But Grace Made a Way
A Fictional Narrative
My name is Bill and there are so many things in my life that I look back on in shame. My life took a turn for the worse in my teen years. I fell in with the wrong crowd and did some things that I deeply regret. The memory of that terrible time in my life when peer pressure and my own foolish decisions caused others great pain stayed with me. Even to this day, these memories are with me. I cringe at even the thought of all I have done.
As I entered my twenties I became an angry person and let what happened in the past affect my life. I didn’t repeat any of those things that I’m now so ashamed of, but I believe the effect of the memories of those things caused me to hate myself and to do things that would cause me pain. Feeling poorly about myself resulted in broken relationships with friends. Most of them could not understand the anger that I lived with and projected onto anyone who attempted to draw close to me. I felt I didn’t deserve any friends, or even any goodness in my life. This turned into a deep depression that I could not seem to overcome.
I know the cause of it all now and have shared it here. My problem went back to my youth. I didn’t fully realize the impact it had on my life nor did I understand that this was causing me to live a life of torment. I considered suicide on a number of occasions. I was in deep trouble and could not see any way out.
One day as I was heading to work; I stopped at the mall to pick up a book I thought might help. It was one of those self-help books that so many people today look to for answers. As I walked up to the entrance to the mall, I came across a man handing out information on the Bible. I stopped, took one, and read the title. It said, “He paid the debt we could not pay.” I asked the man what that meant. The man told me that we are all sinners and in need of forgiveness for how we’ve lived our lives without God. He said Jesus paid the price for our sins by His sacrifice on the Cross and that if we would repent and believe in Him we would be forgiven and could have the “Newness of Life” that was promised us in the Bible.
I was stunned by what the man told me. I asked him if all the things that I had done in the past and have carried with me to this day could be forgiven. He said that not only would I be forgiven but God will remember them no more. In fact, he said the Bible says that “as far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.”
I said the Sinner’s Prayer that very day. All things became new to me. And I had a peace I never had experienced before. I was amazed at the mercy the Lord had shown me and I realized that by faith in Christ and Him Crucified I could remain in the peace of God and the Holy Spirit would help me to live a life pleasing to the Lord.
I went back to all the people I felt I had harmed both in my teen years and those who experienced my anger in my twenties. I asked for their forgiveness and shared the Gospel with them. I want to share the love the Lord showed me with all those so in need of the Salvation He freely gives. My life is now one of thanksgiving and praise to the God who loved me and died on a cruel Cross to pay the debt that I owed and could not pay.
“But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” ( Romans 5:8 ESV).
Always Remember,
God Loved You!
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Here I Am Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2023
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