A FRESH START AT LIFE

365 Days of Thanksliving — Day 126

If you’re one of my regular readers, I’d wager it’s a safe guess that you believe in a man named Jesus of Nazareth. You likely believe He lived a sinless life 2,000 years ago, ministered to thousands, healed the broken, and was brutally executed for the sins of the world—only to be raised from the dead three days later. If I could make a second guess, I’d bet many of you were “born and raised” in the church just like I was. But then again, I shouldn’t make too many assumptions; we all know where those lead! 😊

I was one of those “good” Lutheran kids. I did all the things I was supposed to do: Sunday school, catechism, retreats, and church service. I confirmed my faith right on schedule. But looking back, by the time I graduated high school, I don’t know if I could have actually told you what I believed. I mean, I believed in God, whatever that meant to me at the time, but I think I saw Him as some far-off, unknown deity who had very little influence on my actual life.

One day I was walking across a high school graduation stage, and the next, I was headed to university and promptly going off the deep end as a prodigal son. My mom dropped me off at the dorms, and before I’d even unpacked a single box, I ventured out and discovered the most outrageous fraternity on campus. It was Animal House in real life. Within days, I had pledged and moved in. For that first semester, I truly "partied like it was 1999." God and His church? I didn’t give Him a second thought.

By the end of that semester, my grades reflected my lifestyle; they were in the tank. For a kid with potential, I was throwing it all away. I realized the frat was bad news, so I quit, moved back into the dorms, got a job in the dining hall, and sought to get back on track. Along the way, I joined the Navy delayed entry program, just looking for a fresh start on life.

While the Navy was one of the best things that ever happened to me, my journey back to faith didn’t happen all at once. Slowly but surely, though, God revealed Himself to me. Twice, He spoke to me audibly. Another time, He literally saved my life during a midnight blizzard on I-80 in Indiana. I had dozed off behind the wheel for more than 20 minutes—how I stayed on the road, only God knows. Those are both huge stories for another time, but looking back, I can see how God was upholding His promise to keep me, just as He’d always done since the day of my baptism.

Fast forward five years: I’d married my high school sweetheart, become a dad, and exited the Navy to pursue my degree. Life got hard. Income went down, expenses went up, and besides begging my folks for help, the only thing I knew to do was hit my knees and dial up God in prayer. I said, “God, if you’re real—like, if you’re really, really real—I could use some help. I need to take care of my family. Please, Lord, please... plant a money tree in my backyard.”

You might laugh, but that’s where I was at. I didn’t know God yet, but I believed enough to know He had a plan for me. Once again, I needed a fresh start. The Lord heard my prayer. Within days, the Lord introduced me to an Amway rep named Dennis. I saw something in Dennis I didn’t have: a relationship with Christ. I wanted that. I needed that. When I asked Dennis how I could have what he had, he just said, "Just wait; you’ll soon find out."

Two months later, we found ourselves at a big event in Minneapolis. That Sunday, I attended a “big tent revival” service and gave my life to the Lord. That is a story in itself, but I knew that day that something had changed. God had given me the fresh start I’d been looking for all along, and I’ve never been the same since.

Sure, I’ve had lots to learn along the way, and I’m still learning what it means to follow Christ. Today, of all days—Easter Sunday—is the day we celebrate a fresh start at life: life in the here-and-now, and life eternal. I’m beyond grateful for the new life God has given me. Daily, I pray God forgive me, and daily I thank Him for resurrection life.

How can I not thank God on a day like today? If not for Christ, I don’t know where I’d be. Perhaps lying in a gutter, or worse yet, dead in my sins and on the way to everlasting darkness. Instead, I can sing: "Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him all ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."

Happy Easter, my friends. May the God of resurrection life give you a fresh start every, single, day!