I grew up in a good, religious household. Church was a weekly activity that Mom and Dad didn’t dare allow my brothers and me to miss.
I can remember plopping myself on a hard, wooden pew at the back of the church and staring up at a life-sized statue of Jesus that hung on a cross at the opposite end of the room. Unfortunately, that statue was symbolic of my relationship with the real Jesus—lifeless and distant. I thought surely He had greater cares than anything I was enduring.
My “Aha” Moment
Thankfully, my concept of Christ was radically changed in an aha moment—what I consider my salvation experience—at a more vibrant church, where I realized that Jesus is alive and personally interested in me. I came to understand that He is someone to draw close to and confide in.
And because He is interested in my everyday life, I learned to depend upon Him for help in my struggles, and to change what needed to be changed. Suddenly, I was no longer at the back and Jesus at the front, but rather, He and I were together. It was the beginning of a deep relationship with God, unlike anything I had previously known.