What does it mean to be saved, anyway? Have you ever wondered that question?  Too many people hear that word and think it just means someone says that because they think they’re better than you are, and you probably think that they might even be a little judgmental. I get it.  I’ve seen people who can be right down mean who claim to be “saved” or “Christian.”  But what does being saved really mean?  Is there anything to this at all or is it just a bunch of talk to waste your time?  I had those kind of questions and thoughts before so I understand.  I’d like to share with you my experience.  Watch what happened to my life and you will see what I discovered about the true meaning of “saved.” 

A Day at the Park

One beautiful late summer afternoon in 2013 I was at Falls Park in Sioux Falls, SD, attempting to photograph the beautiful falls throughout the afternoon into the evening. I was taking a photography class and was completing an assignment.  I had my camera set up on a tripod in front of a park bench so I could also sit down periodically. Falls Park is a popular place to visit so quite a few people were strolling about and several stopped and commented on my camera setup.

A young, good looking, nicely dressed man came up to me and also started asking about my photography. Then he asked about the brace I had on my right wrist.

“Oh, this? I have carpal tunnel syndrome and I may need surgery soon.”

“Well, would it be ok if I pray for it to be healed?” He asked.

Healing?  

I thought to myself, “there’s no power in prayer anyway, so just agree and he’ll go away.  He can’t be an educated man because if he was he would know only medicine can fix the health problems!” So I agreed. 

He prayed for healing and asked me to take off the brace and waited expectantly. His request surprised me. After all, why would anyone think a simple prayer would heal something that needed surgery?  But I did remove the brace and reluctantly tried moving my wrist. My reward for this action was pain.  Just as I had expected.  

No, I was not healed.  That was no surprise to me at all, but the young man was obviously very disappointed.  I was puzzled because it was obvious he expected it to be healed.

“Who thinks that way,” I thought to myself.

“Judging”

“What kind of crazy, ignorant man could this be, anyway???” I was not impressed with how this was going at all.  

Then he explained he was a neonatologist, a doctor specializing in the care of premature babies.   

“Say what???” I thought to myself. That bit of information blew me away!  My whole life the doctors I had worked with only believed in science. I had judged this man as being ignorant.  Now who was the “ignorant” one?

“Where do you go to church?” I asked.  I just had to know where this person had come from, as if he had come from another planet.

My head was spinning in confusion. “How can he actually believe in miraculous healing when he is a physician, a highly educated physician?”   

He told me that he attended a new church called the Sioux Falls Vineyard and invited me to come.  We chatted a bit longer as I explained how I used to be a NICU nurse many years ago. As we chatted longer I was struck with just how intelligent and educated this young man actually was. His belief in healing through prayer just didn’t fit with my understanding of “intelligent” and “educated.” At all!  Was he just crazy?  He sure didn’t seem crazy!  He left and I finished my project. But I remained confused.

Confusion and Questions

“What does he know that I don’t?” I wondered. I couldn’t get the encounter out of my head. I wanted to know more.

The next week I pulled out the note I had scribbled on with the address and decided to go and see for myself what would make a neonatologist believe in miraculous healing.  During the hour-long drive I kept wondering just what kind of people would be there.

Churches were not new to me. I even belonged to the local Lutheran church.  As a child I had grown up Lutheran and was used to the formality of pews, liturgy, and memorized prayers, along with organ music accompanying hymns that could rarely be sung. I accepted there was a God and even considered myself a Christian. I knew all about religion. At least I thought I did.

A Different Kind of Church

As I entered the building I quickly noticed several things quite different about this church. They were having a potluck supper before the evening service and i was quickly invited to join in.  The neonatologist was there and happy to see me. Everyone seemed happy to see me. 

As I looked around I noticed people from obviously different backgrounds coming together. I could tell some who were there must be struggling financially. Yet they were treated no differently from those who obviously had more.  Instead of pews, there were small tables and chairs.

Then the music began. This was unlike any church music I had ever encountered in a church service.  It was loud, upbeat, and joyful, with the people singing with great enthusiasm.  With great surprise, I saw people who were obviously experiencing the presence of God, something I had no idea even existed.  This was nothing like the church I had grown up in. 

Don’t ask me what the message was that evening, because I have no memory at all of the actual sermon, although there was one.  I think I was just too distracted by how different this was from my previous experiences with church. At the end of the service, people prayed for one another. This, too, was unlike anything I had ever seen before.

Driving home that night I knew I would go back again. The moon was shining brightly in the clear night.  I sensed my life might just be about to change. The extent of that change could not have been anticipated at all.

Thirsting for More

I went back again. The more I saw the more I wanted. These people had something special. For the first time in my life I heard people speaking in tongues. Honestly, that frightened me at first. I had been taught that sort of thing had only occurred for the disciples who had been with Jesus. Things like speaking in tongues and miracles had ended with them. So seeing and hearing this seemed really hard to comprehend. But while this was scary I also couldn’t help but be drawn to these same people who seemed to have found the secret to happiness- peace, even.

My Wall

 A few weeks after my first visit I finally got the courage to ask for prayer, not even knowing for sure what I wanted them to pray for.  But I felt there was a distance between God and myself. I thought the distance came because God didn’t want to be near me. It was as if there was a physical barrier between us.

While surrounded by men and women who were praying for me the wall that had separated me from God crashed down in an instant and disappeared.  I was overcome by the very presence of God, experiencing a bright light that was so warm, so loving, so accepting, I couldn’t believe it.  It was such a powerful, powerful, experience!   I suddenly felt loved beyond anything this world can offer.  I found God!  Not what I had expected at all!  This was not the God I thought I had known. The God I had known was an angry judge that could never be satisfied, one that was quick to punish harshly. But this is not what I saw and experienced at all!  I experienced love, a love that words just can’t describe. I saw beauty beyond words.

I left that day a changed woman.  I left with joy in my heart, and joy was a feeling I had never experienced before.  I had known some happiness, but not real joy.  This was different.  That was over five years ago. The joy that entered my heart that evening has never left me.

History of Loss

You are probably expecting me to tell you at this point how great my life was as soon as that happened.  I’ll be honest. Since that time life has not been easy.  Severe chronic pain, multiple surgeries, complications from surgery that threatened my life along with physical disability have all needed to be faced since that day.  But my life did change, and it changed in a lot of ways. 

Life was viewed by me the sum total of everything and everyone I had lost throughout my life. Childhood sexual abuse and rape had stolen my innocence as well as my ability to trust anyone. Physical abuse as a child had been violent and had taught me that I had neither a  voice or any value.  My father had promised me that the family farm would never leave the family, yet he sold it without even discussing it while I was still in high school.  I felt lied to and cheated out of a future that I thought was meant to be.  That was just the beginning.

A few short years later I would experience real tragedy and loss when my son, Brian, became a victim of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).  That was just the beginning of a series of tragedies.  Angela, Brian, and Jennifer’s father died in an accident at age 45.  My last husband died only five weeks after being diagnosed with lung fibrosis.  One month after the death of my husband, Michael, I attempted suicide.  The losses in my life were eating me up inside and I didn’t know how to cope with it all.

I’ve suffered a lot of loss in my life.  Few people would disagree with that.  But  I believe the biggest loss to me was the loss of dreams; the loss of hope.  Isolation, rejection, and shame followed me every day of my life.  I felt I was never good enough and that no matter how hard I tried failure, loss, and tragedy were always the end result.  Is there any wonder I battled mental illness for years?  Thankfully, all of that has changed.

New Life

Now my life is brand new.  I have discovered just how loving our God really is and how amazing it is to know, really know, the love of God.  I have found freedom, the unconditional love of the almighty creator, and the joy of the Lord.  That’s the most amazing thing one can ever experience! 

I’ve learned to listen for God in my life. I’ve learned that with obedience comes even more joy.  With obedience comes blessings. I’ve learned the difference between religion and relationship.

Blessings In Place of Losses

One of the biggest changes is I no longer see the losses in my life.  Now I see the blessings. I can now be grateful for the time I had with my loved ones, even though they were short.  The days I had with each of them are truly precious to me now and I no longer waste time thinking about what I believed should have been.  Mental illness is gone from my life forever.  Now I see beauty everywhere I go and in everything that I do. It’s as if blinders have been taken off of my eyes and I see life for what it really is for the very first time ever.  I look at all of creation with brand new vision, much as a child who is seeing things for the very first time. 

But I see more than the beauty.  I see the tragedy of others living in this world.  I see the problems poverty brings to those in my own community and in the larger world;  I see how elderly struggle to survive who must deal with chronic illnesses and fixed incomes;  I see the extreme poverty and desperation of families living in other countries. 

But I do more than just see everything and everyone now in a new way.  I know that I am to be more like Jesus every day, and that means I have to do more than just see the problems;  I must take action.  

New Life

I feel that I must do what I am able to do to help those in need. For me that has meant going back to work as a registered nurse Home Care Manager working with chronically ill elderly and disabled individuals in my own community, volunteering to help others as well as going on mission trips to El Salvador and Mazatlan, Mexico.  Sponsoring children from other countries and donating money to non-profit organizations that help provide clean water to people who are lacking this basic need and to non-profits who help build safe houses for those in desperate need no longer feels like a burden but rather like a privilege.  My wants and my needs are no longer in the forefront of my thoughts or actions.  Now I see the bigger picture.  

Hope for All

 What about you?  Are you where I once was?  Alone?  Anxious?  Depressed?  Lost?  So much of the world feels this way!  But there is hope for everyone!  That hope is Jesus! 

Religion will not help you, but a relationship with Jesus will!  If you study religions of the world you will learn that all other religions ask the person to change in order to become acceptable, but Christianity is the opposite.  Jesus tells us you are accepted just as you are!  It doesn’t matter how broken or messed up your life is right now!  Jesus loves you anyway!  Your creator, the same creator who created all, loves you more than you can imagine!  You don’t have to do the kinds of things I have done.  I do these things because I love Jesus and I simply see the world differently now.  It’s not because I have to do them.  You don’t have to earn your way into acceptance!   Praise God for that!

Sinner’s Prayer

If you have never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and you are ready to make this commitment, pray the following prayer or use your own words to speak to the Almighty Father.

Father, I know I have sinned.  I have done things I know that I shouldn’t have done. I have not done things I should have done. Please forgive me for all I have thought or done that has offended you.  I accept that Jesus is your son and that He died for my sins.  Jesus took on the punishment that I deserve in order to save me from eternal punishment.  Thank you, Jesus!  I now accept you, Jesus, as my Lord and Savior.  Help me to live the life you want me to live.  If there are blinders on my eyes, remove them so I can see You and Your creation clearly.  If there is a wall around my heart, I ask that you tear it down so I can experience you.  Thank you, Jesus, for saving me.  Amen. 

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. (Romans 10:9-10, NIV)

To be saved means to spend eternity with Jesus.  What a glorious thing that will be!   We are promised: 

‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:4

Now What?

I suggest the first thing you do is to tell someone about your decision to follow Jesus.  Tell someone who is already following Jesus.  They can help you in so many ways as you learn how to walk with Jesus and follow His ways!  

After you have done this first step, there are several more things to do.  All are important but they are in no particular order. 

Church Family

I urge you to find a church family.  Not all churches are the same.  You should feel the love of Jesus when you are there, accepted just as you are.  And the number one source for any church needs to be the Bible, not something written by man.  Look for community there, people who are able to support you and encourage you along your journey.  And open your heart to helping others along the way!

Pray

Pray, which just means you should talk to God.  He loves you and wants to hear from you!  You don’t need fancy words or memorized prayers.  Keep it simple but tell Him what is on your heart.  Then listen for His answer.  You may not hear His audible voice but you will soon learn that He speaks in other ways, sometimes in very subtle ways but sometimes in rather dramatic ways.  It won’t be long and you will know if the message you are receiving is from Him or not.

Bible

Read your Bible.  I know that might sound scary and daunting, but it doesn’t need to be.  Make use of YouVersion Bible app on your smartphone and you will have access to lots of different translations.  Find one that you can understand!  Personally, I don’t speak like the King James Version speaks, so I have a lot of difficulty understanding that version.  But other versions, like the NIV or the Message speak like I speak so it makes sense.  And when you understand the language you can actually hear God speaking to you in your own language!  Pray about what you are reading and ask God to explain the things that you do not understand.  If you are brand new to the Bible, start with one of the Gospels like the book of John.  It is here you will learn about Jesus and everything He did and said.  Then expand your reading from there.   

Baptism

Baptism is an important step for believers. I had been baptized as a newborn by my parents.  When I made the decision to abandon my old life and follow Jesus, truly follow Him as my Lord and Savior, I made the decision to be baptized by submersion.  Not everyone agrees on when and how to be baptized, but that was my decision.  I wanted my decision to be public and I wanted it to be my own decision, not just a decision made by my parents.  I wanted the old me to be washed new and I felt baptism by submersion was the way to do that.  I’ve never regretted that decision.

Music

Start listening to Christian music.  Christian music instills God’s truths into your life in a very special way.  Music speaks to us in ways that reading words off of a page just can’t.  There is Christian music to fit anyone’s life.  For some it’s Christian rock, for others it’s Gospel, but for me it’s Contemporary Christian Music.  The important thing is that the lyrics speak truth into your life. Truths like those spoken in the following video.  Listen to the words! 

Have you made a decision to follow Jesus?  Have you decided to recommit your life to Him?  I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!  May you be blessed every day of your life as you live your new life in Him!  I am praising God for you right now!