I could Praise the Lord for months, weeks,
and days up here, but since
we’re supposed to finish before Winter,
I guess I’ll condense. My life
is a story of not only God’s Infinite
mercy on a sinner, but also of His
Grace. Some would define Grace as unmerited
favor, and I would
definitely agree. Whatever is positive
and right in my life has been
given to me by God. It’s TRUE how James
puts it in his epistle that
every good and every perfect gift is from
above and cometh down from the
Father of Lights, with whom there is no
variableness, neither shadow of
turning (that’s James 1:17 in the
KJV).
As a human, I have shortcomings, and if
you know my weekly schedule, you
know that my head would have imploded
by now if God hadn’t helped me
every step of the way and encouraged me
in all aspects of my life.
Though I professed Faith and was Saved
at an early age, life wasn’t and
still isn’t a piece of cake, but through
thick and thin, my Lord has
blessed me immensely, and I couldn’t EVER
have enough time in a day to
tell you everything He’s done and how
wonderful He is to me. He is
worth every second of service.
One thing I’m very thankful for is that
the Lord has granted me His
Protection from alcohol, drugs, and so
many other trashy activities that
both teens and adults find fun to occupy
themselves with. In Proverbs
4, King Solomon says to ‘keep your
heart with all diligence – for out of
it flow the issues of life.’ I hope to
follow that verse over the
years.
God has given me many opportunities to
share about Him and His Word,
and I find that sharing the Gospel with
others is very Healthy and very
Addictive. More and more I agree with
John the Baptist when he says ‘He
must increase and I must decrease’ (from
John 3:30). I know that Paul
had a pretty good ‘resume’ of sorts, but
He counted it all loss for the
sake of the knowledge of Christ (from
Philippians 3:8). God has blessed
me with success in life, but what will
matter in the end is what I do
for Him and in obedience to Him and His
Will. I know that He’s done so
much for me already, that I will NEVER
be able to do as much back, but I
will give my full heart to Him in service
for my entire life. I’m a big
health nut and like to take care of myself,
so I pray that I can have
many years with a healthy body to serve
the Lord without restraint.
By the redemption through the Blood of
Christ, and by God’s gift of
Grace through Faith to me, and my affirmation
that Jesus Christ is the
Lord and Savior of my life, I have been
cleansed inside, and this
baptism is an outward showing of that
cleansing. Jesus is the best
friend, brother, and Master ANYONE can
ever have. (If you asked me who
my role model was, I wouldn't say Michael
Jordan, I'd say Jesus Christ.
I bet He could dunk over Michael Jordan!)
He’s not a casual
acquaintance, and He has no faults. He
is infinitely Good to all of us,
and I thank Him for that, as well.
Another reason for deciding to get baptized
is to be obedient in
following Jesus Christ, and in addition,
to publicly show my commitment
to Him for my entire lifetime. Wherever
He leads, and whatever He puts
out in front of me to do, I pray earnestly
that I will Glorify Him in
all I do, with Him by my side the entire
way.
If you remember John F. Kennedy, he once
said, ‘Ask not what your
country can do for you, but what you can
do for your country.’ I would
change it around to say, ‘DO ask what
the Lord can do for you, but ALSO
ask what you can do for the Lord.’ I agree
fully with the song “Because
He Lives” in the final words of the chorus,
“and life is worth the
living, just because He lives.’
I will live my life for Him, using everything
He’s given me for His
Glory.
One of my hobbies is writing. I wrote a
poem a few months ago that I
would like to share with you tonight.
"Lord, Let me Serve You"
------------------------
Lord, let me serve You,
How Faithful Thou art,
Let me praise you forever
With all of my heart.
I need You more each day,
You are awesome indeed,
You water my spirit
After planting Your seed.
I have found I am nothing,
But You are Everything,
Lord, I want to exalt You,
To lift my hands to You and sing.
You take care of my sickness,
And You heal my disease,
Oh, the Love that I get
When I fall to my knees.
You comfort me to smiles,
And you wipe away my tears,
And have set me on Your Path
For all of my Years.
How Glorious You Are,
And I will truly serve You,
For the harvest is large,
But the workers are few.
Lord, You hear all my prayers,
But just grant me this plea,
I want to give you everything I have
And give You all the Glory.
I will worship You, Lord,
My Infinite King,
For You have Power over darkness
And over death's bitter sting.
Amen.