After my husband’s death, I was reminiscing with my mother-in-law who shared with me that she had never seen anyone change more than Richard did in coming to Christ. She added to her statement, “It’s a good thing Marty or you never would have married him.”
My husband truly became a new creature in Christ at age 23 when he put his faith in Jesus. The atheist became an ardent believer; the one who worked to undermine people’s faith became a pastor and worked tirelessly to build up others in the faith; the alcoholic stayed sober; and the hedonist became a faithful husband and a loving and wise father.
Sometimes my husband would reflect on where he would be if Christ hadn’t grabbed hold of him. He saw in childhood friends what he would have been: drunk, divorced and estranged from his children, and living on the edge with no resources. Thank God, Christ transformed him into something new.
What would have been a sad, wasted life became one that imparted life. Coming to Christ, giving up the old life and being made new is always a good thing. If this hadn’t happened to Richard, I wouldn’t be writing this blog, our five wonderful children would never have been given the gift of life, and University Park Church would have never been planted.
My prayer is that in going through the study, Living the New Life, you will gain greater understanding of what it means to come alive in Christ and experience of abundance of a relationship with him. Knowing his transformed life impacted you would please Richard to no end.