Born Again

[WRideout]

Baptism is our initiation and entry into the Christian faith. It does not matter what age we are, or depend on our ability to make a decision. It is about being called by God to live in Christian community, and making that call public.
It is entirely possible to be baptized, even saved for all eternity, and still live as if this were not true. I have done it, and I know others who do it. The great shame of it is that living without God’s promises robs one of the peace and confidence that comes with knowing our Father’s protection. Let me tell you a story about someone who learned the hard way to trust God. I met Maryanne, which is not her real name, through my volunteer work with Prison Aftercare Ministry. She was referred by her probation officer, and was just coming out of the shelter for victims of domestic violence. Maryanne had a hard life, and was scrambling to get things back together after a stretch in state prison. PacMin helped her with the security deposit on an apartment, and did a few other things for her. One afternoon, I had coffee with her in her new apartment, furnished by loving friends. We sipped coffee sitting at a card table in her kitchen. This was her first opportunity to show hospitality, and I had to accept. She gave me a short history of her life. In another time, she might have been the woman at the well, the one that Jesus met, who had three husbands. Maryanne said she had lost her husband to a chronic disease many years ago and suffered such emotional pain that she went a little crazy, descending into drugs and alcohol to blunt the agony. She also looked for solace in the company of men, who eventually turned out to be abusive. Lost and alone, with no means of supporting herself, she turned to crime, and was arrested.
As we sat and talked, she seemed like a completely different person than the way she had described herself. “I am trying my best to follow two books,” she said, “Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Bible.” She expressed being humbled by the kindness of strangers, and said, “The hard part for me is trusting Jesus, but that is what I try to do.” Jesus acknowledges her repentance, and would tell her, “Go and sin no more.” Maryanne is, as far as I can tell, born again.
As Jesus tried to explain to Nicodemus, being born again has nothing to do with our perishable bodies, but everything to do with our imperishable souls. It is about allowing the Holy Spirit to have full reign and control over our lives. It is about putting our complete trust and obedience in God, and living as if his promises are true. Amen

[Blackwater]

What a wonderful story to see here! Thank you for sharing it with us. We see far too few of these type stories. By far the most that we see on TV, radio and the 'net here are stories of what all is WRONG with our world and the people in it. All this contributes heavily to the pervasive cynicism that permeates the whole of our culture today, MUCH to our detriment and fallibility! Stories like yours need to be seen MUCH more often than they are, now!

And FWIW, whenever I had someone on probation or parole who responded positively to my questions and propositions, and actually turned their lives and attitudes around, they'd always come to me and thank me for "changing their lives." In every case, I'd laugh, and point out that all I ever did or COULD do was simply pass on what others had taught me, and instilled in me, and that ALL credit for taking that and running with it, and any successes that come from that, ALL belonged to THEM, and NOT ME! In every case, they understood instantly the simple Truth in this. And this helped them regain a lot of the self respect and sense of real possibility that they's simply lost somewhere along their way. I met one fellow not long ago, a young black guy who I think may have been an alcohol syndrome baby at birth, who had a very nice seeming wife and two kids with him in his old car, and he was SO proud, and wanted me to meet them. I was legitimately impressed with his attitude and demeanor and with the qualities exhibited by his wife and kids. It was obvious that he was happy, despite the fact that he was far from rich.

People today often legitimately don't realize how little money actually contributes to our happiness and satisfaction in life, but I've seen it many, many times. It's been a very humbling thing to realize just how often and seriously we delude ourselves about what we REALLY want in life, and what it takes to achieve those ends. People today seem to mostly just absorb attitudes from each other, and as our culture has progressed toward cynicism, the more of it we see, and the faster it grows. Stories like yours here today have the potential to reverse this trend, IF we could just simply see or find more of them. And the saddest part, I think, is that they are continually happening all the time all around us. We just almost never hear about them, so your post and story are more valuable than I suspect you realize. Thanks for it, and for a stike for the positive and good in our world today. It means something, and more than we probably know.

[w5pv]

God and Jesus Christ is the answer to all problems.Put your trust in them

[Boaz]

Thank you for sharing the story , it was a good one . Our lives are a series of stories .

[Victor N TN]

Amen, And thank you for sharing. Like stated above, too few of the "good" stories ever get out.

Thanks again for sharing this wonderful story.
Victor

[retread]

WRideout, Thanks for sharing that story. We all need to hear those stories. They are an inspiration. God Bess you.

[WRideout]

Thanks, guys. Many years ago, when I was in high school, I read a book about a guy who had served time in San Quentin in California, and later turned his life around. It had a great effect on me. Since then I have been in and out of jail and prison ministry, and was briefly a drug and alcohol counselor in a Pennsylvania state prison. Oddly, I found that the prison was, for me, a very hopeful place. The people I worked with were completely broken, and that allowed God to do His healing work. More than one told me that if they had not gone to prison, they would be dead.
Wayne

[buckwheatpaul]

WRideout, Great story.....I have known many who left Jesus at the door of the jail when they are released...yet every so often one will be sincere and truly be saved....she is the only one that will truely know....but much can be learned from walking her walk and see if her actions mirror the Bible ..... If it is written on her heart....it will be on her lips....Praise Jesus! Amen

[Hickok]

God and Jesus Christ is the answer to all problems.Put your trust in themAmen brother!

[Blackwater]

Good comments about the prisons and offenders. Many are just crying and striking out, and railing at the injustices and hurts they've experienced. A few are just plain malevolent, and there's little hope for them. However, even among those, there's never "no hope at all." And it's surprising sometimes who responds and who doesn't.

Mostly, I think fear is their main problem. Many are so afraid of what others will think, and see religion as a "weakness" that others might use against them, that they just continue even though they know very well, inside, that it's self-destructive. It's mostly about an inability and/or unwillingness to make a good decision.

Sadly, it seems something similar has gripped our whole society today, or at least a very large portion of it. We've become so microscopically focused on our own selves, and our wills and our sentiment that we're always supposed to be "happy," and never challenged by anyone or anything, that we can no longer endure or successfully negotiate troubling terrain! And it's showing, too.

We've become a jumble of emotions, and a whole lot of that disillusionments all around us, because stories like the one here by WRideout, that we've allowed ourselves to become cynical. Cynicism pervades our whole culture today! But amidst it, stories like this continue to happen in rather abundance on a daily basis.

They happen because your average, everyday citizen does their due diligence, and puts forth some effort. The effort often doesn't have to be all that great or all that perfect to reap results, kind'a like you CAN gather wheat with a dull sickle. It's all about the effort, and not very much about the perfection of the effort.

Stories like this abound, but nobody seems to ever publish them, and make them public. Thank you, WRideout for breaking that viscious cycle, and telling one of your stories. We need to see an awful lot more of them, but in a "If it bleeds it leads media," they'll never probably get much press time. Your post MEANS something, sir! And it's so very poignant, and not at all uncommon, despite the cynicism that surrounds us.