My Testimony Part 1

My Testimony part 1

Thesis: When you seek God you will discover that He is real and personal! I know by experience!

Text: Matthew 7:8 “For everyone who asks receives, he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” (A promise from the Great I AM!)

Revelation 12:11 “They overcame Him by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.”

Introduction: These two verses are why I am going to share my testimony over the next few weeks. I preface my testimony with this statement, “I do not share it to glorify my past before Christ but glorify my Lord who set me from the bondage of sin!” Many today feel it’s important to have a testimony that is dramatic and full of sin. I honestly wish I could say that “I grew up in a Christian environment where life was filled with the Lord!”

I did not. But the greatest testimony out there is one where you can say, “ I grew up in a Christian home and I have lived with the Lord my whole life- never backsliding or falling deep in sin.” That’s the testimony I wish I had! But reality sets in and here is How my search for God began.

I fore thought if I exaggerate at any point in my testimony I will stop after wards and tell I lied so you know what is 100% absolute truth. I will feel better for doing it!

I. My condition before Christ -the early years as a kid.

a. I grew up in Pittsburgh Penna. We lived in a place called Castle Shannon.

i. My family was Catholic- my mom took us to church and CCD for years but my dad was a workaholic and rarely ever home.

ii. My early year memories are filled with some good times but also some very bad times.

1. My mom and dad had several fights from the time I was born.

2. My mom and dad got married because my mom got pregnant when she was a senior in High School.

a. I have 3 brothers my older brother Bob and I my two younger brothers Mark and Bill.

3. They got married and my mom was kicked out of the Catholic school she was attending. The time frame was 1957.

4. They got married and my dad went off to work to support his family and during their early years my mom had an affair with a neighbor.

5. My dad found out about it and he brutally beat her up and we went to live with my grandparents. The affair occurred prior to me being born. The most hurtful words my dad ever spoke to me were, “ You are not my son.”- even though my mom told me I was his son!” My dad would later in time tell me “ I was his son and he knew it!”

6. They reconciled and the fighting and the anger from my dad never left.

7. My dad was a very angry hostile man. He was full of jealousy and demanded absolute submission of my mom.

a. He always accused her of having affairs.

b. He would come home from work a majority of time in a rage and mad at the world.

c. His rage would come from a person who cut him off in traffic.

d. I recall several times when he got out of the car to go beat someone up for their driving.

e. My dad was like Jeckel and Hyde – He could put on the charm when he wanted to impress and turn around and ring your neck.

f. He worked in a grocery store in management and I ran into some of his employees who hated him with a passion. One guy sat and told me once –not knowing who I was- How he wanted this one manager dead and was going to put a hit on him.

i. This was in my teen when I was heavily into the martial arts and benching 300 pounds.

ii. When he found out who I was He about died out of fear! He figured I was going to beat him up!

iii. His story changed real quick!

g. There where hit contracts put out on my dad and I recall one time him driving home and he discovered all his lug nuts where loosened on his car. Someone tried to kill him or at least hope I got injured.

h. I recall him getting into fights with employees outside the store in the parking lot.

i. His anger though always came home with him.

j. I really use to hate when he came home because the majority of the time the security in the home changed to fear of what he would do next.