I was raised by good, Christian parents with morals and values. Yet, they did not raise ME to be Christian. I was not raised going to church every Sunday. Yes, I was told about Jesus at Christmas and Easter time. I remember my mother telling me a few times in my childhood that Jesus was my savior, but I didn't really understand. Don't get me wrong, I love and adore my parents, they loved me deeply, they just didn't raise me to know Jesus Christ or God.
A few times, my sister and I would walk to The Friends church down the block. Then, when I was older, we attended a Baptist Church in town for a couple of years, where I was baptized. One Sunday, my friend, who was sitting next to me in the church pew, grabbed my hand and pulled me down to the front of the church. To my surprise, two weeks later, I was being baptized. I knew very little about Jesus Christ or the Bible for that matter. I was embarrassed because I knew so little, so when asked if I knew Jesus Christ was my savior, I said yes. Then I was dunked at a service for friends and family, and that was that. Did this mean I was a Christian? Nope.
For the next 33 years of my life, I continued to sin, some sins are worse than others, in our eyes, but according to God, it's all bad. During my years, I acquired several bibles, the King James version and the Living Bible. I opened them occasionally, if I attended a church service, but usually by the time I found the correct verse, the pastor had moved on. I tried to open the bible and read from the beginning, but it soon fizzled out, I just "didn't get it".
Still, I considered myself a Christian, because I believed that Jesus was God's son. Guess what? That didn't make me a Christian. I believed I was even if I continued to sin, sometimes aware of my sin, and other times not aware....I was just doing what everybody else was doing. If I knew I was sinning at the time, I told myself it was alright, because I was saved. I knew enough of being a so-called Christian, that Jesus would forgive me. So I just continued on sinning. These included sins such as lying, having premarital sex with each boyfriend and delving into magical and spiritual practices like tea leaf reading, Ouija boards and seeking out spirits of the dead. Wow, was I in trouble with a capital "T".
Slowly, throughout my life, I began realizing that I really didn't know Jesus. I had witnessed several times in my life where He was watching out for me, though. My first husband was physically and mentally abusive and I found myself praying a lot during that time period, not only for myself, but for my children as well. After leaving him, my mother told me to pray for the type of man I wanted to marry. I replied, that if that man existed, he was either already married or didn't want me with all of my problems and extra baggage. Just pray, Kerri. So, I did. And Gary came into my life. Exactly the Godly man I had prayed for. Thank you, Jesus.
My life continued in an upward manner. We attended church and raised the boys going to the Methodist church. I worked in the nursery most Sundays, so I was missing out on a lot of sermons. God and Jesus never gave up on me. After moving to Oklahoma four years ago, my husband and I went through some tough times, losing both sets of parents. God was with us through it all.
Something really amazing happened last year, in 2013. We found a church and church family that we could call home. Christ Community Church in Bartlesville. My husband and I felt that I needed a part time job to keep me occupied and I found one with Ruth's Christian Bookstore at the mall. I was terrified when I received the call that I had the job, it had been almost three years since I had worked outside of the home. But the Lord knew exactly what I needed. This was no accident. I worked with other Christians, surrounded by Holy Bibles and a Christian atmosphere and music. I have learned so much since I began working there. I believe I met an angel who came in one day. His name was Tim. The store was as slow as molasses, I was the only one working, and this kindly gentleman walked in. We talked for a few minutes and I explained to him that I had only been working there for a few weeks. We sat down on a bench and opened up a Study Bible. He taught me step by step how to study the bible. We prayed together. He left, and I have never seen him again. The next month, the owner of the Christian Book store came in with one of her dear friends who was an elderly pastor. They prayed over me and asked for the Holy Spirit to come into me. From that moment on, I have been reading the Bible. God's living words flow through the Bible so that I can understand. His living word is the Holy Bible, I love that we pray over each bible when a customer purchases it.
Not all of my friends and family have a relationship with Christ. Some are turned off by the term Christianity. Some misconceptions about Christianity is that Christians think we are better than everybody else. That is so not true. We know that we are sinners, and only through God's grace are we forgiven. I know now that you can't just "pick out" words or a verse in the bible to prove a point, you have to understand what God is saying through the bible, and to do that you have to have the Holy Spirit within you, through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament. All of God's promises have been fulfilled through the His Son, Jesus Christ, dying on the cross, carrying our sins. Then he was risen again, and he sits at the right hand of God.
As a Christian I know that I must repent of my sins. Does this mean that I will never sin again? No. Yet I know now, by reading the Holy Bible what the Lord expects of me and that is to follow Jesus Christ's example. To love as Jesus loves, to forgive others as God forgave me. That means, that I, as a Christian, who loves my fellow man, does not "accept and be tolerant" of everyone and their sins, but show them Christ's love by leading them to Him, so He can do all good things for them, as He did me.
I am still learning so much. I am a young Jesus follower. I pray every day for guidance. I know that there is nothing I can do to earn my relationship with Him, or to go to Heaven when I die. It is all through God's Holy Grace that we are forgiven. I pray for all of my friends and family to have faith in Him and only Him. Please don't depend on another human being for your happiness, or material possessions, or psychics that convince you they are talking to your loved ones, or material possessions, or loads of money in the bank. Only the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit can fulfill your every need.
So, my final point, people? Please raise your children to know God. Give them a foundation to stand on. I didn't have it, and it took me a LONG time to have a relationship with Christ!
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