O Praise the ONE Who Paid My Debt!!!

Today is the 7th anniversary since I gave my life to Christ. For some reason this seems like a milestone occassion and I have been reflecting on God's work of salvation in my life for the last several months. The fact that this day has fallen so close to Easter this year has made it all the sweeter. It has been a blessed and challenging journey so far, and God has taught me a lot about Himself and myself in the process. This is my story:

I grew up in a Christian home, but not a church-going home. My parents taught me about God and encouraged me to pray to Him and read my Bible. I know that the Lord used this upbringing as the foundation of my salvation. I can remember having an awareness of God's existence, but I saw Him more like a bigger Person who I went to when I needed something. I had no concept of a relationship with Him. In fact, I considered myself a Christian for the longest time because my parents were Christians. I focused on being a "good girl” and excelling at whatever I did, but something was missing. I lived with this kind of underlying unsettlement. I desired so much to make a difference with my life but didn’t know how.

When I was in the 7th grade, my good friend Melissa Toppins (now Sebastian) invited me to the Wednesday night youth service at Meadow Heights Church. I, being the people-pleaser I am, reluctantly agreed. The evening was filled with games, food, and a message from God’s word. The youth pastor there at the time was also my seventh grade English teacher Bryan Mills and I found that his teaching style and messages really impacted me. I returned almost every Wednesday. I refused, however, to attend the Sunday services. I had no desire to (evidence to the fact that human nature does not naturally desire God). It was during these Wednesday night services that God began to tug at my heart. Throughout the invitation at the end of the message, I felt a pull towards the altar, but because of my shy nature, I stayed planted in my seat. This struggle took place almost every Wednesday evening.
When Bryan became the lead pastor at Meadow Heights, I started attending the Sunday morning services. God's tugs at my heart were becoming harder to ignore. I considered myself a "good person" and did not see my need for Christ, but I perceived that accepting Christ was something I should do. I finally yielded to the Holy Spirit's beckoning during my junior year of high school (thank God for His patience!). After I got in from work one Saturday evening, I told my dad that I wanted to accept Jesus. We went into the living room and prayed together and on March 25, 2001, a little after midnight, I gave my life to Christ. I was baptized and became a member of Meadow Heights a year later.
Since that time, the Lord has taught me so much about who He is, who I am, and how to live in obedience to Him. Meadow Heights has played a major role in my walk with Christ by teaching me to surrender my all to Him, how to have a daily quiet time, and the importance of the local church in the life of a believer (this was a long, hard lesson for me since I was raised believing that church was not important). I am so thankful to God for this amazing and faithful church family and miss them tremendously.
It was until after I went to Missouri Baptist University that I realized my actual need for Jesus as my Savior. God used the course Discipleship and Evangelism taught by Mr. Braden at MBU to show me the weight of my personal sin and the ugliness of my inwardly rebellious nature. We read the book Changed into His Image by Jim Berg and through it I learned that I was not "good" like I thought I was. I was utterly sinful and deserving of God's full judgment. The Good News, though, is that Christ became my sin and took my judgment for me. That is why He came to die. That is why I needed Him.
My journey now continues as I seek to know and love Christ deeper. God has used His Word, my church, my experiences at MBU and Southern Seminary, and the writings/sermons/lives of John Piper, Louie Giglio, and Jim Elliott to mold me into who I am today. I vividly remember asking God to give me a passion to "sell out" for Him during one of the youth services at Meadow Heights, and I believe He is progressively answering that prayer as He conforms my desires and will to His. Jesus has given me a purpose for living and He has filled my life with peace. The more I learn about my Savior the more I love Him and want to serve Him. Time will tell what all He has in store.

"Oh, happy day, happy day! You washed my sin away. Oh, happy day, happy day! I'll never be the same. Forever I am changed...Oh what a glorious day, that You have saved me. "

Worth noting: We had 32 baptisms at Meadow Heights last weekend! Most were at the AV campus and almost half of them were from All-Stars (5th grade and under). That gives us like 77 since last August! How amazing is the God we serve!?!