A Far Better Life

No matter how hard I tried, inner peace and satisfaction were always beyond my grasp. My family moved around a lot and by grade 8, I was attending my fifth elementary school. I was shy and wasn’t great at making friends, but I loved sports. So I began to immerse myself in athletics; in high school I realized that the more I excelled in sports the more people seemed to like me. Parties, popularity, dating. Suddenly I had what I wanted. Still, something was missing. I thought happiness could be found through success, but each victory only seemed to remind me that I was still the same person. In the midst of a crowded party, I would realize my emptiness.
In my first year of university, knee injuries made it impossible for me to continue playing sports. I went from being "Mike the athlete" to my old, boring self.
One night, my father came home from work and threw a small book on my bed. It was the New Testament. My father had received it at work and didn’t want it. I didn’t believe in God and I hated anything religious but as he closed the door I flipped through it and for the first time, read about Jesus. I wanted to know more about Jesus and soon ended up at a friend’s church. I went four Sundays in a row, intentionally acting rude hoping people would tell me I wasn’t welcome - but they didn’t. They really seemed to care about me.
One day my father called me into the family room. While pouring himself a drink from the bar, he told me that he and my mother thought religion was a waste of time and he forbid me to ever go back to church again.
Later on that night, the doorbell rang. My mom got out of bed to open the door, thinking it was my dad. Sometimes after office parties he would struggle to get his keys in the lock. But when my mom answered the door, I didn’t hear any loud talking; it was silent. Half awake, I got out of bed to see what was going on and met my mom on the stairs. "There’s a policeman at the door," she said. "He wants to talk to you about your father." He told me my father had been killed in a car accident and that I needed to make a positive identification. I can still remember going to the hospital, and the grief of my mom and two sisters.
The following Sunday I went to church and during share time, told the people there that I believed God was working in my life. Someone told me how I could begin to have a personal relationship with Jesus and God opened my heart. I realized that God loved me, but that my attitude of rebellion and pride separated me from a relationship with Him. I also learned that I could not heal by my own strength. Jesus died on the cross to cleanse me from my sins and by asking him into my heart, I would be forgiven and have the power to change.
Since then, my life hasn’t been perfect. Seven knee operations later, I’m a far cry from the athlete I used to be. But something far better has replaced my hunger for athletic success. I now have peace with God and the knowledge that my life is being lived according to His plan, not mine.

Take a look at your life. How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times. There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget. In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new. What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

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