Do You Know Peace?
I was born in Nyack, NY, on July 7, 1977. I was baptized as a baby and had my confirmation in the sixth grade. Growing up, I did not smoke, use drugs, or run with the wrong crowd. I figured as long as I went to church and was a good girl, I would go to heaven one day. I saw God as a man that sat up in the sky in heaven, was far from me and I did not think I could know Him any other way.
In 7th grade, I met two girls that invited me to their church youth group. It is here where I first was taught that I could have a real relationship with God. I never realized God, infinite and all-powerful, thought about me and was concerned about me. Jeremiah 29:11 says “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
I also never realized the Bible was the VERY WORDS OF GOD and applicable to my life today. You see, the Bible is the oldest book in history. God used 40 different authors to pen His words. Most of these authors lived on different continents and wrote over a period of 1500 years. Yet amazingly, there is not one contradiction.
"My life changed dramatically on the outside, and I felt like everything was going just fine…"
But there was something missing in my life, but I did not see it yet. The Bible says in Mark 1:14-15, “...Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” The Gospel or Good News is a FREE GIFT, but it requires both FAITH and REPENTANCE before they can unwrap that gift.
In 7th grade I learned all about FAITH, but there was not a lot of talk about REPENTANCE or seeing myself the way GOD saw me—a sinner deserving of hell. I knew by fact I was a sinner, but what it truly meant and what I truly deserved, I knew not. When I looked at myself, I thought I was a good girl because my good outweighed my bad. Sure, I had a temper sometimes, did not listen to my parents, told a white lie, but everyone does that. But the Bible had a few things to say that were contrary to what my current thoughts were.
Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
James 2:10, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.”
Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Although I genuinely wanted to serve God, I did not understand my need for a Savior. There was outward change but no true inward change. God wanted to give me a new heart to replace my wicked heart. God wanted to give me His Holy Spirit to help me live for Him.
Ezekiel 26:26-27 says, “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep my judgments, and do them.”
God was patient with me, preserving my life and ordering my steps, and several years later, after several different circumstances, God directed me to a church in Pennsylvania where one night a sermon was preached that was titled, Soul Surgery: Can a Church Member Be Lost? The sermon was all about church members who were living the Christian life, doing Christian things, but who did not genuinely KNOW God. One of the verses that stood out to me was Matthew 7:21-23, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven….Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord have we not…done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
"I prayed, but this time it came from a heart that truly saw my need for a Savior."
Since I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior that night, I have been through plenty of trials and hard times, but God has given me a “peace that passes all understanding.” He continues to teach me how to have a closer real relationship with Him. Most importantly, He has given me peace about knowing for 100% where I will spend eternity—in heaven.
My friend, has anything like this ever happened to you? Would you like to KNOW peace? If you want to know more about the Savior that changed my life, ask me, and I will be happy to share more. I also offer free one on one Bible studies in person or virtually: srcefola@gmail.com.