Growing up, all the way through my teen years, I was pretty much perceived to be a “Miss Goody Two Shoes”. However, I always knew that this was far from the truth. I just had a way of keeping myself from getting caught - I was deceitful and a liar.

I didn’t grow up in a Christian home. My dad was in the military and we moved 9 times by the time I was 13. I was taught good morals and manners. Church barely played a part in my life at all. When I was 11, my parents put my two older brothers, my younger sister and myself on a bus and sent us off to Sunday school. I really liked the songs we would sing there - so much that I stole a songbook so that I could sing the songs at home. My brothers would get off the bus at church and walk over to the Px and use their offering money to play pinball. Then be back in time to catch the bus ride home. I can even remember joining them once on this venture.

When I was 16, I became a member of Job’s Daughters, a Masonic organization for girls. This was the closest thing I had in my life to learning about God. While this organization taught me many good skills, I never once heard about Jesus and who He was/is. Once every six months, our group would visit a church of our leaders choosing. Many times I remember feeling as though all these churches were interested in was getting people’s money and telling me how I wasn’t good enough for them (i.e., not allowed to take communion because I wasn’t a member of their church). This all helped me to build-up quite a barrier about being involved in a church.

When I was 19, my best friend went away to college and became involved in a cult. One day I received a letter from her that quoted the Bible, John 3:16, with the exception of every place where it said world, she placed my name. This letter shook me up big time. It was quite convicting to see my name intermixed with scripture. However, at the same time, I knew my friend was involved in a cult and I was very concerned for her well-being. While this letter did start to get me thinking about who God is, I still did not become a Christian. I think I was more concerned about my friend at the time.

At the age of 23, I received Christ as my personal savior. I had just moved out on my own for the first time. One evening, I felt so lost and alone. I cried my eyes out and pulled out my Bible to see if I could find comfort. Inside the Bible was a gospel track which explained how everyone is a sinner and in need of salvation. I realized that I did have a problem with sin and that I needed a Savior. I prayed that night, confessed my sin, thanked God for sending His Son to die for my sin and asked that He would come into my life.

Since becoming a Christian I have constantly had a thirst to learn more about God.I would like to tell you that I picked my Bible up and began reading His Word. But in truth I found it difficult to understand. Even when I finally did get involved in a church, the Bible was not a real focus in their worship services. There were no adult Sunday school classes.

Since that time, I have learned the importance of being involved in a church that teaches the Word of God. That encourages everyone to be involved in studying scripture on a daily basis. Without the Word of God being taught and studied, we are blind. I know, because for ten years in a mainline church I was blind to the fact that: