Parachuting praying man trusting Jesus Christ

How I Met the Man Who Changed My Life

“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” -C. S. Lewis

Psalm 142:4 KJV — I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.

“If I am wrong about Christianity being true, I wasted my life. But you are wrong about Christianity being false, you wasted your eternity.” – Anonymous

I always wanted someone to give me a chance, to take me under their wing. Little did I know that there was Someone who was willing to.

My name is Devon Massey, and this is my story on how I met the Man who changed my life, Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

Three years ago, my sister gave me a Bible which I started reading.

I started at Genesis, and then went to John. I was confused.

Very confused.

Someone called Jesus of Nazareth claiming to be God? Have I heard of something like this before?

It was hard to believe.

I was assured that God existed, but showing his revelation as a human being? It seems impossible to me. Raising up from the dead, going up to heaven, and then the end? Really? Telling people that they had to be ‘born again’?

I had a lot of questions when I finished John.

So my brother-in-law showed me the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16. When I finished reading it, I was terrified. Being tormented in eternal fires forever? When Abraham told the rich man that if no one believed Moses and the prophets of the old testament, why would they believe Someone who has been raised from the dead?

In the book of Exodus, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments.

In Luke 18:20, Jesus goes over a few of them with a man,

“Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.”

A huge sin I was convicted of was idolatry.

Exodus 20:3-4 KJV — Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

Idolatry is like a materialistic wife focusing on the ring her husband gave her instead of her husband himself.

These are just half of those commandments, and I was guilty of all them.

God is a just judge. It doesn’t matter if I broke only one commandment, I was guilty. God cannot allow sin to go in His kingdom, so the only payment for sin is death, eternal separation from God. (Romans 3:23 and 6:23). I can’t say to Him, “Oh, but look at the good things I have did.” I broke His law, and I must pay the fine.

Jesus said in Luke 13:3 says,

“Repent, or you will likewise perish.”

Something I learned is that repentance is turning away from sin and turning towards Jesus. If you focus on Him, He will pick you up if you stumble and fall.

So I inquired to my brother-in-law about my faith. He mentioned that since I kept talking to him, I must have some sort of faith.

In Hebrews 11:6, it is said, “Without faith, it is impossible to please God.”

So I continued to read the Gospels, finishing up with Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

The Apostle Paul said, in his letter to Titus, that God can’t lie. (Titus 1:2)

Later in late 2017, I felt like I was a lukewarm Christian. I had stomach problems and suicidal thoughts, even thinking about killing myself on New Years 2018.

Oh boy, was that a tough time for me.

When my dad said that isolation is the devil’s workshop, oh boy, was he not kidding.

2018 was one of my hardest years for me.

I graduated with no plan. Due to my lack of preparation plus a careless recruiter, my plans on going to the Air Force were canned. Disagreement with my parents. Learned that I had autism. Was mistreated at my first job.

2019 was a better year for me. I signed up with an organization that paid for my schooling, attended therapy on a consistent basis, and had a better relationship with my family. I had a consistent job for the first time. I received a lot of blessings that I didn’t deserve. But grace is God and He showed a lot of grace to me.

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9)

The beginning of 2020 seemed promising. Once 2020 started, I felt a peace unimaginable.

But then the Coronavirus pandemic hit, it seemed weird.

In May, I received my first full-time job. But later in late June, my clearance was denied for some unknown reason but the investigation is still ongoing.

The first verse of Ecclesiastes chapter 3 says:

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven…”.

Trying to figure out what is next for you is one of the hardest things to do for me. What was my next season?

So I started to attend church more often.

My assistant pastor was beginning to start a young men’s ministry. I remember the first meeting I went to, I started to talk to them about trusting God and having His best interests.

Even in retrospect, I don’t know what went over me.. What I felt like God’s Spirit was helping me. My pastor complimented me on my growth, and despite me not seeing him for a couple of years, he noticed God was doing something in me.

I started up a group chat, which is going pretty good. I am glad God gave me the opportunity to put His people together.

Often starting a relationship with Christ seems exciting, like a romance. But then it starts getting hard. The enemy often deceives people, even me, by thinking that a relationship with God means that everything is going to be good.

But no, life gets much harder.

The enemy wants you to give up. But being a Christian is the biggest challenge you will ever face. It is a spiritual battle between a just God and a fallen angel who wants revenge by taking everyone and everything down with him.

And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. (2 Corinthians 11:14)

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. (Ephesians 6:12)

1 Peter 5:8 KJV — Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Remember this: Lions don’t roar when they approach their prey, they only roar after they devoured their prey.

Colossians 2:15 KJV — And having spoiled principalities and powers, [Jesus] made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Satan and his angels are like a mafia with no guns. The only weapon they have are lies. Lies are guns with no bullets.

But the good news is, Jesus’ resurrection sealed victory for those who have faith in God. Faith is confidence victory, and the hardest thing to be assured of that. Imagine how hard it is to be confident in your victory.

But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:57)

But Christ tells us to be watchful, for any second He may return. We must prepare and train for our Master’s return.

And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. (Revelation 22:12)

The Bible is a Book where a lot of people claim to know, but they don’t really believe it. A lot of people know John 3:16, but don’t believe it.

How can 66 books over the course of a thousand years agree on the same thing? That’s impossible for our minds to comprehend.

Even the Gospels work like eyewitnesses where they coincidentally agree with each other. Two of the authors were a doctor and a fisherman, and they each agreed with each other on the same subject.

I couldn’t believe this.

And the fact that people who believe in this Jesus of Nazareth all died horrible deaths?

People don’t understand that Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship with God, who apparently loved us so much that He came down as a human to die for us. Even the religious people hated Jesus, so how can Christianity be considered a religion?

You can’t practice a relationship with God? Right? Rules without relationship will eventually lead to rebellion, right?

I always tell people, “don’t trust religion, trust Jesus.”

Many of us have been victims of church hurt. People who claim to be Christians often have demeaned us, made fun of us. A lot of ‘Christians’ claim to care for people’s souls, but not care for their situation. How can you convince people that Jesus loves them, but you are not loving them yourselves?

But be aware Jesus will have something to say to those types of people.

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7:22-23)

I would rather accept eternal joy with Jesus Christ than get the daily temporary drive-through pleasure from the world.

This God knew that He couldn’t accept evil in His holy presence, so He had to suffer by His own rules. He was tormented day and night by the pain He was going to endure. He had to confront evil and let Himself be a sacrifice. He became creation to die for creation… weird, right?

The Bible is a romance story where God died for humanity who turned their backs on Him. At least it was a better love story than Twilight, that’s for sure.

I learned to trust Jesus Christ like a parachute. I may not know exactly how a parachute works, but as long as it works, I will trust it.

So if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:9-10).

For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13

It is bizarre, but I have learned to lose the questions. I can ask God a million questions that He has a million answers to, but God can ask me a million questions that I don’t have a single answer to.

I had to accept that I can’t be strong alone. I have to accept that I don’t have my best interests. If Jesus, who said He was God, died for my sins and paid the penalties on my behalf… maybe He has my best interests.

I was in a burning building that I was unaware of, but someone knocked some sense in me and He led me out.

I was feeling suicidal and thought that I was going to die in 2015, but I guess God said, “Nope, I am not done with you.”

So He gave me an invitation to repent from my sins and accept salvation, which means the act of being delivered, redeemed, or rescued. Hey, if it means that I don’t have to face… my personal hell for all eternity, I will accept it. I was ignoring the invitation until recently. Salvation is not a thing, but it is a Person.

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. (Revelation 3:20)

C.S. Lewis once said,

“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.'”

I have been rescued from my demons, but I have to continue to defend and guard my mind and heart.

I believe that we are in spiritual warfare right now. I believe something out there doesn’t want us here. I may be paranoid or something, but I believe someone out here doesn’t want me giving you this message.

There is an invitation that I would like to give you to eternal rest. Trust Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Keep Him the center of your life. He commands His students to continue to share His invitation.

Something about the Bible is it is best if you start from back to front. Because the beginning is… strange. Start with the Book of Luke, John, and then Acts.

It is unbelievable the work He did in me. He accepted me how I was, but He changed me for the better.

Something that I learned is that God finds available people to do His work. Then He will make them able.

The fact that He came down to this sinful world for me is remarkable. It seems like in other religions, we have to make ways to get to God, but in Christianity, God made a way for us since He first came down to us.

Don’t worry about people and the stuff that is going on in the world. They are not on your radar and don’t have anything to offer to you. Being a disciple of Christ doesn’t mean living for this world, but living for the next.

Accept a God who has everything to offer to you. He may not give us everything we want, but He gave us what we need: life.

Christianity is basically getting a pardon for the sins we committed against God, but His grace through the sacrifice of His Son allows us to get an inheritance due to Jesus’ perfect and sinless life and his willingness to pay the penalty for sin. But we have to accept the Pardon first.

God will provide when you submit to Him and allow Him to separate you for His work He has called you to do.

When you have a relationship with God through his Holy Spirit, you have a receiver. He will teach you and show you all things. You do not need a rabbit ear antenna anymore, meaning you do not need to hear the world’s opinions about you anymore. Why have plan old analog cable when you can have satellite?

If you managed to read all of this, thank you for your patience.

I know this is a lot to say, but I guess this was something God wanted me to do. I have to keep reminding myself that He is a Person, so I have to consider His feelings into account. He wants me to spread the good news as much as I can.

He had no problem putting my sin on, so I have to put on His righteousness. Trust me, it is not easy. Every day is mentally exhausting.

But I have to let God work His magic.

The invitation is ready when you are ready.

Pass this message on to anyone who needs it.

4 Comments

  1. DENIS NYAMWEYA 10/15/2021
    • Emory 10/17/2021
      • DENIS NYAMWEYA 10/25/2021
        • Emory 10/25/2021

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