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Greetings to the faithful
Hello all
I have found this site by chance, by the will of the Lord, even. I will start my introduction by sharing with you parts of my sinful past, and then the story of my salvation.
I was born in the promised land of Christianity, the blessed United States of America. Had the path been made easy for me, I never would have left, I'm sure. However, it was the will of the Lord to test my faith by sending me to Scandinavia when I reached the age of 5. Thus I grew up in a society where faith is frowned upon, and became a self-proclaimed atheist by teenage years. I severed my ties to the Lutheran church of Finland, and walked an arrogant path of individuality for several years. Truly, I thought there could be no other way, and I wondered how people could believe in the written word of the Bible so devoutly as to not question anything at all. This continued until I turned 19 years old, and may have continued all my life had there been no Divine Intervention.
Soon after my 19th birthday, misfortune came upon me. One night I was walking home after consuming an ungodly amount of alcohol, listening to the satanic "music" of the Northern tribes. It was then that fate chose to either save me, or send me burning to the deepest pits of hell. On my way home, due to the drunken stupor and loud "music", I failed to notice a car speeding my way. Due to the icy roads, the car could not pull to a stop early enough, and hit me head on. My world turned black, and my consciousness fled. The doctors later said I was in a coma for 2 whole weeks.
Some would call it a tragedy, I call it salvation. Because it was during this "coma" that I received a visitor.
I found myself sitting by a riverbank, with green pastures opposite of me, dotted by pure white sheep, with majestic mountains rising to the heavens in the background. I thought for sure I had moved on to the afterlife. There with me was a herder a sheep. He said not a word, but always looked at me with such sorrowful eyes from the other side of the river. Many times I tried to call out to him, asking where I was, but every time he turned his back on me and continued to tend to his sheep.
Soon enough I noticed the landscape on my side of the river. Dark and gloomy woods, with predatory eyes lurking in the shadows. I thought, certainly I belong on the other side of the river, and prepared to swim across. As I dipped my toe into the water, I felt the burn of hellfire course through my body. Clearly, there was no entering this river for me. Again, the Shepard looked at me with compassionate, yet sorrowful eyes. Confused and afraid, I took shelter in a damp cave for the night. The growling and the howls of foul beasts could be heard throughout the night, as I was shivering in the lonely darkness.
In the morning, I tried making contact to the Shepard again. Only to meet those same sorrowful eyes. It was then that I realized, he wanted me on his side of the river, but knew I could never cross the river. Why, do you ask? Because I was no longer one of God's chosen ones. I had forsaken him, and this was to be my fate. Dragged away by beasts to eternal darkness, eventually to end up in Hell. It was then that I found myself on my knees, crying from the bottom of my soul for my foolishness. How could I have been so blind? So blind to have forsaken God, who had always been present all around. I repented like no man has ever repented, no longer scared over my fate, but devastated over the feeling of loss. The loss of God's love. The fear of never feeling the unconditional love of the Lord was now what frightened me.
I then found myself gazing into the feet of the Shepard. Looking up, I saw an extended arm and a radiant smile. Still the Shepard said not a word, but gently pulled me into the river, which burnt me no longer. Now it was a cool and refreshing current, gently flowing all around me. I had never known greater joy than on that moment. I was accepted back by the love of the Lord!
Still smiling, the Shepard let go of my hand, and I started flowing along the gentle current. Flowing towards light brighter than anything I had seen before. And as I reached the light, I woke up from my coma.
The doctors had already said to my parents that there is an impossibly small chance of me ever coming out of that coma, so bad was the damage. My parents, never having been overly religious, now turned to God in the despair, and had been praying for my return. And I returned. Paralyzed from the waist down, yet feeling nothing but joy, for I knew that my eternal soul had been saved. Even if I never walk again on Earth, someday I will run happily in the Kingdom of God, of this I am sure.
Soon after my recovery, I joined the Finnish Baptist Church, using my abundant spare time to educate those others who have lost their faith. Telling them it is not too late to repent, for the Lord accepts all who accept Him unconditionally into their lives.
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This was my story of salvation. In the beginning, I found it hard to share this experience with others, who would dismiss it as nothing more than drug induced hallucinations. However, I know better, and my experiences have already converted 2 others who have shared a similar fate of misfortune.
My favorite verse:
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.
I look forward to sharing my faith with you all!
Brother Michael
I have found this site by chance, by the will of the Lord, even. I will start my introduction by sharing with you parts of my sinful past, and then the story of my salvation.
I was born in the promised land of Christianity, the blessed United States of America. Had the path been made easy for me, I never would have left, I'm sure. However, it was the will of the Lord to test my faith by sending me to Scandinavia when I reached the age of 5. Thus I grew up in a society where faith is frowned upon, and became a self-proclaimed atheist by teenage years. I severed my ties to the Lutheran church of Finland, and walked an arrogant path of individuality for several years. Truly, I thought there could be no other way, and I wondered how people could believe in the written word of the Bible so devoutly as to not question anything at all. This continued until I turned 19 years old, and may have continued all my life had there been no Divine Intervention.
Soon after my 19th birthday, misfortune came upon me. One night I was walking home after consuming an ungodly amount of alcohol, listening to the satanic "music" of the Northern tribes. It was then that fate chose to either save me, or send me burning to the deepest pits of hell. On my way home, due to the drunken stupor and loud "music", I failed to notice a car speeding my way. Due to the icy roads, the car could not pull to a stop early enough, and hit me head on. My world turned black, and my consciousness fled. The doctors later said I was in a coma for 2 whole weeks.
Some would call it a tragedy, I call it salvation. Because it was during this "coma" that I received a visitor.
I found myself sitting by a riverbank, with green pastures opposite of me, dotted by pure white sheep, with majestic mountains rising to the heavens in the background. I thought for sure I had moved on to the afterlife. There with me was a herder a sheep. He said not a word, but always looked at me with such sorrowful eyes from the other side of the river. Many times I tried to call out to him, asking where I was, but every time he turned his back on me and continued to tend to his sheep.
Soon enough I noticed the landscape on my side of the river. Dark and gloomy woods, with predatory eyes lurking in the shadows. I thought, certainly I belong on the other side of the river, and prepared to swim across. As I dipped my toe into the water, I felt the burn of hellfire course through my body. Clearly, there was no entering this river for me. Again, the Shepard looked at me with compassionate, yet sorrowful eyes. Confused and afraid, I took shelter in a damp cave for the night. The growling and the howls of foul beasts could be heard throughout the night, as I was shivering in the lonely darkness.
In the morning, I tried making contact to the Shepard again. Only to meet those same sorrowful eyes. It was then that I realized, he wanted me on his side of the river, but knew I could never cross the river. Why, do you ask? Because I was no longer one of God's chosen ones. I had forsaken him, and this was to be my fate. Dragged away by beasts to eternal darkness, eventually to end up in Hell. It was then that I found myself on my knees, crying from the bottom of my soul for my foolishness. How could I have been so blind? So blind to have forsaken God, who had always been present all around. I repented like no man has ever repented, no longer scared over my fate, but devastated over the feeling of loss. The loss of God's love. The fear of never feeling the unconditional love of the Lord was now what frightened me.
I then found myself gazing into the feet of the Shepard. Looking up, I saw an extended arm and a radiant smile. Still the Shepard said not a word, but gently pulled me into the river, which burnt me no longer. Now it was a cool and refreshing current, gently flowing all around me. I had never known greater joy than on that moment. I was accepted back by the love of the Lord!
Still smiling, the Shepard let go of my hand, and I started flowing along the gentle current. Flowing towards light brighter than anything I had seen before. And as I reached the light, I woke up from my coma.
The doctors had already said to my parents that there is an impossibly small chance of me ever coming out of that coma, so bad was the damage. My parents, never having been overly religious, now turned to God in the despair, and had been praying for my return. And I returned. Paralyzed from the waist down, yet feeling nothing but joy, for I knew that my eternal soul had been saved. Even if I never walk again on Earth, someday I will run happily in the Kingdom of God, of this I am sure.
Soon after my recovery, I joined the Finnish Baptist Church, using my abundant spare time to educate those others who have lost their faith. Telling them it is not too late to repent, for the Lord accepts all who accept Him unconditionally into their lives.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
This was my story of salvation. In the beginning, I found it hard to share this experience with others, who would dismiss it as nothing more than drug induced hallucinations. However, I know better, and my experiences have already converted 2 others who have shared a similar fate of misfortune.
My favorite verse:
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.
I look forward to sharing my faith with you all!
Brother Michael