My Story: How I Became a Christian
This was posted on Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010 at 7:16 pm by Mitch
Ever since I was very young, I attended church with my mom and grandma. We went to a Lutheran church until I was about nine and then started going to a non-denominational church. It was here, at the age of ten, that I was presented with the decision to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior or to not. With some other boys in my youth group, I prayed a prayer to invite Jesus into my life to save me from my sins.
As the years passed I learned more about God and got more involved with youth group. You could say that I knew a lot about God but I didn’t know God. I wasn’t engaged in a relationship with him in the way that he wanted.
I lived out my faith like a Christian version of Monopoly. Instead of properties on the board like Baltic Avenue and Park Place I had things like mission trips, good grades, not swearing and going to youth group. I felt as if I was gaining some sort of spiritual real estate which I would be able to cash in on either in this life or in heaven. I also felt that I was better at this game than others. I had property all over the board and I really compared myself to people and the better I was doing in this “game”, the more connected I thought I was with God. Then I would mess up. I would fall short of God’s standard. I would sin. I’d get thrown in jail, land on luxury tax or have to mortgage property. Then I would have to start working my way around the board again to be connected with God. During these times I would feel distant from God. This wasn’t a very satisfying way to live.
It wasn’t until my first couple years of college that I started to really come to realize what this whole Jesus thing was about. I had grown up hearing the message that Jesus died for my sins and wants to have a personal relationship with me my whole life but never truly embraced it. I lived a Christian life defined by rules, judgment and a list of “do and do-nots.” I wasn’t experiencing the gift of life that Jesus offers.
I didn’t really have an, “Aha!” moment where everything came to light but I think there were a couple of incidents that helped me to understand what the Christian life really was. One occurred on the night of July 4, 2008. I was riding my motorcycle behind my friend in his car when deer ran out in front of him. He slammed on his brakes to avoid hitting them and I did the same to avoid hitting him. My front brakes locked up and my bike flipped end over end, launching me towards the road at 50 mph. After skidding to a stop, I laid on the blacktop for a while as my friend quickly got out of the car and started asking me if I was alright. Being a man of course, the only logical response to the question “are you alright” is the one I gave which was, “Yeah I’m good, just give me a second.” In an accident that the doctors figured I should have died in, I walked away with a broken collar bone and a little road rash. I do have to admit though, I did cry that night. Sitting in the back seat of a car with my family on the way to the hospital, I had the realization that I could be dead right now. I could be gone from my family, gone from my friends. Gone from the Christian game of Monopoly I had been playing and the only thing that would matter was whether I had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ or if I didn’t. To start that relationship with Jesus we need to accept him by faith through prayer as our Lord and Savior, which I had done, but I had done it with my mind and not my heart. I knew the words I had prayed but I wasn’t truly embracing them.
I spent the majority of my life focusing on not doing bad things and trying to live up to a standard that I could never live up to by myself. It’s only through Jesus’ death on the cross for my sins that I am saved from living up to this standard and am able to experience a satisfying and abundant life. The only thing that He asks of me is that I love him and embrace him in a relationship. The monopoly board may still be there and you can see my faith in what I do, but when I mess up, I have unlimited “Get Out of Jail Free” cards, drawn from Jesus’ Community Chest and instead of a bald man with a monocle and a top hat congratulating me at the end of the game, I have my Savior in heaven.
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at 7:54 pm
Mitch, I love this analogy. Its always great to hear how people have come to know the lord. Keep on praising!
at 11:31 am
Mitchel, I loved “your” story. Parents think they know everything about their children. You always are showing me new “glimpes” of who you are and the awesome man that you have become. I love you.
at 8:41 pm
Mitchel I love your story of how you became a christian. You are an amazing grandson & I love you lots. I hope to see you sometime soon. I also liked the video about not shaving. Hope your work is going well.
at 2:20 am
Hey Mitch, how ya been? Good story and analogy. It was very well written. Here’s my response: Christianity needs a paradigm shift. My concern as a non-Christian is that the “unlimited get out of jail free” analogy can be twisted by people that think they have fully embraced Jesus but do not live up to His teachings. I haven’t talked to you in a while but I am assuming that you are still a moral person. You will not abuse this privilege. On the other hand, the wealthy businessman, the gossiping high school kid or the sex-addicted college student may justify his actions, because he thinks he has found Jesus, despite being hypocritical of His teachings. These people may twist this idea and think that they can get out of jail free, do immoral acts and still be Christian.
I have no problem with a person for being Christian if he/she is not hypocritical of Christ’s teachings, but I have a problem with someone who preaches the good book and is a self serving, judgmental individual. I do not think that it is lunacy to believe that a good Christian should be a charitable, understanding and selfless individual in addition to believing in Christ. I am by no means accusing you of this. However, I have stumbled across many self-proclaimed Christians that have not been opposed to hating some of their fellow humans, but think it is OK because they claim to have accepted Jesus into their heart. They carry an air of entitlement with them.
I have experienced the fear tactic of being told that the only way to get into heaven is by embracing Jesus into my heart, believing in him or believing “on” him. This may be true; I’m an agnostic so I admit that I do not know, but looking at this objectively, I do not believe it creates the following that Christ would want. With this fear tactic, you have the new church members frightened into accepting Jesus. Instead, they should want to accept Him when they are ready and capable. Someone who is fearful does not have the mental capacity to make such a decision. First, they should learn that being a good person has its rewards even though it may not be the way to salvation. People should experience the sense of well-being that comes from doing good deeds. Give a homeless man a meal. Help an elderly woman with her groceries. Talk to the alcoholic veteran that has no one to talk to. These simple acts of reaching out to those who can use it give a sense of satisfaction that is far beyond the effort involved in doing them. I think a person that participates in righteous acts and is satisfied with himself will be better prepared to accept a higher being than one who is lost and frightened.
This is what has distanced me from being involved in a church. Many have members that are more concerned with condemning non-believers and dividing themselves from their fellow man than working together towards goals that they have in common. I would be willing to bet that if all Christians were focused on improving the well-being of all people, not just themselves, they would find more support and more converts than any time in history. If they put politics, beliefs and judgment aside and truly prioritize the community, they will see the community give back to the church tenfold. I’m not saying that this would make me convert, but I would definitely participate with a open-minded and selfless church: a church that reached out to others, did not pass judgment and acted Christlike itself.
Jason
at 9:14 pm
Hola Jason. I have been doing very well. You raised so many good points and issues in what you wrote, most of which I have wrestled with myself. I, as well, have been frustrated and disappointed at times with how my fellow “self-proclaimed” Christians conduct themselves.
I would be lying though if I said I was never disappointed with how I conduct myself and I’d also be lying if I said I have never seemed hypocritical. In so many areas I fall short of what Christ taught and of his desire for my life. That is the point though. I do fall short of the example that Christ gave and that is exactly why he came. It’s a bit paradoxical, but Christ came to set an example that I can never live up to. His example is what God expects of me and because I fall short of that, I need Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. When asked by Pharisees what the greatest commandment in the Law is, Jesus replied, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37). Every day I know I fall short of these two commandments that Jesus says sums all of the commandments up and that’s why I need him.
A great misunderstanding of Christianity that I’ve seen is the belief that it is a standard of living for people to strive for. This is true but it is also secondary. The standard of living that the Bible shows us is one that we cannot live up to. Not living up to God’s standards is a sin and Romans 6:23 says that “the wages of sin is death.” Well, this puts us in a bind. I’m supposed to live up to a standard that I can’t live up to and if I don’t, I earn death? If this is true, then I am in a position of need because I am required to do something that I can’t possibly do. That’s exactly why Jesus went to the cross. He lived the perfect life that I can’t and then paid my debt that I have accrued from sinning (the wages of sin is death).
This is where believing in Jesus comes into play. John 1:12 says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” This is perhaps where you have come across some people who have the mindset of “I can do whatever I want because I believe in Jesus so I’m set.” In the first century when you say, “I believe in so and sos name” you are saying you are putting your trust in them. If a soldier in the first century were to say, “I believe in General Bob’s name”, he is essentially saying, “I believe in General Bob and I am entrusting my life to him. I am trusting him to guide me and lead me in all things.” It isn’t simply believing in Jesus’ existence but it is trusting him with my life.
Becoming a Christian I would say involves three things:
1. Recognizing that you have a problem that you can’t fix and that problem is sin.
2. Trusting in Christ as the only sacrifice to pay for that sin.
3. Trusting Christ as the Lord of your life.
Many times a couple of those things are missed but this is what the Bible teaches. Sometimes people have the unfortunate view that Jesus paid it all so they can live how they want. Sometimes people look at Jesus’ commands and try to live up to them with the misconception that this is how they get to God. However, the mark of a true Christian is a recognition, that, without Christ there is no way to get to God. From that recognition flows a desire to live how Jesus has commanded us to live. Obeying Jesus’ commands is done out of love for him, not to receive what he has done. That is a free gift that we can’t earn. This is demonstrated in Ephesians 2:8-9 which says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Working with Campus Crusade for Christ I weekly talk with people who have a misunderstanding of Christianity that breaks my heart. It’s an earn your way to God’s favor understanding when in actuality He says, “No, I have done it for you. I don’t want you to just do things for me. I want you to know me. I want you to have a relationship with me.”
The true message of Christianity is so against the grain of society that it is often twisted and misunderstood and in that salvation becomes something that we try to earn or it becomes “fire insurance” when God’s true desire is for us to humble ourselves by acknowledging our need for him and then live in relationship with him.
I totally agree with your last paragraph. A church that looks like the one you described is not what Jesus had in mind when he established the church. However, I don’t think that any church holds up to what Jesus had in mind. People are sinful and we fail. The important thing to look for is if people are striving to grow more Christlike. I think people living in that way will be moving closer and closer towards a community that is like the one you described.
I really appreciate your comments. I think your concerns are very valid and, unfortunately, are sad realities of our fallen human condition. We live in a sinful world but Christ came to redeem it. Amen!
Mitch
at 2:00 pm
Mitch, Just had a great talk with your mom this past Saturday, July 16 at my parent’s 50th wedding anniversary. Congratulations on your awesome engagement. She also directed me to your blog. I’m so encouraged to know that you, your sister, mom and grandmother are believers. God has given us family, but also a spiritual family. Keep running the race brother!