Hello all, I am new to this site. I just wanted to introduce myself and tell you a little bit about who I am. This is my Testimony: I own a deck restoration company. I have 3 kids and a wife, so you could say that I am over the hill. When I was very young my father started to attend church. One day, he was out hunting and a man started shooting at him for about a half hour. My dad returned fire but the man was using a .22 caliber which goes much farther than the bird shot that he had in his gun. Even so, my dad shot back to enable himself to get away. The next day my dad accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior. I was about 2 at the time, and my dad took me and my family to church all my life. When I became a teenager we had moved to a new church where I didn't "fit in" with the kids. One thing that I noticed was that alot of small groups of people tend to "shut out" new comers. What ended up happening was that it drove me away from church and I started hanging around with un-believers and maybe people who say they believe in Christ, but didn't live the biblical life. I began drinking when I was around 15, partying, smoking weed, sex with my girl friends, ect. I was not living the way that God wanted me to. When I was young, I could feel God's favor on me, because I tried to stand up for what was right. When I began to live in sin, I felt that favor turn into disapproval. I felt guilty all of the time for what I was doing. I didn't have peace with God. I met a girl when I was around 22 and wanted to marry her. I began to go back to church in an effort to get my life right with God. The problem was that I had already gotten my fiance' in the habit of going to the bars. She didn't want to quit. She began going with her "friends" and began cheating on me. I met a guy at the church who was supposed to be a sunday school teacher and he ended up sleeping with my ex-fiance. (Don't put your faith in man, only in God) I stayed at a house that the people said was possessed by demons (ghosts) I didn't really believe it but I did later. I was sleeping and very strange things would happen. I had Christian music on and every time that it would talk about Jesus Christ and the Cross or the blood, the tape player would shut off. Over and over this happened, something poked me through the mattress several times, the lights wouldn't come on. The guys family was NOT religious but they would tell me stories of things that had happened to them. I believe them. The daughter was literally pulled off her bed by these demons. On top of losing my fiance', staying in this hell house, all of my friends turned on me all within a couple of weeks. My family was never there for me, they didn't really care. They pretty much abused me by neglecting me. We still don't really see each other anymore much. It was the most stressful time in my life. I stopped going to church and I went back to the bars, this time alone. I made new friends but could not get close to them. My life stunk, I hated my life and one day I came to point where I couldn't take it anymore. There was a shotgun in the next room and I told God that if anything else happened to me that I was going to stick the gun in my mouth and pull the trigger. I could feel God's presence standing over me, looking at me. Thank God nothing else happened to me. Somehow, I knew that things were going to get better now. Things slowly began to get better. I met my wife. This is where the story begins to get weird, yet all I can say it that I am telling you the 100% truth from my heart. I began to rent ufo videos out of curiousity. I wanted to study the cases and see what they were all about. I watched one after the other, night after night for about a week. I was laying in bed up stairs in the attick where no one could come up there without making a rucus. My wife was facing the wall and I was sleeping on the outside of the bed. I entered into a "concious sleep" I was aware, yet I was sleeping. It was all black, something grabbed my arms and squeezed them. I recognized this as a demonic attack and resisted, I felt pain in my wrists. When I woke up, my arms were tired as if I had truly been struggling. I woke up and told my wife. The next day, I had bruises on my wrists. The only logical explaination is that it was a spritual injury. I tell you that there is NO WAY in the world that any person did this. I could not have done this to my self. Anyway, because of what happened, I stopped watching ufo movies and began to seek God again. I started listening to Christian radio where any nut can come on there and preach if they claim to be in the name of Christ. Sometimes, when I lay in bed, I can feel evil spirits when they come into the room. I usually look at them and say "The Lord rebuke you" and they leave. There have been hundreds of times throughout my life that I have been tormented by demons when I slept. They have done things of a sexual nature to me, grabbing me and actually hurting me in the males most sensitive area. I began to study Systematic Theology by Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer. These are doctorite level theology books. The first book was on angelology, which was very deep and caused alot of "spritual energy" when I would read it. I could feel a spritual struggle that I could not understand, except that I refused to stop reading. I began to look for a church to raise my family in, my kids were 1 and 2. I wanted to go to a church with more modern music, an upbeat church. I visited a few and had my mind made up which one I liked. I deceided to visit one other church that I had never been to before, a baptist church. It was an old fashioned church, strict, just like I was raised in, totally the opposite of what I wanted. As soon as I met the pastor, we began to argue. It was clear to me that we were completly opposite and that I didn't like him. I filled out the visitors card and they came over to visit me. The date was September 26, 2001. September 11, 2001 had just happened. My 30th birthday was September 9, 2001. A guy named Larry came over to visit me. I thought "they can visit me, but I am not going back there ever again" Larry said "Why don't you come back to our church" I said "I don't think that this is the church for me, how do I know that this is the church that God wants me to go to" "Well have you asked Him?" Larry asked "No" "Why don't you ask Him, pray and ask Him and I will be going" He said So I prayed half heartedly to God. "Dear Lord if this is the church that You want me to go to please let me know....in Jesus name amen" That night, I was laying in bed thinking about weather I was going to go back there or not and I had deceided that I would NOT go back to that church. At that very moment, I felt God's Holy Spirit move into the room. I could not see Him with my eyes, only in my mind. I somehow knew who He was without Him telling me. He came and hovered over my chest and I felt Him look me in my eyes for a few seconds. "I want you to go back to that church" God said into my mind with a meek, humble and kind way. There was no sound. This was surreal. I said "Ok Lord, if that's what you want me to do then I will do it, If that is what you want me to do then I will go back there." Then I began to weep. I couldn't look at Him, I looked away and told Him that I was sorry for my sins and that I was going to serve Him from now on. He heard me out and then I felt Him move out of the room slowly as He came in. The next morning as I was waking up, I heard a voice "I'm gonna get your kids" it was the devil. A few months later I was fighting spritual warfare which I will not get into now. I went back to the church and somehow I didn't know that I could sing, but I became the song leader, Jr. high teacher, lot's of things. This church prints of millions of gospel tracts (little booklets that tell people how to get to heaven) I feel a burden in my heart to pass out tracts and tell as many people about Jesus Christ as I can. Message boards are just one way for me to tell people. I didn't do it, God get's all of the credit. That is the reason that I came here. I came on this message board, not to be pushy, but to proclaim the Gospel, so that whoever will accept Jesus Christ as Savior, would. That is my goal, because that is what God wants me to do and I don't want to see anyone go to hell. Hell is an eternal place of torment and I guarentee that there is not a single person there right now that doesn't wish that they had trusted Christ as Savior of their life so that they didn't have to be there. This is why I urge you to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior. What He did for me, He is willing to do for you also. He will do it for anyone who is willing regardless of your situation or past. You can be 100% sure that you will go to heaven when you die. DO YOU BELIEVE THAT JESUS CHRIST DIED ON THE CROSS AND ROSE FROM THE DEAD FOR YOUR SINS? DO YOU ACCEPT WHAT HE DID FOR YOU TO PAY FOR YOUR SINS? If you are willing to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior please pray this from your heart to God, "Dear LORD JESUS, I believe that YOU died on the Cross and Rose from the dead for my sins. I realize that I cannot get to heaven any other way other than to trust YOU as my SAVIOR. I ask you to forgive me for my sins and take me to heaven when I die. I receive YOU as my Lord and SAVIOR. Thank You for Saving me in JESUS name amen" If you prayed that prayer from your heart to God, and meant it with all of your heart, you are now a child of God and will go to heaven when you die. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS I WOULD LOVE TO ANSWER THEM FOR YOU IN THE DISCIPLESHIP AREA. Thank you, Scott
if god came to you and convinced you to follow him, then why do you think he needs you to spread his message. Surely you dont think you are more capable than god? oh, and could you send some of those sexual demons this way?
Thank you for sharing your testimony. I have been entertaining the idea of making cards out of my salvation post and I believe I shall.
Hold it right there. *grabs a net and throws it on top of the Jesus freak* *administers psychotropic medication*
A psychotropic medication is used to stablize mood (i.e. depression, violent behavoir, mood swings). The medication you are speaking of (the old, "Jesus freaks must be schizophrenic", b.s. routine) is actually a Antipsychotic Drug, or "Neuroleptic". Nice try though.
Congratulations, XFRODOBAGGINSX! I enjoyed your story and I'm very happy for you. I found my salvation in the wisdom of Dionysus. Would you like me to witness to you? Let's everyone tell our stories of salvation. I'd like to hear what everyone else's trancendent experience was like for them. It'd make for a really interesting thread, telling/reading each others most personal and intimate experinces with the divine. Whaddaya think?
God didn't come to me to convince me to follow Him. He came to me to as an answer to prayer. I already followed Him, but I went astray for a while. I should have been telling people about Him the whole time. That was my mistake, not God's. He came into my room, simply to give me direction in my life again and let me know that He is watching over me and loves me. What an awsome, wonderful, all knowing, all powerful, omniceint, omnipresent, King of kings and Lord of lords!
do you know what god did for me............. he helped me remember where I had stored my stash of porn..that god, always helpin me out..
so youve found happiness. good for you. i dont see why you feel necessary to come here and try to get others who have found happiness in other beleif (or lack thereof) systems and try to get them to beleive what you do. are you so insecure in your beleifs that you must have everyone else beleive them as well to justify them to yourself?
Thank you for sharing your story. Funny, I was thinking earlier of starting a thread "What has your Religion done for you"? I think I will start it. I did not grow up in a religious household. The only religion I really heard about was when people would say JC or GD. My Mom did tell me that I can pray anywhere and God will hear me. Growing up I always had a pull to want to know more about God & Jesus. It wasn't until I was 19 years old when I really sunk into a deep depression that I accept Jesus as my Lord & Savior. My husband grew up in a religious household all his life. They went to different churches growing up. His Mother is a very strong believer. After getting to know me some she talked to Bill about him talking to me about God. He did and you know what? I'll be forever grateful for him and his Mom that he did. I know God was working through them to reach me. Bill read some of the Bible to me. I felt like a child but I felt safe. I loved hearing him read to me. He gave me his Bible and told me to read The Book of John first. I did. I went to church on/off for a couple years. I've had bouts with depression and a few other ailments over the years but now when I experience these feelings they are not the same as they once were. I do not let my world fall apart like I once did when I would get depressed. I have a sense of freedom with myself that I never felt before. I enjoy my life much more and in a freer light. I can see beauty in just about everything and everywhere. I'm not preaching to anyone. I'm not saying their way is the wrong way or right way, whatever. I'm just saying this is what I believe and this has worked for me. Thank you again for your testimony.
migu i think he had a spiritual epiphany and wanted to share it. i think youre insecure and maybe jealous? that you havent realized your faith. maybe youre lost
