INSPIRASUNS

When I was young like just a teenager, I was Baptized. I remember that day so clearly. I had been attending a local Baptist church with a friend and became very involved. I was reading my Bible multiple times a day, I had it highlighted and verses underlined, notes in the margins, you get the idea. I was walking with Father very, very closely. I will never forget my Baptism. As many of you might know, this was a total water immersion, yep, leaned back full dunk. I remember coming up out of the water and genuinely feeling God in me. I felt forgiven, I felt new, and all the other adjectives you think of when you think of being Baptized. I was different, changed, and it was good. So, why do I bring this up in this little blog today? Well….even in Baptism, satan lies in wait.

You see, over the next few months, maybe a year, I continued on my path of staying close to Father, continued to church, reading my Bible, and even sharing God’s love with friends. Then I noticed something, I noticed that friends weren’t inviting me places, they were distant, and stopped calling. I asked one of them finally, “What’s up, what have I done, why is everyone avoiding me?”. The response was simply this, “Ever since you’ve been doing this church thing, ever since you got Baptized, you’re different, it makes us uncomfortable”. Well…not a problem right, I was strong in my faith, and I could help them understand why I was different right? I could show them the same path to Father that I had found. I could show them how they too could be different, how they too could be happy and at peace. I could yes, however, satan saw that small little crack in my faith and slid right in. I could just hear him saying, “See, you followed God and lost all your friends. That’s not right now, is it? You can give a little more time to your friends, it’ll be fine. You can read your Bible anytime, just a little more time with friends is all you need.” Before I knew it I had told my friends, I hadn’t changed, I’m not different, and I can be just like I was before.

It didn’t take long for me to stop reading my Bible. It sat on my nightstand unopened. I stopped going to church, you know, it was more important for me to hang with my friends, even though we didn’t do anything special most of the time. I showed them I was just like them, a kid having fun. I walked away from Father, I walked away from Jesus. Friends, to this day, I regret that decision and every day I ask Father to forgive me for that time in my life when I let satan in.

The journey back to Father, the walk back to where I was just after being Baptized, it hasn’t been easy. There have been many bumps in this road of my life. There have been many times when satan has found the cracks in my faith and put a fork in the road. Many times I took the wrong road back. However, I know this, even though the walk has been tough, the walk back has been so incredibly worth it. Father shows me every day how forgiving and loving He is. He will never turn away from me, He will always be here with open arms to welcome me back to Him. I know that I never want to have to make a journey back to Him again.

Many of you have shared wonderful comments with me about seeing my faith in action and how it inspires you. I wanted to share this story today to let you know that even people who seem the most faithful have had their challenges. Satan does not want you to have faith, doesn’t want you to be close to God, he will always try to separate us from Him. Building a faithful relationship with Father is the most rewarding thing in life and I will fight every day to keep that relationship.

Wherever you are in your journey of this life friends, just know that Father is always here, waiting for you to come to Him, or to come back to Him. If you’ve strayed away from Him, just know that like me, you can make that walk back. When you do, guess what, He will be there waiting. And, hey, if you need a friend to walk with you, let me know, I’ve made that walk and can show you the way 🙂 . Have a great day my friends!

Romans 12:2
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.