Post by randy on Oct 7, 2022 1:04:09 GMT
I was a child with a good disposition, and I remember the teachers liked me, and one of them even gave me money. Everything I did turned to gold, but there were warning signs. Some health issues dogged me, and God warned me that the world will not find the right path desirable (a later story).
When I got into my adolescence, I had turned against the Beatles because my parents taught me they were ungodly. But at my cousin's house I couldn't help listening to their 45s--magical!
Later my parents bought me my first Rock album--the Monkees! So I wondered where their opinion changed on Rock musicians? They had wine in their house, but never drank it. I stole some and got drunk for the first time with a non-Christian friend. All my friends were non-Christians and it didn't seem right to hate them and to discriminate against them.
In the end I became a thief, a burglar, a liar, a drug user and a drunk, among other things. I ended up in juvenile hall for selling drugs--I got off by lying about it.
When I first was incarcerated I realized I was detained with a bunch of pagan zombies--they seemed like animals talking through their doors in raw terms.
I realized that I had blown my Christian witness, and now was no better than a pagan. I just laughed it off and began to defy God. Immediately I felt God's presence leave me--I had never known He was with me like that. But when He left I knew that He had been with me all along, and now was extremely displeased with me.
I felt so alone, so isolated, that I begged God repeatedly to come back to me. Ultimately, I felt His reassuring presence again. It's taught me that there is a line we should not cross, if we want God to be with us, to bless us, and to give us comfort in our trials.
When I got into my adolescence, I had turned against the Beatles because my parents taught me they were ungodly. But at my cousin's house I couldn't help listening to their 45s--magical!
Later my parents bought me my first Rock album--the Monkees! So I wondered where their opinion changed on Rock musicians? They had wine in their house, but never drank it. I stole some and got drunk for the first time with a non-Christian friend. All my friends were non-Christians and it didn't seem right to hate them and to discriminate against them.
In the end I became a thief, a burglar, a liar, a drug user and a drunk, among other things. I ended up in juvenile hall for selling drugs--I got off by lying about it.
When I first was incarcerated I realized I was detained with a bunch of pagan zombies--they seemed like animals talking through their doors in raw terms.
I realized that I had blown my Christian witness, and now was no better than a pagan. I just laughed it off and began to defy God. Immediately I felt God's presence leave me--I had never known He was with me like that. But when He left I knew that He had been with me all along, and now was extremely displeased with me.
I felt so alone, so isolated, that I begged God repeatedly to come back to me. Ultimately, I felt His reassuring presence again. It's taught me that there is a line we should not cross, if we want God to be with us, to bless us, and to give us comfort in our trials.