Ephesians 4:20-24 — Conversations with God

That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.  You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

I want to thank You, Lord, for those You sent my way to teach me about You.

It is strange but one of the first hints You ever gave me that there was something different about the way I and my family did church and the way others did was way back in 2nd or 3rd grade.  You had me overhearing someone in my school remarking about a girl named Carla in our class that she believed the Bible was true.  Something about this description, spoken as it was with some criticism, moved me.  I supposed that I was being encouraged to make light of her faith and I felt perplexed by that and a little sorry for Carla.  Why would someone make fun of her for believing what she did?

You let me make it to high school without being challenged about what I believed.  You sent me Bob, and Bob was not about to let me slide by.  While discussing religion with another guy in study hall he inexplicably turned to me and asked me what I believed.  “I’m an agnostic,” I boldly stated.  “Why would you want to be that?,” he replied, and, as You know, I had no good answer.  So we began to talk about Christianity.  You might have been laughing about that one, Lord.

I guess you encouraged Bob to go with me to Central Church when my dad forced me to attend a Sunday night youth meeting and together we heard Your servant Mark play a 12-string guitar (cool, God) and give his explanation of why he became Your follower.  I felt very nervous when he challenged us with our need to follow Jesus (You were working on me), but later that evening I asked You to forgive my rebelliousness and take over my life and You did.

Since then many have contributed to helping me see that I must lay aside my old self that follows darkened ways, and be renewed after Your likeness, putting on the new self You created me to be.  I want to be righteous and holy with Your character, Lord.  I want to love the way You love, think the way You think, and live out of Your power.