At first I thought I would just read the other testimonies on the Bloggy Tour of Testimonies. My story, after all, is not very exciting. However, when I began to read some of the other posts I discovered that there were already a few very similar to mine, and they really blessed me. Finding the Lord at an early age is every bit as glorious as some of the miraculous salvation testimonies we hear.

My parents were both raised in the Catholic Church. It was my Grandfather on my father’s side who first left the Church. It wasn’t because he disagreed with the teachings; he simply resented the fact that he was required to pay to enter the little church. He didn’t go to another church, but my Grandmother began to attend a little Italian Baptist church. Both my mother and father were saved just before I was born (I think I have that right). So I was raised in a Christian home.

I was saved when I was about ten. I know this sounds silly, but I can’t point to an exact time. I was the kind of child who wanted more than anything to be good. I asked Jesus into my heart not once, but every time someone gave the invitation! I think one of the Sunday school teachers must have finally noticed my hand in the air more than once and decided an explanation was in order. She told us that once we asked Jesus to come into our hearts He never left us. It was something we only needed to do once. I was then baptized shortly after that.

There was never a time during my childhood where I didn’t believe, but there did come a point where I had to truly make my beliefs my own. It was during the one year I attended college that I sort of reexamined all the things I had been taught and embraced them wholeheartedly (after a lot of questioning and doubting).

Every once in a while our Pastor will ask this question, “How many of you committed your worst sins while you were a Christian?” Once again I find myself with my hand in the air. I have certainly not lived a perfect life. I have made some terrible choices and fallen from grace more than once. I think perhaps the one pitfall of being saved at a young age is that we may take the precious treasure we have been given and hold it far too lightly. We can take for granted what was purchased for us at such a great price. We can even become resentful and think we may have missed out on something.

I have come to realize that far from missing out on something – I have been spared so much heartache and pain. I value the gift I have been given more than life itself. When I saw the movie The Passion, I wept bitterly realizing with crystal clarity that I had known Him and all He had done for me – and sinned anyway. And yet He loves me. I hold the precious gift tightly and treasure it with all my heart. He is my life, my joy, my peace and my hope. Without Him, I would be nothing.

Blessings,
Linda

To read more testimonies go to Lauren's blog and find the links to lots of others.