But Jesus!

The thief came to Steal, Kill and Destroy

I remember the devil tried to kill me many times throughout my childhood. He was afraid of the calling of God on my life and tried to snuff me out early. The first time, I was sitting with a friend on the deck of our pool. My friend pushed me in the pool. I couldn’t swim and I remember sitting at the bottom of the pool drowning. My sister looked out the back door and saw that I was no longer sitting on the deck. She ran as fast as she could and jumped into the water to save me. It was just in time! Praise God the enemy lost that one.

Another time was when I was fishing on a dock at our cottage in Canada. Its kind of a funny story today, but it wasn’t funny back then. I went to cast my line out, but I shot myself into the water and my pole stayed on the dock. I still hadn’t learned to swim yet, so I grabbed a hold of the edge of the dock with my hands. I held on for dear life and it seemed like I was there for an eternity. I could feel my little hands slipping as I cried out for help! Had I let go I probably wouldn’t be here today! Praise God He had another plan! My Aunt heard me screaming and she saw my little hands hanging on at the end of the dock. Praise God! I was rescued and lived to see another day.

The third time, I was playing with my friends in the street. A car came by us on the road and we got out of the way. Immediately a couple of guys jumped out of the car and asked us if we wanted to go for a ride. Praise God! We kept our distance and remembered what our parents taught us to stay away from strangers. These guys started screaming in rage for us to get in the car! I remember fear gripping my heart! We started running away as the men chased us in their car. We got away by running through our neighbors’ yards. Who knows what those men would have done to us had they caught us? I don’t believe I wouldn’t be alive today to tell you the story. The devil lost again!

Many times, the enemy tried to kill me. I don’t know how many times I should have been dead and in hell through my teens and twenties, but God had a plan. Drugs, Alcohol and riotous living could have taken me out. I believe the Lord was using folks to pray. Don’t know who, but I praise God for them. The Lord has a plan and God calls intercessors to pray even if they’re in another country. Someone prayed for me and I thank God for them. I believe I will meet them in eternity and get a chance to thank them!

But Jesus came to bring Life and more Abundantly  

I was radically saved when I was 27! Everything changed! Although, I couldn’t do drugs anymore because of random drug testing at my job, my alcohol consumption tripled, and I was immediately set free. I went from listening to Ozzy Osbourne and Rock and Roll to listening to the Christian Radio Station. The Lord had pursued me my whole life and I finally gave in there was no going back. I went to work the next day and the guys at work were shocked. I walked in with so much peace and joy in my life and I started witnessing to them right away. Most of them would pretty much stay away from me, but the Lord would use me for a time to witness there and a couple of them came to Jesus.

I had put off going to Church long enough, so I set out on a quest to find where the Lord wanted me. The first Sunday I walked into a Methodist Church. The people were very nice, and the service was good, but I knew in my heart that this was not the church for me. In Ocala, I worked at a Van Conversion Company called Mark III. I knew a guy that kind of looked like Samson. He had big arms and long hair and I knew he was a Christian because he would talk about Jesus all the time. I asked him if he knew of any good Churches and he told me about his Church called the Church of God and a grads singles class. I was single so it sparked my curiosity. I thought well maybe my wife might be there. The Lord was totally going to set me up again!

I couldn’t get this recommendation to go to this Church of God out of my head. I walked into the service and I could feel something different about it. There a presence I never felt before. I thought this is nothing like the Churches I grew up in. The worship was amazing, and I saw folks lifting their hands to the Lord. I thought this Church is weird, but I was kind of drawn to it. The minister got up to speak and it was mass chaos I thought. I can’t remember the message, but he was so charismatic and energized. Folks were running around praising the Lord and I heard folks praying in different languages and running to the altar to pray. They were believing the Lord for Revival. I heard a whisper in my ear that I now know was from the enemy. He said these people are weird and you don’t need to be in this Church. You need to get out of here now, so I left, but deep inside my heart I wanted what they had.

In the morning, I went back to work with all kinds of questions for my friend. I had so much curiosity. I wanted to know what in the world was going on in that church. He explained to me everything that was going on was in the Bible and encouraged me to read it in the Books of Acts. He then encouraged me to give it one more visit and reminded me of the Grad singles class again.

My first Encounter with the Holy Ghost

I was so intrigued with going to this singles class that I had to go that Sunday. I walked into the church and asked the first person I could see to direct me to the class. I thought maybe there was a good Christian girl there that I could meet that would be my future wife. I walked in and met this amazing couple. There was something different about them. They were people of prayer and knew how to really tap into hearing from the Lord. Rhonda was a prophetic intercessor and she started teaching.  I was getting lightheaded in my seat. To be honest, I thought I was going to pass out. I really didn’t hear much that she had to say that day because I was drunk in the Holy Spirit and didn’t know it. At the end, folks would ask me if I was OK and I said yes not wanting to embarrass myself. I got up staggering to the sanctuary for the service and it was a lot like the week before. The Lord would move powerfully that day! I was hooked and I started listening to a different voice the Holy Ghost. The enemy lost that battle and I’m glad He did.