I love Jesus of Nazareth with all of my heart; and without
reservation, I entrust my life to Him. I struggle daily to yield my life to the
Holy Spirit. I want to draw closer and closer to God, becoming a vessel of
honor for my Father in Heaven.
I had claimed Jesus’ name, but not followed Him. I believed
He would care for my soul in eternity; but I did not have the kind of mountain
moving faith that Jesus promised could change the world for Him. With important
exceptions, I was “good enough”; and from time to time, I worked at church. But
the Holy Spirit was not present in my life. No one could see Jesus as a major
factor in my life. If they saw me as a moral, ethical and compassionate person,
there was no reason for them to suppose that Christ had anything to do with it.
After fifty years as a Christian and thirty-six as a deacon,
prayer became important to me. A church member invited me to Monday morning
prayer meetings. Soon, I had made a commitment to prayer, and before long, I
was serving as prayer ministry coordinator. I came to be on speaking terms with
God. He listens to me; and I work hard at understanding Him. I plead with the
Holy Spirit to take control of my life. I pray daily that my actions will be
blessings for Jesus.
My life is more complete than ever, and I know that the Holy
Spirit is working. Two necessities have become apparent to me. First, I must
begin to actively and consistently witness to the lost, most especially in my
own community. Second, I need to help churches understand that their primary
responsibility is to teach and lead their people to worship their Father in
Heaven with all of their heart, and to bring their community to Jesus.
Prayer, discipleship, evangelism and self-sacrifice must
become the sum and substance of church. Regular references to these matters and
routine activities will simply not suffice if churches are to become a part of
the solution. There needs to be a growing number of deliberate acts of
deemphasizing sermons, music, recreation, facilities, and professional clergy.
Continued focus on sustaining and growing particular churches is surely a
distraction.
As for becoming an active witness to the lost, I start from
the beginning. With God’s help, I will begin to speak with all sorts of people
about their physical and spiritual needs, inclinations and commitments. I will
tell them what Jesus has done for me, and for others. I will urge them to
consider His works and His words, and then make a commitment to Him. I will
look for people to go with, and I will look for people to go with me.