Why We Believe: Vol. 10

September 23, 2008, 1:00 pm; posted by
Filed under Articles, Featured, Josh J, Testimonies  | No Comments

At long last, on this, his 30th birthday — we present Josh’s testimony, the latest in our testimony series.

Of all the things for which I have to be thankful in this life, there is one unparalleled: the faith of my parents. What would prove to be the very foundation of my own life, my earliest understanding of God, that He is and who He is, was rooted not in the fact that my parents told me about Him (although they certainly did that), but in that they live their lives as though He is an absolute certainty.

Not that I never doubted. I distinctly remember when I was about four years old, wondering if the whole thing was a conspiracy. Those books in the back of the pew could be made up, and my parents could be in on it. Even my childish mind soon came to the conclusion that the thought that God does not exist is far more preposterous than the thought that He does.

Not that I fully understood. I was told that church was God\’s house, but I wasn\’t sure where He was, since I\’d been all over that building and never once run into Him. I finally figured He must spend most of His time in my mother\’s office, the one room I wasn\’t allowed to enter. I passed by the door with great reverence.

But I knew that God could make His dwelling in my heart, if I accepted the gift of His Son. And so, as a little boy, I said the sinner\’s prayer, and that little boy received salvation.

Of course, that little boy isn\’t here anymore. He\’s been gone for some time now.

I was 16 the first time I realized that I took my faith for granted, that the God of salvation accepted by a young boy would have to be accepted by a young man. As my understanding increased, as my person matured, as my life changed altogether, I would have to decide anew for whom that life was going to be lived.

The Lord continued to place people in my life to give me the love, encouragement, and instruction I needed to point me to Him, to keep growing, to keep surrendering. The fellowship of believers has reflected Him to me, and I am privileged to be a part of that fellowship, to reflect Him to others.

And so I seek after the Lord, and I find Him faithful. I seek His will, and He directs me, He sustains me, He supplies my needs. I stumble, and He restores me. I walk with Him today, and by His grace I will walk with Him tomorrow.


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