as anyone else. He became the Father I didn't have. I couldn't see Him with my eyes, couldn't hear Him with my ears, nor touch Him with my hands, but He was there, speaking and guiding me. Every now and then I will open up that old Bible and look at the notes I used to write within it's pages and I'm amazed at the insight I had as a young child.
A big change came in my life again at the age of 14. My Mom remarried and we moved from north FL to Swaziland, Africa. Ripped out of my comfort zone, God put a missionary family in our life that had a great impact on me. They modeled for me how a Christian family is to live. It involved a lot more than just going to Church. They sang songs of praise and hymns, they read the Bible and prayed together. They sacrificed living a life of creature comforts to serve others. Oh, they weren't perfect! No one is. That's the whole point of the Gospel and the good news. But they lived out their faith in a tangible way.
I moved back to the States when I was 15 and because of the vast differences in the education system (I had been attending a college prep school for girls in South Africa), I was placed into 11th grade versus 10th where most kids my age were. Being with "older" kids, coupled with being the new girl in a new school in a new State (Indiana), and the great need to fit in, I turned away from living for Christ. Boy, how quickly we forget and fall!
In my High School memory book, in the section where you're to write your goals for the future, I wrote this list in this order:
1. I want to serve God.
2. I want to be married only once to a man who loves me and our children.
3. I want a nice house.
4. I want a nice car.
This is important as you'll see when you read the rest of the story! :-)
Proverbs 22:5-7 "In the paths of the wicked are snares and pitfalls, but those who would preserve their life stay far from them. Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it."
I grew up in a small town in FL until the age of 14. I am the oldest of 4 children, 3 girls and 1 boy. My family wasn't wealthy by any stretch of the imagination but for the most part we had enough.
I wasn't reared in a Christian home either. We didn't pray at home, read the Bible together, or live by God's precepts, but Mom did make it a point to take us to Church relatively often for a period of time. I give her great credit because she didn't just drop us off to go by ourselves, she went with us. For me, just as for Rusty, going to Church was a way of socializing. We lived in the country and going to Church was a way we got to see people other than our family. It was in Church that I heard of God and Jesus, sin and our need for repentance. I wasn't sure what all that meant but every Sunday after the sermon, there was an invitation to walk to the altar to the song "Just As I Am" and ask Jesus to forgive me.
I was 12 years old when there was a young lady visiting our Church who came to sing for us. She sang the song "Jesus my Everything". I'm sitting in the pew, tears streaming down my face, knowing that I wanted to know this Jesus that she sung so beautifully about. At the end of that service, I went to the altar and asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins and take over my life. I was baptized not long after on a chilly Feb morning in a baptismal that had no hot water. I remember coming up out of that water and taking in the deepest breath of my life. I'm not sure if it was solely due to the cold water or the feeling I was taking the first breath of new life, but it's a breath I remember to this day! A dear lady from Church, Mrs Banta, gave me a Bible as a baptism gift. It was "The Living Bible" a paraphrased version, but it was very easy to read and understand for a 12-year old. I cherish that Bible to this day. She also encouraged me to come to her if I had any questions about what I read, or about Christ, or about life in general. She was one of God's faithful servants!
Life for my family got really difficult not long after that. Mom and my stepfather divorced (after many many years of fighting) and we found ourselves without a home and no money. I was so happy to be out from under that man's roof that I was okay with not having anything else. Again, God used Mrs Banta as a wonderful servant. She gave us a roof over our heads, brought us groceries and made sure we had what we needed. It makes me tear up today to know how much of a sacrifice that lady must've made for us. We were no relation to her at all, had nothing to give her in return, and yet, she gave to us unselfishly. This my friends, is the love of Christ. She not only helped me with my spiritual growth, but she met a very physical and emotional need.
During this time, I grew especially close to Jesus. I would steal away to private places in the woods, in the pasture, along the river, where ever I could get away from everyone, take my Bible, read and pray. Jesus was as real to me as anyone else. He became the Father I didn't have. I couldn't see Him with my eyes, couldn't hear Him with my ears, nor touch Him with my hands, but He was there, speaking and guiding me. Every now and then I will open up that old Bible and look at the notes I used to write within it's pages and I'm amazed at the insight I had as a young child.
A big change came in my life again at the age of 14. My Mom remarried and we moved from north FL to Swaziland, Africa. Ripped out of my comfort zone, God put a missionary family in our life that had a great impact on me. They modeled for me how a Christian family is to live. It involved a lot more than just going to Church. They sang songs of praise and hymns, they read the Bible and prayed together. They sacrificed living a life of creature comforts to serve others. Oh, they weren't perfect! No one is. That's the whole point of the Gospel and the good news. But they lived out their faith in a tangible way.
I moved back to the States when I was 15 and because of the vast differences in the education system (I had been attending a college prep school for girls in South Africa), I was placed into 11th grade versus 10th where most kids my age were. Being with "older" kids, coupled with being the new girl in a new school in a new State (Indiana), and the great need to fit in, I turned away from living for Christ. Boy, how quickly we forget and fall!
In my High School memory book, in the section where you're to write your goals for the future, I wrote this list in this order:
1. I want to serve God.
2. I want to be married only once to a man who loves me and our children.
3. I want a nice house.
4. I want a nice car.
This is important as you'll see when you read the rest of the story! :-)
Proverbs 22:5-7 "In the paths of the wicked are snares and pitfalls, but those who would preserve their life stay far from them. Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it."
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