For as long as I can remember, church has been an important part of my life. As an Army Brat, when my family returned to the States after my Father's first tour in Germany, my parents separated and divorced. We settled in Davidson County, in the small community of Silver Valley, North Carolina, where my Mom was born and raised. She introduced us to the tight-knit community church she attended as a child. Boy, those fine country folk loved to eat. And let me assure you, they knew how to cook.
While living in a rural part of the county, I attended Silver Valley Elementary School until the sixth grade. Even though church was such a valuable part of my life, Salvation was never an important subject. We went to church. We did church things. We were good people. Life was much simpler. No Internet, smartphones, iPads, or laptops.
In fact, life was great. It was when my older brother and I could take long bike rides on winding country roads, some still unpaved at the time. My summers could have easily been a Norman Rockwell painting. Two sweaty, dusty boys with a few nickles in their pockets, rolling up to a little country store on their matching purple bikes with white banana seats. Sometimes, baseball cards flapped across the spokes of our two-wheeled, metal steeds. The sodas were cold. The candy bars were sweet. We had it made, and there were only three channels on TV. It was all we knew. It was all we wanted. It was all we needed. We didn't realize something was missing. Happy kids don't know what they don't know.
Then, Mom decided to buy a newly constructed house on the edge of Randolph County. Rick, my older brother, Jan, my younger sister, and I weren't happy. We were forced to leave our friends and the simple community we had come to know and love. We exchanged school mascots from a majestic, soaring Eagle to a waddling, smelly Bulldog. At the time, it was the best, worst decision Mom had ever made. And her three young brats were too hard-headed to grasp the significance of their new future.
The middle of our new road was the dividing line between Randolph and Davidson Counties. It was aptly named County Line Road. We were a quarter of a mile from the city limits of Thomasville, NC, a quaint small southern town. Yeah, you got it...country comes to town. On the first day of the 7th grade at Trinity Junior High, it was evident we were in for a bit of a culture shock. The only "saving grace" on Sundays, Mom still drove us back down to our little country church. But that wasn't the Saving Grace that mattered.
Eventually, my siblings and I discovered that Randolph County and the Trinity School District weren't at the extreme limits of the civilized world. In fact, it soon became the gateway to new and more exciting adventures. Gradually, we reluctantly accepted that Trinity had some cool kids we could hang out with and have fun. Rick and I were getting older, and amazing adventures on our little purple bikes slowly became less appealing and no longer important. Jan could still do her "girly" stuff but with different girls.
Then Mom was introduced to Ed, a good Christian man, who insisted that his first date with Mom would have to include her three skeptical children. That was a new one. To our surprise, it didn't take long to realize "that Ed guy was okay." Eventually, we were eager to have him become our "Stepfather." We would call him "Dad." That was an enthusiastic, unanimous decision between Jan, Rick, Ed, and me. It was out of love and total respect because he assured us he really wanted to become our Dad.
Mr. Hughes, my gym teacher, lived two houses behind us in our modest subdivision. He and his wife were devout Christians. They had a basketball goal, and I spent many hours shooting hoops with Mr. Hughes. The more comfortable he became around me, now as a friend and neighbor, the more he started witnessing to me. At the time, I didn't realize what was happening. It wasn't an indoctrination. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced.
Of course, I knew about God and His Son, Jesus. They were the "Good Guys" I was taught about from the Bible in our little country church. It is important to stress that by no means do I intend this negatively or as a swipe at our little country church, filled with wonderful human beings, nor at the denomination to which it is still affiliated. It was that Mr. Hughes' approach was so different. He helped me to fully grasp the depths of the meaning and purpose of John 3:16. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Mr. Hughes was patient. He never pushed the issue. One day, he asked if I was ready to give my heart to the Lord. Honestly, that sounded a little weird while being a lot serious. Something I should discuss with Mom and Dad. As a lad still navigating the turbulent waters of my early teen years, it was obvious if I followed Mr. Hughes' "suggestion," it would require a life-changing, total commitment from me. But what did I know about commitment?
Eventually, Mr. Hughes was invited to meet in our living room. Jan and Rick were there as well. Mom and Dad approved. They were pleased and supportive. Mr. Hughes asked a few prep questions, after which he asked the most important question any human will ever answer. "Do you accept the gift of salvation that Jesus offers by accepting Him as your Savior?" We said, "Yes." That's how easy it was. Little did we realize at the time the actual depths of commitment were far more complicated and involved.
Until then, I don't remember being overly in tune with my "conscience." I soon realized there was a still, small inner voice that would speak at times when I needed guidance. A warning to dissuade me or give me a nudge of encouragement to do or say the right thing at the right time.
It wasn't rocket science, thank the Lord, because the Country Boy in me would have to admit, "I ain't no Rocket Scientist." What mattered was learning to trust and allow that still, small voice that I've come to understand as the "Holy Spirit" to lead and direct me daily.
Frustratingly, it soon became clear that God gives every human being free will. And that's what leads humans to fail so often. Our flawed, Adamic nature is obviously embedded throughout human DNA. The average Christian would likely be disheartened to see their Christian "scorecard." It's a safe bet the "you broke my hearts" would far exceed the "I'm so proud of yous."
The Word of God contains the keys to our Salvation and secured eternity. Especially the power over sin and the Evil One. More importantly, the promise that our physical death will propel our Spirits into Eternal Victory with Christ.
The price of our Salvation is free to us. But the cost was incalculable to Christ. However, the benefits are immeasurable and will take an eternity to begin to fathom!
As a novelist/screenwriter/creative individual, I am a Christian first, who realizes I must exist in the "Reality" of the Real World. We must follow our Heavenly Father's "Great Commission" to minister to the unsaved and unchurched world. First, we have to acquire their attention and then gain their trust. If we approach the "lost" by spouting scriptures and waving a Bible over our heads, we would just as well be speaking a foreign language while appearing intent on beating them over the head with an unknown object.
Most non-Christians have little to no concept of what Christianity actually means. They can't fathom God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit joined into one "Being" while remaining separate "Individuals" simultaneously. In the mind of the unsaved, the fact that Christianity combines the "Divine Three Entities" into the "Trinity" could appear to be a weird form of "Pagan Mysticism."
Since I'm neither a professional "man of the cloth," a missionary, a modern-day profit, an active evangelist, or a prolific orator, my calling is more from a humble layman's position. I'm a simple-saved-by-God's Grace writer with a heart and desire to make a difference within the Evangelical cause of Christ. Primarily, Hope and Faith for all humanity.
The most important project in my life is a Faith-Based series of books packed with realistic life situations, some tragic, some humorous, while others are silly, yet all are written for Christians, as well as for non-believers. The message of true Salvation will prevail throughout the series.
Please allow me to invite you to explore my novels, then take advantage of the free preview of "Return to Faith," book one in the series. "Merlyn And The Mortal's Curse" and "Defiant Victim" are definitely Secular stories. However, they are classic, titanic battles between Good and Evil. I'll let you venture a guess which Power wins in the end.