I Met Jesus, and He Changed My Life!
Some of you may not know this, but I am the oldest brother of Ezra Byer. This is my claim to fame! I'm hoping someday to get his autograph. For years now, I have endeavored to convince everyone that I am the older AND WISER brother, but this campaign for recognition has not gained much traction with my five younger siblings.
Lame humor aside, I put that into my testimony to let you know that while Ezra and I obviously shared many similar childhood experiences, being that we had a few years between us and experienced changing family dynamics, there were some distinct differences as well.
Looking back on my childhood years, I now realize that there were two models of Christianity that were presented to me. The one model emphasized strictness and conformity, but little authentic relationship, while the other model emphasized carefulness, yes, but most importantly, a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ!
As a young boy, I became aware at an early age that my heart wasn’t right before God. As that six-year-old boy, raised within a Christian environment, I simply didn’t have the opportunity to go deep into sin, but there came a growing realization within my heart that I was a sinner, in a non-OK standing before God.
I will never forget that moment as a young child when I tearfully told my mom that I needed to be saved. We went up into my dad’s study, and that day my life was changed! Where before there had been guilt and condemnation, now there was peace and joy. To echo the Apostle Paul’s testimony as found in Philippians 3, I would simply say these words…
I met Jesus, and He changed my life.
However, my testimony is not just about one life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ, but many! Obviously, it is vital that we experience that “come to Jesus” moment of initial salvation, but my testimony has been that there have been many, many life-changing encounters with Jesus Christ over the years.
It was that time at a church camp in Tennessee as a young adult where I was struggling to “hold on to God” for some new spiritual ground that I had just gained, when that night, as I knelt at the altar, the Holy Spirit so graciously revealed to me that His grip on me was so much greater than my grip on Him! All I had to do was just trust Him. It was that moment on Sunday morning, just a few years ago, as a pastor, when making some last-minute preparations for yet another Sunday morning service and “routine,” the Holy Spirit revealed to me that He was going to really help us that morning…and He did!
I have now been pastoring for over 25 years, and one of my passions is for the next generation to experience those life-changing encounters with God. Our small-town church has a lot of children and young people. I’m the dad of four kids myself. While I want my children to live a holy life marked by carefulness and control, most of all, I long to see Jesus transform their lives!
As I tell our church people, I want far more for my kids (and others!) than to just see them sit neatly in a row at church and behave; I want them to experience life-changing encounters with Jesus Christ!
Sometimes we need to just review the basics and state the obvious. In the Gospels, whenever someone met Jesus, their life was forever changed…some for the better as they embraced the truth, but others for the worse as they walked away. One thing that never happened was neutrality and indifference!
In our families, in our churches, and across a wide variety of cultures, customs, denominations, and backgrounds, there remains the simple question: Have you met Jesus? Has He changed your life?! If He has, make sure the next generation sees this demonstrated in your life! We cannot change anyone ourselves, but we can bring people to Jesus. Facilitate and prioritize those moments! Yes, we need life-changing encounters with Jesus!
