Salvation

Personal Experience

Basketball and Salvation "I'd always believed [Christians] were weaklings, grasping religion as a crutch -- monumental joy-killers adhering to a telephone book-sized list of do's and don'ts. I didn't want anything to do with that."

Changed Wife, Changed Life "On our eleventh anniversary I took Betty out to dinner. 'Now, Betty,' I said across the table, 'I hate to tell you this, but I'm going to have to ask you for a divorce unless you get back to the way you used to be.'"

Filling the Void "I went out with some friends and had too much to drink. I pretended to have fun, but after coming home, all I could do was weep. A combination of alcohol and the realization that another year had passed -- and that my life still had no meaning -- sickened me."

Finding Love, Finding Jesus “Lovingly, gently, Ron helped me see my sin, listed in the Bible. Yet I wasn’t offended; I wanted peace. Every night for two weeks Ron came over until the truth of the good news of salvation through Jesus pierced my heart.”

Finding Shalom “’I want to believe!’ I finally cried. ‘But I'm a Jew. A person is either a Jew or a Gentile. If I accept your religion, I'll be a traitor and outcast to my people!’ Somehow I could not take that step, though I wanted so much what the Stoppe family had.”

Finding the Right Answer "I carried a service revolver; it would be an easy matter. My sense of futility in life would be ended forever. But though I feared life, I feared death more. I couldn't do it."

From Spiritualism to Salvation “For the first time in my life, I began to doubt God's existence. Unfortunately, the college chaplain didn't seem to have any satisfactory answers to my questions. So all through my college years, I alternately rejected God and searched for the truth.”

Fugitive From God “I started attending church regularly and was thrilled with it. How good to hear the Bible! But what an ache in my heart because of the precious time I had wasted. I was twenty-nine and married with two children. Was it too late for me to obey God's call to preach?”

God Didn't Pass Me By "When I awoke the next day, cockroaches were crawling on me, the cell smelled dank; but peace was still there. Later as I read the book that had mysteriously appeared in the bars of my cell, I learned about the One who had given me the peace."

I Felt So Empty "Full of shame and hurt, I cried every single day for two weeks straight. It was during this time that I collapsed in front of my mirror, wondering who I'd become."

I Was an Atheist "I entered graduate school in a state of complete unbelief in God and with an uncharitable, competitive attitude toward everybody. I needed no God as did those who were uninformed and unsure of themselves."

Lessons on the Mountain "When the light grayed and I could actually see the face of my husband, I knew that Christ was in my heart. He had only been waiting for me to invite Him in."

No Substitutes "For the first time in my life, I realized that those I had thought were hypocrites when I was young had probably not been Christians at all -- and neither had I been."

The Missing Link "At school the teachers often told us about Yury Gagarin, a Soviet cosmonaut who was the first man to travel into space, and other communist heroes who secured a bright future for us. These had never seen God, so the teachers concluded there is no God. The only "holy" thing that everyone respected and feared was the Communist Party."

The Only Answer "I couldn't think straight. I couldn't reason. I couldn't even pray. I was spiritually bankrupt."

The Thief Who Found Joy "I could hear sirens. We all ran for the alleys. Several of the opposing gang had seen me stick that guy. If the police picked them up, they would finger me for sure."

When Dreams Come True “I knew without a doubt that the God I had sought for so many years was in that place with me. He was calling me to come to Him. But I was afraid of taking that first step.”

Won by Love "I could hardly believe my ears. A little old lady coming to talk to people who had committed murder, rape, and violence of all kinds. I decided to check her out."

Articles

A Leopard Can't Change Its Spots If you have a past of sin and disobedience, what happens when God forgives you? Roy A. Borges, an inmate in a Florida prison, explains the responsibility of those changed by the power of Christ.

Coming Home When we strike out on our own, living the way we want, it isn't long before we run out of good times. But at the end of the road home stands God, welcoming us with open arms.

Decisions Determine Destinies Of all the important decisions we make in life -- who to marry, where to live, what career to pursue -- none is so critical as what we decide about Jesus Christ. J. Grant Swank, Jr. revisits the night of Jesus' betrayal to show that deciding against Jesus is to be willingly lost.

Escape from Prison The darkest prison isn't Leavenworth or Alcatraz; it's in the human heart.

Just As I Am Is Christianity just a bunch of strict rules? What's wrong with living our own way "anything goes"? Elaine Hardt shows the consequences of having things our own way and explains that the rules God laid down from the beginning are the only way to real life.

My Favorite Icon Look at your word processing commands: Do you associate anything significant with them? Gary B. Swanson focuses his humor on one button put here by the Master Programmer that keeps the system of life from crashing.

Rescue Even the strongest, most prepared people can be in situations where they need help to get out. Trey Graham relates the story of an amazing military rescue and an even more amazing spiritual rescue by Jesus Christ.

Sin: My Problem in Need of God's Answer It's "the ultimate malady of human history" -- worse than cancer and AIDS combined. In an open address to God, Trey Graham wrestles with the complexities of sin and points to the cure.

Seeing Yourself as You Are When you look at yourself, you may see a reflection of success and take pride in what you've achieved. But can you depend on yourself when the bottom drops out of your life?

The Cross: My Statue of Liberty This month, Americans celebrate their freedom and independence. But are we truly free?

The Pursuit of Happiness The road less traveled is the only way to true happiness.

Times of Refreshing Accepting Christ as your Savior is a simple act of faith, but often people don't take their sin seriously. As a result, they miss out on the best times God has for them. Karen O'Conner explains the critical topic of repentance -- what it means and how our lives must show it.

Unconditional Surrender Some people think they can have a relationship with God based on their terms. The truth is, however, that God sets the rules, not us. Drawing from an example in American history, Trey Graham shows the only way to spiritual victory.

What Does It Mean to Believe? So much is said against moral absolutes today -- that it doesn't matter what you believe, that everything is relevant. Daniel Overdorf refutes this, taking us step by step through the components of faith and why faith in Jesus Christ is possible for those who don't believe.

Whose Side are You On? Imagine continuing to fight in a war long after it's ended and a winner has been declared. It sounds ridiculous, yet many people today do just that when it comes to committing their lives to Jesus Christ. Trey Graham tells us more about the battle and the Winner who ended it.

Without a Doubt All of us have doubts from time to time about our faith, but refusing to believe in God is serious, hurting not only us but God. J. Grant Swank, Jr. discusses the veil of unbelief the Devil drapes over our minds and what our lives can be like when we choose to believe in God.