But back up to when I was 10 years old. My family went to church on Easter Sunday (this was not a regular occurrence for us before this, we went on Easter and Christmas usually...) We attended Cherry Hills Community Church's service at Fiddler's Green--oh the crowd that shows up every year! I knew many faces from school, but I still felt like a visitor. However, during his sermon, Pastor Jim Dixon prayed a prayer for those in the congregation that would make the decision to follow Jesus. I had probably heard it before, and I've heard many times since, but it always starts, "Come into my heart, Lord Jesus..." I can hear Pastor Dixon's voice with those words. Something in me changed this time when I heard him speak that phrase. But after service, our Easter progressed just as it had before: we went home, dove back into our Easter baskets that we had received that morning (stuffed bunnies and all), got ready for family to come over, may have done an egg hunt in the back yard, played with our cousins, ate way too much yummy food, and went to bed.
Except 19 years ago, I couldn't go to sleep (and not because of the sugar rush). I remember laying in my bed, the rest of my family had gone to sleep too, lights were out, and I just could not focus on anything but that phrase I'd heard earlier that morning: "come into my heart, Lord Jesus." Yes! I wanted that! I needed to say that prayer and be changed!!
So I got out of bed, crept into my parents' room, woke up my Dad and climbed in between my parents. I told them that I had really heard what the pastor said that morning and I wanted to pray that prayer. My memory serves that my Mom started crying, and my Dad got up to go get my sisters out of their bed (or maybe I was sent for them)... Either way, all five of us crammed onto the bed and in our sleepiness, we prayed as a family. It was a defining moment for me, and I can still picture it.
My Dad helped me with the words to say to Jesus to invite him into my heart and into my life. We prayed together as I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, recognizing that he had died for me and now lives in my heart. My sisters had already made this commitment and each have their own stories, so it meant a lot that they were present for my moment.
Then, as a family we decided to make a commitment together to regularly attend church. And we did! The next Sunday I remember my parents walking me into the fourth grade Sunday school class where I met two girls: Amanda and Danielle. I don't know where they are now, but they were my Sunday school friends for many years after that. In fact, later that summer, my family chose to be baptized--all of us together--and my friend Danielle's family did it at the same time. I remember feeling so special and so proud that our family would all do that together "in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit" (DUNK!)
On the way home from church this morning, I heard a song on the radio (by Casting Crowns, adapted from the hymn "One Day") that has become my Easter song, and you don't find many of those. Christmas carols? Too many to count! Easter songs? Ummm... But the chorus has really touched my heart and excites me every time I hear it and picture the transition from God's life, to death, to life again:
Living He loved me.
Dying He saved me.
Buried He carried my sins far away.
Rising He justified reigning forever.
And one day He's coming, oh glorious day!
Oh glorious day!!
Happy Easter, everyone. He is RISEN!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment