The Hayes' Happenins': 10 years...a story of true friendship part 4

OK let me gather my thoughts of where we were. I looked at the bible last night that Kristin bought me and she wrote the date in it, January 1, 2000 :) Ringing in the new year with God's word. She also wrote me a little note and the verse "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalm 73:26

When I got back to college I began reading the bible daily. Not because I wanted to be good, but honestly I had never read the bible and so I had no idea what was in it. A lot of it didn't make any sense to me but I read it and just wrote out the questions I was having. God was placing friendships in my life and through those friendships I began seeking answers to my questions. Some of the things I wrestled through was the validity of the bible. I could write probably for years on this topic but if that is something you wonder about I linked some articles to my blog if you go to my Resource page. God worked in my heart and showed me His Word IS true. Then I began to explore the truth in the scriptures. And the gospel message became amazing to me! I HAD believed that I was not an evil person I just did bad things every now and then. The condition of my heart was that of a very prideful person. And so God had to humble me. I realized I AM a sinner and He is Holy and so I need Him to help me with this sin problem that I have. Psalm 5:4-5 says "You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell. The arrogant cannot stand in your presence, you hate all who do wrong. You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the Lord abhors."

I could never see my need for Jesus until I could see that I needed to deal with my sin. And if you are a "good" person then why would you need Jesus? I just thought God was pleased with me because I was this "good" person...so where did Jesus fit in the equation? But for the first time in my life I saw the real state I was in. I saw I was evil in God's eyes. Jesus put it clear in Luke 5:31-32 "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but the sinners to repentance." All my life I was like the "healthy" person and so I saw no need for Christ the "doctor". But God opened my eyes to my sin disease and I realized I desperately need Christ to be my doctor and save me from this sin disease. Christ's message is simple John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."

So February 2000 GOD changed me! I believe in Christ and so I believe God has forgiven me of all my sins - past, present, and future. I believe that God will allow me into heaven because of Christ's work on the cross, not because of anything I have done or can do. John 5:24 "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned, he has crossed over from death to life." God has crossed me over from death to life. I also attached an article on what it means to "believe" on my Resource page because this was also something I had to understand and would take me tooo long to write on here.
Lastly I will share I called Kristin in February to tell her how I had decided to put my trust in Christ alone and for the first time I understood her love for God! And here are a couple of sweet notes she sent me.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given (not earned) us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade - kept in heaven for you, who through faith (trust in Christ, not your works) are shielded by God's power..." -1 Peter 1:3-5

Tomorrow I will share more about how our friendship grew so much before she went to heaven as I began to understand her passion for Jesus. And more about how her life continues to impact me everyday. I would also love to share more letters she wrote me that reveal her love for God. Here are a few more fun pictures my dad sent me that he had previously scanned! Thanks Papa! :)