Self examination:A doorway to God
There was a time in my life when I stopped and thought, “I wonder why I can’t seem to find the right person to share my life with?”. I had been through many love relationships and was starting to see an ugly pattern. Each relationship started and ended the same way. Later I discovered I was basing relationships on the wrong principles, without a solid foundation. Of course that’s very easy to sum-up years later, through 20-20 hind-sight, but I knew deep down something needed to change. I started asking the question, “Is there something wrong with me?” I was just starting that painful process of looking at myself.
This was an era I call the “self-help recovery period” in which I decided to go to a counselor to find out why I couldn’t find a lasting relationship. I wish I could tell you I had a revelation and it all clicked one morning on the beach while doing yoga, but it didn’t happen that way. It was the beginning of a long journey. I estimate that was 15 years ago. Well folks, I’m still on that journey. Don’t gasp… I can tell you real quick - it’s a road on which I have never looked back, and I will continue this excursion the rest of my days on this earth. Why? I can give you three reasons among zillions.
Reason One: Several months into painful soul searching I was reading a self-help book (I can’t recall the title) that introduced a connection to God. I remember, at that point, I realized I truly believed in God and that I had been ignoring him during my young adult life. I knew then, by ignoring Him, I had always felt guilt and pain. So I began to pray, and this is when my life began to change. For the first time since my childhood, I was experiencing true joy.
Reason Two: I heard the truth about Jesus. One night while driving with a friend I asked him to explain to me about Jesus. He told me that Jesus died as a payment for our sins so we could go to heaven. This is when I learned that believing in God is not enough, and that I needed to accept Jesus as my Savior, for through Him is the only way to enter heaven. He is the narrow gate. Matthew 7: 7-14
Reason Three: I met my wife. During this time of prayer, I had prayed for God to find me a friend, because I was tired of the kind of relationships I had been through. I just wanted someone to date that was a friend and not someone to have a heavy relationship with. Well that’s when Alice came along. I realized how much I really enjoyed being with her and how much we laughed together. That friendship grew into a love based on commitment and the solid foundation of God. So, I found the right person after all. Praise God!
Reasons Four and Five: My kids. I couldn’t resist throwing them in.
So, my message is this: By taking a look at myself, I began to open up my heart. It was painful, but rewarding and fulfilling. Eventually, I left the self-help era and began my walk with
Jesus.
Download PDF version of this page