Sixty-one years ago Linda and I were married in Corpus Christi, Texas on August twenty-seventh. Yesterday we celebrated our anniversary by simply being together. During our marriage we have had many kinds of experiences from incredibly challenging to extraordinarily wonderful.
Less than two years into our marriage my addictions to alcohol, gambling, tobacco and pornography were creating an overwhelming obstacle to our family’s future. Although I had grown up in a wonderful church, I had never encountered Jesus Christ in a personal way.
By God’s grace, a man came into my life who would confront my selfish, egocentric ways and share the gospel with me in terms I had never heard. His persistence in prayer, love and purpose finally warmed my heart and I made a decision to make Jesus Christ the Lord and Savior of my life.
When I started following Jesus, I read and studied many books, attended many conferences, participated in a lot of Bible studies and memorized a lot of Scripture in an attempt to learn as much as I could about God and His Kingdom. All of those projects, in and of themselves, were positive and helpful, but they were my primary objective.
I was using them as a means to an end that was always in the future. What I didn’t realize was that, in the process of all my efforts, the Lord was there all along simply longing for me to savor every moment and enjoy my fellowship with Him as my most important objective.
Now, by living and abiding in His presence, I still have goals, but the difference is amazing when I am aware of Him and letting Him lead and guide me in the process. Now I passionately yearn to live every moment in communion with the Lord and knowing Him more intimately is my major purpose in life.