July 13, 1985

Happy Birthday to you!
Only one will not do,
Born again means salvation!
How many have you?

This was the song we sang in Sunday School whenever someone made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ when I was a little girl. It reminded us that birthdays were important, but celebrating being born again in Jesus was even more important.

Today marks the 22nd anniversary of my new birth in Jesus. I've been thinking a lot about that day of salvation and the grace of life in Christ this week. Wanna hear the story? You're not a captive audience, so I'll tell it. Read along if you like.

We'd been having revival services at the church that week where we talked a lot about the return of Christ. My babysitter and her family had been talking about something they'd seen on the freaky Jesus channel where some image of the Lord had appeared on the back wall of a church during a healing service and everyone was convinced His return was imminent. The most upsetting song in the world to me at that time was "Soon and Very Soon." You know how it goes ...

Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King!
Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King!
Soon and very soon
We are going to see the King!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
We're going to see the King!

I can remember standing in church, listening to that song, looking around the room for any signs of Christ splitting the roof and taking everyone with Him, knowing that I'd never invited Him into my heart and was not prepared for eternity. I remember being on my bicycle the next day in our cul-de-sac looking at the blue sky and checking the clouds for any resemblence to that picture of Jesus in my Sunday School classroom in case He was planning His return for that day.

That night as my daddy tucked me into bed, he walked to the door of my room and flipped off the switch. I can't honestly tell you what I said, but I remember I began to cry, I asked him not to turn off the light, and I told him Jesus was coming back and I was not ready. He called my mom into the room and together, they sat by my bed, talked to me about recognizing my need for a Savior and prayed with me as I invited Jesus to come into my heart, to be my Savior and my Lord.

July 13, 1985.