Today is 11/11/11! Today also marks the 10th anniversary of when I made the most important decision of my life. And no it's not when I switched my car insurance over to geico saving myself 15% or more. 😉
10 years ago today, I made the decision to give my life to Jesus.
10 years ago today, I was sitting in a church on a Sunday morning with my dad sitting next to me. Other than the few churches he and I visited the weeks before, I had never really gone to church before. I even remember what the sermon was about that morning, because it hit so close to home and what I was going through at the time. The things this Pastor was saying were so accurate, I was almost convinced someone had told him my life story and that I was coming to church that morning. Of course he himself didn't know…but God did. And God knew my story. He knew where I was coming from, and He knew exactly what I needed to hear. He had been pursuing me for quite some time, and He had brought me to this moment.
At the end of the sermon, the Pastor gave an invitation to anyone that wanted to ask Jesus
to be their Savior. I have to admit, I struggled with the decision on the inside… a part of me wanted to, but a part of me also struggled with whether or not God really did exist or if all of this was just some weird coincidence.
So, I hesitated.
There was this tug-of-war scenario going on inside my head. It's like those movies where there's an angel on one shoulder and a demon on the other trying to convince the person what to do. I totally felt like that, like there was a battle raging for my soul… I thought for a second maybe I was just going crazy, but that's when the Pastor said something that really blew my mind. He started describing this turmoil I was experiencing to a T… even the part about the angel and demon on my shoulders! How could he have known I was thinking that way?? Now I was convinced…this wasn't the Pastor speaking…this was God Himself speaking through him. It was all too accurate it was uncanny!
So, I raised my hand and in doing so, made my public declaration to God, to myself, and to the unseen spiritual forces fighting over me that morning, that I was choosing Jesus, I was choosing LIFE!
In that instant a feeling of relief swarmed over me, like the battle had been won. I felt the most intense sensation of joy, so much so that I could literally feel it pulsating through my veins! It was like a waterfall of intense joy gushing through my heart and into my entire being. And this sensation lasted for several days!! (when they say there's no high like the Most High – they aren't kidding!)
The whole experience is hard to explain, but basically from that moment on my life had completely changed. I had completely changed. Ask anyone that knew me back then and they can testify to the immediate difference they saw in me. I was a new person, a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
10 years ago today, God sent angels to fight for me and He WON! And He continues to fight for me everyday. He will never stop fighting for me. And that blows my mind more than any uncanny sermon from 10 years ago.
Maybe there's a fight going on for your soul, right now? Do you sense it? If you don't already have a relationship with Jesus, it's more than likely He has sent an army of angels to fight over you, to win you. My advice? Let Him win. =)
Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses.
Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make.
Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!!
~Deuteronomy 30:19 NLT
