The Beginning

The following summer my friend Jeff and I were forced to go to youth camp in Vermont, but we were determined NOT to play any reindeer games with the other nerds. We would only hang out with each other and we would determine what kind of fun we would have. We met at the church on a Saturday morning and were divided up into vans. Guess what? Not only were we not in the same van, but I was stuck with “the holy rollers”. What a nightmare! We huddled up and said, “Take a three hour nap then we can enjoy ourselves.” Good plan. BREAK! Determined not to talk to anyone in the car, I leaned back and closed my eyes in the hopes of forgetting this unfortunate chain of events; however, my car mates were not going to let me get away with my plans. Over the next three hours they had somehow gotten me to play games and sing hymns. HYMNS! This was very impressive to me, but even more impressive was that for the first time ever I started looking at the “holy rollers” as real people and because of that God had my undivided attention.

I really can’t explain what happened to me that week other than to say that I was caught in the grip of the Creator. I completely ignored my friend Jeff as if he was a stranger and I just couldn’t have any fun because God wanted something from me even though I didn’t fully understand what. He was truly drawing me to Himself, and I just had to make the choice to accept.

There was something different about that last bonfire unlike the other six nights where our youth pastor used scare tactics to convert us by comparing the fire to hell. Have you heard this before?

“Imagine heat 10x hotter than this that will last for eternity.”

Tonight, he decided to tell us about the new life that was waiting for us if we chose to follow Jesus rather than trying to show us the escape hatch out of hell. (Note to self: The gospel is more than fire insurance; it is an invitation to life in the Kingdom of God.) With a pile of sticks sitting noticeably by the fire he invited us to throw a stick into the fire to signify the burning away of our old life and the start of the new life with God. With streams of tears flowing down my face I answered the call of God on my life. This was my real deal conversion experience. An experience I will never forget. 

To be Continued, Nobe