Note from Bob:Today’s post is going to be just a bit different than normal. Today – one day before Good Friday and 3 days before Easter – may I share with you the story of “3 Questions” that led me to become a “Follower of Jesus?” Please know that if you would prefer to not read any further – no offense will be taken. 3 Questions that Changed My Life!Tomorrow is Good Friday – the day over 2000 years ago when Jesus – falsely accused – was sentenced to the most cruel death ever invented – death by crucifixion on a cross! That day Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of every woman and man who had or would ever live. After he died he was taken down from that cross and laid in a borrowed grave through the generosity of a friend.
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The day after the Sabbath – on the first day of the week – 3 woman came to his tomb to anoint his body and they found the stone that had covered his tomb rolled away and the tomb was empty. An angel appeared to them and said, “He is not here – He is Risen!” That was of course the first Easter – the day that millions of followers of Jesus will celebrate this coming Sunday.This story did not touch my life until the fall of 1967 when I was a freshman at the University of South Dakota – home of the Coyotes! One Monday evening a group of fraternity men from Iowa State, who were involved with, joined us for dinner. Our president introduced them and invited us to join him in the living room immediately following our dinner to hear them share about a student movement they were involved in at Iowa State. The first 3 men shared their stories of how they had become Followers of Jesus at Iowa State.
It was the first time in my life that I had ever heard anyone my age share how they had made a personal commitment to trust Christ.As the final speaker shared “The Four Spiritual Laws” (copied at the bottom of this post) he asked “3 Questions (highlighted in BLUE below) that Changed My Life!Here were his questions and my answers: (for context please read “The Four Spiritual Laws” below)Which circle best represents your life? The one on the left – the self-directed life.Which circle would you like to have represent your life? I was not sure!Does this prayer express the desire of your heart?
He explained that we could receive Christ – right then and there by praying a simple prayer to invite Christ into our hearts! At that moment I chose not to pray that prayer silently as he prayed out-loud. But I spent the rest of that evening contemplating what I had just heard. I was so impressed with the men that had shared their stories of trusting Christ.
I thought – Wow – what courage they had to unashamedly share how they had become “Followers of Jesus!” I also sensed that they had a quality of life that I did not have.I began to think about praying that prayer to trust Christ. My thoughts kind of went like this. I was not sure if there was a God or not? But if there was a God and if His Son was Jesus and if Jesus had indeed died on the cross for my sins and if by asking Jesus into my heart my sins could be forgiven and if I could be given eternal life – then for sure I would want to pray that prayer – I just did not know if it were true? But then this thought crossed my mind – I had nothing to lose and everything to gain if I prayed that prayer. If there was no God – then my mumbling a few words would not make any difference.
But if there was a God and I could actually have a personal relationship with Him, I would be a fool to pass that up. So I prayed a very honest prayer that went something like:“God I don’t know if you exist or not. But if you do and if Jesus is your Son and if His death on the cross paid the penalty for my sins and if by trusting Christ I can have eternal life then for sure I want Christ to come into my heart. Amen.”I sat there and waited for something to happen – I was not sure what – but I thought I should feel something – but nope, I felt nothing. So I shrugged my shoulders and headed to bed – kind of concluding that probably there was no God and that nothing had happened. During the days that followed – I pretty much forgot about the whole evening.It was about six weeks or so later that I was playing pool with one of my fraternity brothers and he said, “There is something different about you!” To which I of course said, “What?” He said he did not know and we continued to play.
I have always believed that God will answer your prayer in some way shape or form. When I was In high school, I found my self struggling and having a hard time at my Private Catholic HS. I would come home and cry every night about what was I doing wrong. One night, I cried and I asked God to help me and I didn’t care how or what it took to help me as long as it did. I trusted Him! The following week, my family was dining at KFC and my father asked a question that I never thought he’d ever ask, “Do you want to leave that school?” I started crying because that meant leaving school that all my friends were at and where I had worked so hard to make a better place but never felt like I was succeeding.
That following Friday, my father came to the school and asked to remove me from the HS. The principal at the time, who was a nun, came out and said too late we were going to kick me out of the school today. My dad replied, “on what grounds do you have the right to kick him out?” The nun sat there quietly and did not answer. My dad waited for an answer to which he did not receive. My dads following answer was, “thank you for justifying that this is the right decision.” That following week, I was no longer at the Private Catholic School but I was now at Greenway High School, home of the demons. I always found it funny that I went from a catholic school to a school where the mascot was a demon.
IRONY!By leaving my Catholic High School and 9 years of private catholic elementary school, I thought that my teachings I had received would have been a break to not have to take that class anymore. But, I found myself helping with the Church Teen Group from my sophomore year till being a freshman in college.It is always better to let God be in the driver seat.
Its not always good to ask for directions while he is driving either. It may seem odd and not all the way put together, but you come out a better person than you were before. I was surrounded by amazing religious resources but I was not taking it in. It took placing me in a different situation and God saying, “find your way, I’m right here. This is the path!”.
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March 2023
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