Tuesday, October 18, 2011

My Testimony

My Testimony

I grew up in a wonderful christian home with very loving parents.
I was always especially close to my mother who always showed me deep love.
I went to a christian middle school growing up, grades one through eight.
In the first grade my teacher witnessed to the classroom about the sacrifice
paid by Christ and how he died for our sins and how we need to accept His forgiveness
and make Him our Lord and Savior which I did. I bowed my head right there and asked
Him to come into my life and forgive my sins, so I was saved when I was seven years old.
When I was ten I got a phone call that my mom was in a car wreck and was on life support.
She later died in the hospital which devastated me as we were always very close.
I was in deep depression for two years and when I turned twelve I started experimenting with drugs and alcohol.
Even christians can backslide and all have sinned and are sinners which is why
we need to keep Jesus close to our hearts at every moment. I grew more addicted to drugs and alcohol and had
several close calls on my life through my use as God was chastening me.
He will not let us continue in sin but will chasten us because of His love for us.
I experimented with all types of drugs and my use continued through my early teens and twenties.
Needless to say I got in with the wrong group of friends.Through all of my use I continued to pray
and try my best to walk as a christian but I knew that I was sinning against God and hurting him by my actions.
When I was twenty five I learned that I had hepatitis c which there is no cure for.
This was also devastating to me but still I didn't stop my drinking and drug use.
I entered rehab several times but never took quitting seriously until I was twenty seven when
I stopped for three years. After that I convinced myself that it would be ok to try and drink socially
so I started drinking again which led back into full force drug use.
When I was in my thirties I overdosed on heroin and actually died for for about five minutes.
I was clinically dead as my heart had stopped. I was revived by paramedics and went home only to do more drugs
not caring much for my life. Through all of this I spent time in prison for assault on someone when I was drinking
and was as I mentioned before in and out of rehab.I was also kicked out of apartment after apartment.
My father helped me through all of this the best he could and we remained very close.I know that his help
was a gift from God. If not for him and the mercy of Jesus I would without doubt be dead now.
I began to pray that God would let me meet a nice christian lady and told Him that I would stop
using if He would do this. I prayed this for three years until He answered me. It is imperative to continue
our prayer requests even when it seems like He doesn't hear us because He does. I know now that He was waiting
to introduce into my life the perfect woman who is now my wife. Her name is Christina. I almost lost her due to
my drinking because I did not stop right away but she stayed by my side and supported me.
I kept my word to God and stopped drinking and doing drugs all together. I have been clean and sober
now with God's help for over four years and also due to the great love my wife showed me.
She was truly a gift from God. I am forty one now and I know that God has given me a new lease on life.
I still with His mercy have several happy years left to live. Sixteen years later after finding
out I had hepatitis c I learned that there is no damage to my liver from this at all.
It is perfectly normal thanks be to God!
My wife and I live a happy spirit filled life together and hope to for many years to come.
We have faith and know that we will as long as we do one thing, keep Jesus first.