#LifeStory [ 6 ] As a new Christian, I still struggled with bad habits, but over time God continues to give me the grace and strength to rid my life of sin that has often tripped and tangled me up. His Holy Spirit set me free
from my selfish life of sin, guilt, and condemnation. Sadly, I lost some friends along the way, but God has delivered me from my life of alcohol abuse and given me a new purpose and reason to live – to know and love Him! (John 17:3)
About a year after giving my heart and life to Jesus Christ, the Lord used a situation to strengthen my faith in Him. In the Spring of 2001, while at home on the weekend from college, I left my parents house and headed across the 225 acre family farm in hopes of scouting for turkeys. I knew that a thunderstorm was headed our way, but thought I had time before it hit. I parked my truck at Grandpa and Grandma Koch's, then walked across rolling hills, woods, and pasture land to the back side, but didn't see or hear any turkeys.
The wind was starting to gust and I could hear the thunder in the distance as I watched the huge dark clouds begin rolling in. I turned around to head back, but as I climbed the big hill (where the old Ermin house used to be) lightning crashed nearby and huge rain drops started to fall. I dove for cover on top of the hill in the midst of some huge cedars that had grown close together. The rain started to pound down, but I remained mostly dry as I sat against the huge cedar trunk.
I remember thinking what an idiot I was to find cover on top of a hill, sitting against one of the biggest cedar trees, and the lightning seemed to be tearing up the hillside as it crashed all around me.
But the Lord reminded me of His sovereignty and power as I thought about how Jesus stood in the boat and commanded the wind and the waves to stop. I soon found myself singing out loud the hymn, “How Great Thou Art,” and began praising God, because I knew that despite my circumstances, He was right there with me and was in complete control of the lightning and rain.
I sat there for a few minutes hoping that the rain would ease up, but it only came down harder and the lightning continued to crash all around me. It was almost dark and I knew I had to get back home. So I prayed, and asked the Lord to cause the rain to slack off so I could run back to the truck. Within minutes, the rain suddenly stopped, so I jumped up and took off running! I ran down the long hill, through the cow pasture, and back up the steep hill toward the big barn (about 1⁄2 mile in distance). Within a few yards of my truck, the rain started to come down hard again, but I jumped in the truck before it hit. I sat in the truck for a few minutes and praised God for His faithfulness and grace! He had delivered me from the midst of a severe thunderstorm, and my clothes were still completely dry!
from my selfish life of sin, guilt, and condemnation. Sadly, I lost some friends along the way, but God has delivered me from my life of alcohol abuse and given me a new purpose and reason to live – to know and love Him! (John 17:3)
About a year after giving my heart and life to Jesus Christ, the Lord used a situation to strengthen my faith in Him. In the Spring of 2001, while at home on the weekend from college, I left my parents house and headed across the 225 acre family farm in hopes of scouting for turkeys. I knew that a thunderstorm was headed our way, but thought I had time before it hit. I parked my truck at Grandpa and Grandma Koch's, then walked across rolling hills, woods, and pasture land to the back side, but didn't see or hear any turkeys.
The wind was starting to gust and I could hear the thunder in the distance as I watched the huge dark clouds begin rolling in. I turned around to head back, but as I climbed the big hill (where the old Ermin house used to be) lightning crashed nearby and huge rain drops started to fall. I dove for cover on top of the hill in the midst of some huge cedars that had grown close together. The rain started to pound down, but I remained mostly dry as I sat against the huge cedar trunk.
I remember thinking what an idiot I was to find cover on top of a hill, sitting against one of the biggest cedar trees, and the lightning seemed to be tearing up the hillside as it crashed all around me.
But the Lord reminded me of His sovereignty and power as I thought about how Jesus stood in the boat and commanded the wind and the waves to stop. I soon found myself singing out loud the hymn, “How Great Thou Art,” and began praising God, because I knew that despite my circumstances, He was right there with me and was in complete control of the lightning and rain.
I sat there for a few minutes hoping that the rain would ease up, but it only came down harder and the lightning continued to crash all around me. It was almost dark and I knew I had to get back home. So I prayed, and asked the Lord to cause the rain to slack off so I could run back to the truck. Within minutes, the rain suddenly stopped, so I jumped up and took off running! I ran down the long hill, through the cow pasture, and back up the steep hill toward the big barn (about 1⁄2 mile in distance). Within a few yards of my truck, the rain started to come down hard again, but I jumped in the truck before it hit. I sat in the truck for a few minutes and praised God for His faithfulness and grace! He had delivered me from the midst of a severe thunderstorm, and my clothes were still completely dry!