Still No Apologies

How I Became a Christian

I accepted Christ as my Savior on February 2nd, 2007. I was laying in bed, and I couldn't get to sleep because I knew I needed to get saved. I didn't want to because I was scared and ashamed of my sin. Getting saved is simple, but many times not easy. By not easy, I mean it is hard to put down your pride and admit you need Jesus. I had always known I was not saved, therefore I was going to hell (I was at the age of understanding. Unsaved babies won't go to hell for not getting saved). Although I had always known this, it was never real to me until now. I finally prayed the prayer for salvation, and I felt so much better. Acts 16:31- "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved." (Believing is more than just knowing Jesus exists. Satan knows Jesus exists, but he is not saved. Believing in this sense means trusting Jesus died on the cross for your sins, and offers you, and everyone, the free gift of eternal life. It's not anything a person can do through their own actions to achieve grace, it is nothing but Jesus. Ephesians 2:8-9- "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast).

I didn't change right away, but it was the beginning of changing. I had more of a conscience that I couldn't ignore or use twisted logic to quench. This is the Holy Spirit. You can't understand how it works until you are saved. And yes, you can suppress it. We do have free will, and obviously are still sinners like everyone else. Just forgiven. One of the coolest things that happened is I no longer felt empty inside. This emptiness wasn't sadness. I was always a happy child. I didn't even realize I felt empty until I got saved. When you get saved, you have joy. Joy in Bible terms is not happiness. Joy is a knowledge, not an emotion that fluctuates.

God is still changing me today. Mark 11:24- "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." I have been praying for wisdom (I don't think I am wise yet, but I will be) and a servant's heart (my family has noticed this change). These changes are how I personally know God is real. This is better than a scientific or philosophical explanation.

Even though God's work in your life may be a good enough explanation for you, you ABSOLUTELY need to be able to explain your faith in scientifically and philosophically reasonable terms. No, you don't need to be a complete nerd like me. Nor do you need to be "smart." But if you don't know why you believe in Jesus, how can you even call yourself a Christian? If you are only a Christian because you were born into a Christian family, how are you justified in believing your faith is any better than the faith of someone who was born into a Muslim family? Belief and faith do not make something true.

You may have noticed that I call this testimony my "becoming" a Christian, even though I was born into a Christian family. Christianity is not passed along through DNA. Nor through the environment. It's a decision each person must make. I always "believed" in Jesus. It wasn't until I was 7 did I make the decision to submit to God, because I knew I needed Him.