Persuaded

Have you been persuaded by God? I was nine years old. Growing up as a pastor’s daughter (Wayne Barber), there were many times I “prayed the prayer” because I had so much truth poured into me at an early age. But at the age of nine, that’s when I remember kneeling down beside my dad by the old radiator in the church parsonage and praying to receive Christ. There really are no special words I prayed, it was more of a heart cry that said, “I need You, Lord. Without Your forgiveness and grace I am lost. Without Your love, I am empty. Without Your payment on the cross I could never enter heaven. Without Your resurrection, I would never have the power to live the Christian life. Forgive me! Lord, I believe!”

Ecclesiastes 3:11 tells us that God has placed eternity in the heart of man. We are all born with a giant hole that needs to be filled, and it will eventually be filled by something or SOMEONE. I was only nine years old, but I knew in my heart of hearts that the stories I had heard my precious daddy preach were true. I knew that heaven was real and I knew that without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ I could not go there because of my sin. Sure, I don’t have one of those testimonies that rejoice in healing and deliverance from addiction, or some other amazing story. But my story is equally as miraculous because I was equally as much a sinner as the drug addict or criminal. The sinful acts we do are merely a product of WHO we are. Romans 5:12 tells us that because of Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden, death spread to ALL men. I believe from the moment we are born, our Creator God begins to call us to Himself! Once we reach the age of understanding who He is, we have the ability by His grace to respond to Him, to believe and be persuaded (John 1:12). I thank God for His grace! Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us that we are saved by grace, through FAITH; not of ourselves- it is the gift of God and not a result of works! All we need to do is believe (Acts 16:31).

It is never too late to respond to His call! Persuasion is simply a fancy word for “faith.” Can you remember a place and time that you cried out to God for salvation? You don’t have to remember the exact date, but can you recall a specific time in your life that you responded to God? He spends our lifetimes persuading us to come to Him. There is only one way that we can get to Him, and that is through His Son, Jesus Christ (John 14:6). If you don’t know for sure, you can know TODAY, right now (1 John 5:13).