Jun 265 min read

My faith story Part Two: Wednesday 26th June 2024

A week ago, I shared briefly how I became a Christian at the age of five. Today, I want to write about a decision I made ten years later. By the age of 15, I had been baptised by immersion and had become a member of the church which met in Bethany Hall, Stevenston. I was taking communion every Sunday. I kept my imperfections to myself. I was probably regarded as 'good living' by those who knew me. God had preserved me from following a path which would have caused me to wander from the Christian pathway. On a Sunday I probably attended three or four services or meetings (the word we used then). The day started with us walking from Misk Knowes to Bethany Hall for the breaking of bread service at 11.am and this lasted until 12.15 or maybe 12.30. We walked back home for lunch and the we were back at the gospel hall for the 'ministry meeting' at 2.30pm. The 'gospel meeting' was at 6.30 pm and there was a Bible Class for young people at 8 pm. Sometimes, I would get a lift but we were accustomed to the walk to and from the gospel hall. We also had a meeting on a Thursday evening from 7.30 to 9.00 pm which was a combined prayer meeting and Bible reading.

But I was beginning to be attracted by 'the world.' I was attending Ardrossan Academy and I was popular with some girls in my class who were not Christians. I briefly had a girlfriend without my parents' knowledge. At this time, I think, there was a gospel campaign at a neighbouring gospel hall when several young people made a decision for Christ including my cousin who was regarded as a rebel. There was a brief time of revival when there was a greater interest in spiritual matters in our small circle of friends.

It was around this time that I attended a Bible teaching meeting in Elim Hall in Kilmarnock. At that time, Elim Hall was an old building in the town centre before the development of Kilmarnock. The Bible teacher was a Scotsman who served the Lord full time in Northern Ireland. David Craig was a very serious minded preacher and Bible teacher. His subject was God's threefold claim on our lives. God could say of every child of God, you are mine by Creation (I made you); by Election (I chose you to be in Christ before the foundation of the world); you are mine by Redemption (I gave my only begotten Son to die for you that you might be redeemed from sin and Satan). His talk was probably based on these two verses:

[19] Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, [20] for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. [1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV]

I remember committing my life to Jesus Christ in acknowledgement of the truths I had just heard. It is interesting that I did not speak to anyone when I did this. I did not ask to speak to the preacher although I knew him a little and he would have known my father. He was a close friend of my uncle and aunt. It was the same when I first trusted in Christ. No shining lights. No big drama. Just a simple silent prayer to God. If I could point out to those of you who know me now, I was a very quiet, shy young man. I lacked confidence. I would never have had the audacity to go to speak to the preacher.

In a sense, I was responding to another passage from another of Paul's letters.

[1] I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. [2] Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

[Romans 12:1-2 ESV]

I was presenting my body as a living sacrifice to God. I was committing my life for service to the Lord. This sounds melodramatic and I have not always lived up to that commitment. I might have already mentioned in a previous blog, that I was interviewed once on Revival Radio. I described this same incident but the interviewer found it hard to understand why I had not then gone into fulltime service for the Lord. He seemed to suggest that this verse only applied to those who were going to be missionaries or pastors or other servants of the Lord. I have served the Lord in many ways over the years. I have led a Sunday School and a Bible class and I have preached in many gospel halls and other places. I have been at camps and led Scripture Union groups at some schools I worked at. There is always the question in my mind, was God wanting me to serve Him in other ways? Could I have done more in service for the Lord. When I retired for my post in Educational Service in North Ayrshire Council, I felt that God was calling me to serve Him at Keswick Convention and I responded to that call. The words of an old hymn come to mind:

I’ll Wish I Had Given Him More

By and by when I look on His face,

Beautiful face, thorn-shadowed face;

By and by when I look on His face,

I’ll wish I had given Him more

More, so much more —

More of my love than I e’er gave before.

By and by when I look on His face,