My Testimony of God
Saving My Soul
Daniel E
I will never forget the
night I got saved. God brought me out of a miry pit of despair, guilt, and
shame, resulting from my drug use, drinking, stealing and lies. I was
saved in June of 1990 on a Saturday night at
10:30pm. My life was a mess and my marriage was at the critical
stage. I wasn’t alone in my drug abuse but this testimony is about me. I
could be in my house with my wife and two boys and feel absolutely alone. My
life was more committed to getting, selling and doing drugs. The drug of choice
was speed, crank or methamphetamines, what ever you call it. I also smoked pot
and drank. I really hated myself and probably treated myself worse than anyone.
We lived in Shamong, NJ
from 1985 to 1990. During that time there lived directly across my street a
Baptist minister named John Mitchell. He and his family were wonderful to my
family and me. I envied them and their happiness and joy, which I could not
find. My drug use escalated to heavy use right before I got saved and it seemed
to be all I cared about.
The Mitchell family had
always reached out to us with Christian love and concern. Jackie (John’s wife)
would bake for us or prepare meals and my boys played with their son Brian. John
started visiting my house on his church’s soul-winning night and planting seeds.
He would say “Dan, do you believe the bible is God’s Word?” Or, “Why don’t you
come out to church?” At the same time, my mother was urging me to go to
church. It is funny how God works in people’s lives as He draws them. I began a
bible study on Saturday’s with John and his son and my two boys. I also went to
the Shawnee Baptist Church
a few Sundays in a row. I would sit in the back with my mom and Pastor Dyer
would preach and then give an invitation. I would raise my hand with tears
streaming down my cheeks but not walk the aisle. John must have been watching,
knowing God was moving in my heart. It was after one of our bible studies that
later that night all alone that I watched Charles Stanley preach to his church
on the T.V. He preached on heaven and gave an invitation at the end to his
congregation. I was crying and under strong conviction. I muted the television
got on my knees and asked the Lord to save me. He did. I got off that floor with
a load of guilt and shame gone. My sins were forgiven and I was free. My life
began to change.
It was 6 months earlier that I had been divorced. (Jan.1989) I tried to
reconcile with my wife but restoration was not the case. She had been unfaithful
in our marriage and my salvation and change mattered little to her. Here I was
a new creature in Christ but my marriage had ended and I was now out of the
house soon after I was saved. It was in 1992 after some time of getting to know
my wife Kathy that we got married on May 16th. Things were not
perfect but my life was new and joy filled and I was growing rapidly in the
Lord. I loved the Word of God and studied it furiously. I began teaching S/S at
my new church Ocean County Baptist in
Toms
River. I was now living in
Bayville with my wife Kathy and we were serving the Lord with joy. God has put a
desire in my heart to serve Him through weekly soul-winning, discipling others,
teaching S/S, choir, and since April of 2001 I have been a bus captain. It was
in March of 2003 at Promised Land Baptist Church in Gastonia NC
while visiting friends that God called me to the mission field. I have since
been accepted by Word for the World Baptist Ministries and hope very soon to be
on the field of Ireland.
I am thankful for my sending church The First Baptist Church of Southard in Howell NJ.
The Lord has given me a strong, compassionate, God fearing pastor. God changes
lives and He certainly changed mine. I love the verse 2Cor. 5:17 for we are “new” creatures when we become
saved. I have a few life verses of which one is Acts 20:24 and the other is John 12:24 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a
corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it
bringeth forth much fruit.”
Thank you Lord