I’m so thankful for the privilege of being born into a family where God had done some amazing things even before I was born! Jesus changed my Mom and Dad’s lives in their twenties. So, there really hasn’t been a time that I can’t recall being in church and knowing of God’s love for me. Still, at a young age, I was taught that even though God loves me, my sin separated me from Him. Romans 3:23 says, “For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”. But next comes one of my favorite scripture passages! “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans‬ ‭5:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬. I remember one day listening in on my sister Stacey talking to one of her neighborhood friends. She was sharing the gospel and encouraging her friend to ask Jesus to forgive her sins, because then she would go to heaven when she died and not hell.

Hearing that conversation began an internal conversation for me. I knew that God loved me, but the reality that my sin separated me from Him was beginning to grow. A little while later I went forward during a Sunday night church service to talk to someone about trusting Jesus as my Savior. I went with my Mom and a lady named Mrs. Hafner. She explained that my sins separated me from God, but that Jesus had made a way for me to get back to God! He did that by dying in my place on the cross for my sins. 1 Peter 3:18 says,

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit.”

Mrs. Hafner took me to Romans 10:9, 10 in the Bible. It says,

“because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

That night I put my trust in what Jesus did on the cross for me to save me from the penalty of sin.

That night was a long time ago. I want to praise the Lord Jesus for His protection and grace throughout my life. He’s blessed me with a wonderful family of my own. My beautiful wife, Debbie and my three sons Joshua, Caleb and Jesse. We’re thankful that God has brought us to High Pointe Church, and we’re excited to see all that God is going to do through our church in the city of Altoona. You should come and see!