Sight God — Testimonials E


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General Marriage & Family Inspirational/Born Again Miracles & Healings Life Experiences Prayer Requests	\| A \| B \| C \| D \| E \| F \| G \| H \| I \| J \| K \| L \| M \| N \| O \| P \| Q \| R \| S \| T \| U \| V \| W \| X \| Y \| Z E Testimony By Name Eric Elder - Who's In Control? Eric Elder Who's in Control? EMail: pokey@gridley.org I met Jesus on February 9th, 1987. I had heard about him most of my life, but on that day I met him. Here's what happened: At a church retreat, a group of us were talking about Jesus. I felt the need to be honest with the group and told them I wasn't sure if I believed in Jesus. For 24 years I was raised in a Christian home, attended church weekly, and went to Christian conferences. But that weekend, when talking about Jesus, I had to say that I didn't know if I really believed in Him. I took the plunge to find out more when a man invited me to study the Bible with him and some friends. After six months of meeting with them each week, the question arose about whether or not we knew for sure we had eternal life - that when we died God would take us into heaven. I thought about my life and answered with a hesitant, "Yes," and added, "about 90% sure." The man next to me then answered and said, "Yes, 100% sure." My immediate thought was, How arrogant! How does he know what God is going to do with him? But as we went around the circle, man after man said, "Yes, 100% sure." "100%." "100%," "100%," "100%." Back to me: "90%." They said to me, "Eric, the difference between 90% and 100% will change your life." Making a mental note of that, I went on with the study. Six months later, we were studying the book of Romans. A phrase in Chapter 1 caught my eye. At the end of a long list of sins was a statement that "... those who do such things deserve death...." Wow! I thought. Death? Death is a pretty strong sentence for some of those things. I told the group, "I don't mean to say I'm so great, but honestly, I don't think I've done that much wrong in my life. I've hardly done anything that I would even be put in jail for in America, let alone get the death penalty. Yet, it says everyone has done such things, and for that, they deserve death." A man in the group made a suggestion. "Why don't you ask God and see what He says?" And so I asked God one of the hardest questions I've ever asked Him in my life. "God, show me if I've done anything for which I deserve death." Either what I said was right, and the Bible was wrong, or what the Bible said was right and I was wrong; both couldn't be right. Within two weeks, I had my answer. God drew my attention to one of the topics on the list of sins in Chapter 1. I hesitate to admit the sin because I don't really want to tell people about it. But to leave it out of the story would be to miss God's transforming power at work in my life. The topic God pointed to was homosexuality. Like many men who enter into homosexuality, I had felt a void in my life in my relationships with other men. I didn't excel at the typical male sports in our small town, such as football, basketball, or wrestling. I found myself doing things in which I did excel, like gymnastics, music, and dancing. These activities put me in the midst of women, with whom I then formed most of my close friendships. And like many homosexuals, I found over the years that I didn't have a problem relating to women, but to men. In college, I met men who spent time with me and cared for me. I found myself drawn into intimate, and eventually sexual relationships with them. While I thought I had always lived a fairly upright life, I had also talked myself into thinking that sex outside the bonds of marriage wasn't so such a bad thing. In America, you don't get put in jail for having sex with someone who is mutually agreeable. And homosexuality was equally acceptable under the law --although I was aware it wasn't acceptable to everyone because of the public disagreement over the issue. I enjoyed this new freedom and considered myself opened minded enough to not categorize my activity as a "sin." Even though I eventually had sexual relations with women as well, my passions returned me to homosexuality, seeking to fill the void of close male friends in my life. But when I prayed to God to show me if there was anything I'd done wrong in my life, He pointed to this topic. I felt He was asking me to rethink it now in light of what I had been learning about Him. I was overwhelmed. God opened my eyes to see it for what it was, to see the destruction it could cause, and to see that it could certainly lead to death. I thought about how God had carefully and incredibly created men and women to be marriage partners and to produce offspring. I thought about how skillfully He had made our most intimate parts to join together in a unifying experience that brings joy to us as well as joy to the Lord. I thought about His first words to humans after putting us on the earth: "Be fruitful and increase in number." I soon realized that I had taken these great things God had created for me and I had twisted and perverted them. I had used them in a way that does not produce life, and could quite conceivably lead to death. I felt an acute awareness before God that I had indeed sinned, and that "those who do such things" do deserve death. I felt in full agreement with God that if He decided to take my life for this sin, that it would be fair. I would simply be reaping what I had sown. I felt terrible before God. I was truly sorry, but I had no way to make up for what I had done. I couldn't take back my actions. I couldn't undo the past. It was as if, for example, I had just killed my father, then later felt sorry about it and desperately wanted to make up to my mother for what I had done. What could I do for her to make up for taking the life of her husband? To say "I'm sorry" would not bring him back to life. To give her a thousand dollars, or ten thousand dollars, or even a million dollars would not make up for it. To promise to go to church for the rest of my life would not restore what had been lost. I knew, however, that I did not want this sin anymore. I simply couldn't engage in this lifestyle any longer. I didn't want these passions anymore, but how could I get rid of the way I felt and thought and acted? In my daily Bible reading, my eyes were drawn to a passage in Matthew 9 where two blind men wanted to be healed. They cried out to Jesus for mercy. Instead of simply healing them as he had for other people, Jesus asked these men a question: "Do you believe I am able to do this?" Like the blind men, I felt I needed God's healing and mercy in the area of homosexuality. I felt the Lord was asking me, "Eric, do you believe I am able to do this?" I thought, From everything I've been taught about Jesus - His miracles, His healings, who He was and how He lived--if anyone could do this for me, He could. In fact, I couldn't think of anyone else who could change my mind and heart and body on this issue. I couldn't see anyone talking me out of it or being able, somehow, to change my inner desires. But I knew that if anyone could, Jesus could. And Jesus asked me, "Do you believe I am able to do this?" Like the blind men, I answered Him, "Yes, Lord." And as He did with the blind men, Jesus touched me and healed me that day and said to me what he said to them, "According to your faith will it be done to you." Many homosexuals talk about 'coming out' as a time when they declare their openness to the world about their sexuality. I came out that day, but not to expose my sin to the world. I came out of a dark closet into the full light of God, exposing my sin to Him so he could do the precision surgery needed to heal me. The next night, I was sitting in on a class about world missions at a local church. The speaker talked about why Jesus came to the earth. The man detailed God's plan to save His people as outlined throughout the Bible, from the first pages of Genesis to the last pages of Revelation. The speaker explained why Jesus came--which was not just to tell us to love each other, but to die for our sins so we wouldn't have to. That night God showed me how I could make up for what I'd done wrong. How, if I had literally killed my father, I could now restore him to my mother. God impressed strongly upon me that there was a way to escape the penalty of death--a penalty that the book of Romans told me was inevitable for all who sinned. All I had to do was to believe in his Son, Jesus Christ. I went home that night with an unusually heightened sense of love; a love that came from the thought that Someone would die for me, even though I rightfully deserved it. All I had to do was accept His death in my place and my sins would be forgiven and forgotten. I had heard the phrase "Jesus is Lord!" before, but it had never struck me as something more than a trite, religious saying. That night, I felt like shouting, "JESUS IS LORD!" I had seldom met anyone in my life whom I wanted to follow, but now I found One whom I would gladly follow anywhere. Since He was willing to die for me, I was willing to give Him my life. For 24 years I was lord of my life, doing what I wanted to do. Now that I saw where my own ways were leading me, I decided to let Him be Lord of my life, and let Him call the shots. At home that night, I didn't know what to do with the incredible love I felt. A girl I knew in college was the closest thing to this kind of love I had ever known, so I decided to call her. As I went to pick up the phone, I distinctly sensed these words, "Talk to Me." Knowing it was God, but wanting to talk to this girl, I went for the phone again. Again, I heard, "Talk to Me." I struggled with what to do. For the third time, I reached for the phone and again heard, "Talk to Me." I left the phone and knelt on top of my bed and talked to God. Through heavy weeping I told Him I was sorry for what I had done. I told Him I had indeed sinned and rightly deserved death; that I had followed my own way for 24 years, and I now saw clearly where I was headed. I told Him that I believed in Jesus, that I was incredibly thankful for his healing touch and for his death in my place. I told him that I would do whatever He wanted me to do, that I was glad to have found Someone I could follow, and that I would be thrilled to call Him "My Lord." I met Jesus that night and learned my first lesson in why God is God and I am not. Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that seems right to man, but in the end it leads to death." I was on death row and didn't even know it. If I were making the rules, I would not have set the death penalty for homosexuality or for any sin. Also, I would have not provided a way out for those who deserved death by sending my Son to pay their penalty and then freely offering eternal life to anyone who simply believed in Him. Thank God that our ways are not His ways. Not only did I meet Jesus that night, but I learned a profound truth about Him that has been ingrained in the essence of my being: I am alive because Jesus died. back to top
©1995-2004 Sight God. All Rights Reserved. Black Fish Networks \| CySpace City Marketing \| links \| questions/comments


home \| do you believe? \| heaven's emporium \| testimonials \| one in a million \| commissions \| join us \| discussions
General Marriage & Family Inspirational/Born Again Miracles & Healings Life Experiences Prayer Requests	\| A \| B \| C \| D \| E \| F \| G \| H \| I \| J \| K \| L \| M \| N \| O \| P \| Q \| R \| S \| T \| U \| V \| W \| X \| Y \| Z E Testimony By Name Eric Elder - Who's In Control? Eric Elder Who's in Control? EMail: pokey@gridley.org I met Jesus on February 9th, 1987. I had heard about him most of my life, but on that day I met him. Here's what happened: At a church retreat, a group of us were talking about Jesus. I felt the need to be honest with the group and told them I wasn't sure if I believed in Jesus. For 24 years I was raised in a Christian home, attended church weekly, and went to Christian conferences. But that weekend, when talking about Jesus, I had to say that I didn't know if I really believed in Him. I took the plunge to find out more when a man invited me to study the Bible with him and some friends. After six months of meeting with them each week, the question arose about whether or not we knew for sure we had eternal life - that when we died God would take us into heaven. I thought about my life and answered with a hesitant, "Yes," and added, "about 90% sure." The man next to me then answered and said, "Yes, 100% sure." My immediate thought was, How arrogant! How does he know what God is going to do with him? But as we went around the circle, man after man said, "Yes, 100% sure." "100%." "100%," "100%," "100%." Back to me: "90%." They said to me, "Eric, the difference between 90% and 100% will change your life." Making a mental note of that, I went on with the study. Six months later, we were studying the book of Romans. A phrase in Chapter 1 caught my eye. At the end of a long list of sins was a statement that "... those who do such things deserve death...." Wow! I thought. Death? Death is a pretty strong sentence for some of those things. I told the group, "I don't mean to say I'm so great, but honestly, I don't think I've done that much wrong in my life. I've hardly done anything that I would even be put in jail for in America, let alone get the death penalty. Yet, it says everyone has done such things, and for that, they deserve death." A man in the group made a suggestion. "Why don't you ask God and see what He says?" And so I asked God one of the hardest questions I've ever asked Him in my life. "God, show me if I've done anything for which I deserve death." Either what I said was right, and the Bible was wrong, or what the Bible said was right and I was wrong; both couldn't be right. Within two weeks, I had my answer. God drew my attention to one of the topics on the list of sins in Chapter 1. I hesitate to admit the sin because I don't really want to tell people about it. But to leave it out of the story would be to miss God's transforming power at work in my life. The topic God pointed to was homosexuality. Like many men who enter into homosexuality, I had felt a void in my life in my relationships with other men. I didn't excel at the typical male sports in our small town, such as football, basketball, or wrestling. I found myself doing things in which I did excel, like gymnastics, music, and dancing. These activities put me in the midst of women, with whom I then formed most of my close friendships. And like many homosexuals, I found over the years that I didn't have a problem relating to women, but to men. In college, I met men who spent time with me and cared for me. I found myself drawn into intimate, and eventually sexual relationships with them. While I thought I had always lived a fairly upright life, I had also talked myself into thinking that sex outside the bonds of marriage wasn't so such a bad thing. In America, you don't get put in jail for having sex with someone who is mutually agreeable. And homosexuality was equally acceptable under the law --although I was aware it wasn't acceptable to everyone because of the public disagreement over the issue. I enjoyed this new freedom and considered myself opened minded enough to not categorize my activity as a "sin." Even though I eventually had sexual relations with women as well, my passions returned me to homosexuality, seeking to fill the void of close male friends in my life. But when I prayed to God to show me if there was anything I'd done wrong in my life, He pointed to this topic. I felt He was asking me to rethink it now in light of what I had been learning about Him. I was overwhelmed. God opened my eyes to see it for what it was, to see the destruction it could cause, and to see that it could certainly lead to death. I thought about how God had carefully and incredibly created men and women to be marriage partners and to produce offspring. I thought about how skillfully He had made our most intimate parts to join together in a unifying experience that brings joy to us as well as joy to the Lord. I thought about His first words to humans after putting us on the earth: "Be fruitful and increase in number." I soon realized that I had taken these great things God had created for me and I had twisted and perverted them. I had used them in a way that does not produce life, and could quite conceivably lead to death. I felt an acute awareness before God that I had indeed sinned, and that "those who do such things" do deserve death. I felt in full agreement with God that if He decided to take my life for this sin, that it would be fair. I would simply be reaping what I had sown. I felt terrible before God. I was truly sorry, but I had no way to make up for what I had done. I couldn't take back my actions. I couldn't undo the past. It was as if, for example, I had just killed my father, then later felt sorry about it and desperately wanted to make up to my mother for what I had done. What could I do for her to make up for taking the life of her husband? To say "I'm sorry" would not bring him back to life. To give her a thousand dollars, or ten thousand dollars, or even a million dollars would not make up for it. To promise to go to church for the rest of my life would not restore what had been lost. I knew, however, that I did not want this sin anymore. I simply couldn't engage in this lifestyle any longer. I didn't want these passions anymore, but how could I get rid of the way I felt and thought and acted? In my daily Bible reading, my eyes were drawn to a passage in Matthew 9 where two blind men wanted to be healed. They cried out to Jesus for mercy. Instead of simply healing them as he had for other people, Jesus asked these men a question: "Do you believe I am able to do this?" Like the blind men, I felt I needed God's healing and mercy in the area of homosexuality. I felt the Lord was asking me, "Eric, do you believe I am able to do this?" I thought, From everything I've been taught about Jesus - His miracles, His healings, who He was and how He lived--if anyone could do this for me, He could. In fact, I couldn't think of anyone else who could change my mind and heart and body on this issue. I couldn't see anyone talking me out of it or being able, somehow, to change my inner desires. But I knew that if anyone could, Jesus could. And Jesus asked me, "Do you believe I am able to do this?" Like the blind men, I answered Him, "Yes, Lord." And as He did with the blind men, Jesus touched me and healed me that day and said to me what he said to them, "According to your faith will it be done to you." Many homosexuals talk about 'coming out' as a time when they declare their openness to the world about their sexuality. I came out that day, but not to expose my sin to the world. I came out of a dark closet into the full light of God, exposing my sin to Him so he could do the precision surgery needed to heal me. The next night, I was sitting in on a class about world missions at a local church. The speaker talked about why Jesus came to the earth. The man detailed God's plan to save His people as outlined throughout the Bible, from the first pages of Genesis to the last pages of Revelation. The speaker explained why Jesus came--which was not just to tell us to love each other, but to die for our sins so we wouldn't have to. That night God showed me how I could make up for what I'd done wrong. How, if I had literally killed my father, I could now restore him to my mother. God impressed strongly upon me that there was a way to escape the penalty of death--a penalty that the book of Romans told me was inevitable for all who sinned. All I had to do was to believe in his Son, Jesus Christ. I went home that night with an unusually heightened sense of love; a love that came from the thought that Someone would die for me, even though I rightfully deserved it. All I had to do was accept His death in my place and my sins would be forgiven and forgotten. I had heard the phrase "Jesus is Lord!" before, but it had never struck me as something more than a trite, religious saying. That night, I felt like shouting, "JESUS IS LORD!" I had seldom met anyone in my life whom I wanted to follow, but now I found One whom I would gladly follow anywhere. Since He was willing to die for me, I was willing to give Him my life. For 24 years I was lord of my life, doing what I wanted to do. Now that I saw where my own ways were leading me, I decided to let Him be Lord of my life, and let Him call the shots. At home that night, I didn't know what to do with the incredible love I felt. A girl I knew in college was the closest thing to this kind of love I had ever known, so I decided to call her. As I went to pick up the phone, I distinctly sensed these words, "Talk to Me." Knowing it was God, but wanting to talk to this girl, I went for the phone again. Again, I heard, "Talk to Me." I struggled with what to do. For the third time, I reached for the phone and again heard, "Talk to Me." I left the phone and knelt on top of my bed and talked to God. Through heavy weeping I told Him I was sorry for what I had done. I told Him I had indeed sinned and rightly deserved death; that I had followed my own way for 24 years, and I now saw clearly where I was headed. I told Him that I believed in Jesus, that I was incredibly thankful for his healing touch and for his death in my place. I told him that I would do whatever He wanted me to do, that I was glad to have found Someone I could follow, and that I would be thrilled to call Him "My Lord." I met Jesus that night and learned my first lesson in why God is God and I am not. Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that seems right to man, but in the end it leads to death." I was on death row and didn't even know it. If I were making the rules, I would not have set the death penalty for homosexuality or for any sin. Also, I would have not provided a way out for those who deserved death by sending my Son to pay their penalty and then freely offering eternal life to anyone who simply believed in Him. Thank God that our ways are not His ways. Not only did I meet Jesus that night, but I learned a profound truth about Him that has been ingrained in the essence of my being: I am alive because Jesus died. back to top
©1995-2004 Sight God. All Rights Reserved. Black Fish Networks \| CySpace City Marketing \| links \| questions/comments

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Testimony By Name