Hi

My name is Sheri. I was not raised in a Christian home (It’s a Christian home now) and only went to church sporadically. I was in a Christian school for half of the 5th grade year and we had Chapel every day. One day I stayed after Chapel along with a friend and prayed the sinner’s prayer to be saved. My life did not change – I am afraid I believed that I was now a Christian because I “did” what I was told to do, but realized (on some level right away) years later that I had not been sincere.

As a young mother I was in a revival one night and this time felt the Lord’s pull and went forward to the altar where well meaning people prayed for me and when the altar call ended congratulated me and stood me up. Once again I  believed because I had felt God call this time and I went forward I was saved. His Word says in John 6:65 KJV “And He said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him of My Father.”  I had truly felt God that night at revival but I went up and listened to other people tell me what to say, and let them do most of the praying and tell me when it was “done”. Don’t get me wrong if you prayed a sinner’s prayer and it was from your heart – it does not matter what the words were! If He convicted you and your response to Him was yes and your heart was involved and you connected with Jesus then you are saved no matter what words you said.  I felt God’s conviction but still I had somehow relied on those around me to just “glide me right into salvation” and sometimes I think that is because of feelings of unworthiness. I completed step one, I went to the altar, but I did not follow it through so that it was confirmed in my heart, I listened to the words of others instead of focusing on what God was saying was required from me. I got up from the altar because it was time to, the invitation was over and everyone was going back to their seats, not because I had connected with Jesus. I was still holding on to the world. I was in church for a few years and even taught Sunday School, but just walked away one day without ever looking back or feeling convicted or a loss or anything.

I lived in the world for many years knowing that I was not saved and trying to get saved.  I would pray all the time in all places because I knew I needed to be saved, but that was me trying to take care of it in my own power. I did not get back in church or do any of the things that might expose me to His Word. It was kind of like, okay God I know I need to be saved so please forgive me and save me now – only I was empty at the end of each prayer. But you see we can’t just decide “Oh I am going to get saved today.” We have to be called by the Holy Spirit. You can call it conviction, being drawn, or being called, it does not matter what you call it, but John 6:44a KJV says “No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him: …”. Sometimes we get tangled up with words but He has to draw us to Him, He has to show us that we are lost and undone and that He is our only hope. Once He does that, all we have to do is respond to Him with total acknowledgement and acceptance of His gift of salvation. During these years my parents had each accepted Christ and even began to travel a little bit with a drama ministry that they kept trying to get me to go to. I would turn off my alarm, and just plain out lie to them about oversleeping or whatever excuse I could think of to keep from going. Mother’s Day 1992 I woke up and felt like God told me this will be your last chance if you do not go. So I went.  Conviction fell upon me the moment I walked in the church door, the tears flowed throughout every scene that was acted out, my heart was broken and by the time the invitation was given I was a mess. I looked up and my dad stood with his hand outstretched and I jumped up and we got to that altar. I prayed, people prayed with me and for me, I was given scripture to read – let me tell you I was not getting up this time until I met with Jesus! If I am not mistaken the church was dismissed and went on over to the fellowship hall to eat lunch before I got up from that altar. I don’t know why it was so hard for me to let go and let God have that control, I read scripture and read scripture and prayed and finally I read that same scripture one more time (Romans 10:9-10) and let go. I read, That if Sheri shalt confess with her mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in her heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, she shalt be saved. For with the heart Sheri believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. This time it was different.  My voice was different, and when they asked me I told them I was saved.  Then we got up from the altar. 

For me letting God be in control sometimes is hard. It is something I am still having to work on. I want to share my walk with you. Maybe I can help someone out there and maybe you can help me.  My prayer is that the  words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in His sight, the Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

Sheri