A young girl NOT of the Christian faith writes of a play she attended at a friend's church and why it left such an impact on her.
My name is Glory-Anne Roubidoux, and I am a friend of Kecia Sandusky's. I WAS an agnostic, but after yesterday, I am wondering if I really DO want to tell my parents about what happened to me yesterday at church.
See, for the longest time, I was taught by my agnostic parents that God was nothing more than an unseen force; and I really didn't believe in him. Oh, I knew God existed, but I really never really BELIEVED in Him. My parents never made it a point to take us kids to church, and we really never saw any need to attend church; but this past Thursday, one of my friends from school, Kecia Sandusky, had invited me to come to her church. She said that the church was having a special Easter program, and she was kind enough to invite me, so I decided to go. I was kinda' nervous, because I wasn't a Christian, and I was afraid that people might say some "things", but they really didn't. All they did was smile at me and told me that they were happy I was visiting Christ Community Assembly of God, which is the name of the church that my friend, Kecia, and her family, goes to.
I went with her family (I had spent the weekend at their house), and we got to the church bright and early, like about 8 a.m. We had to go that early, Kecia said, because some of the family members were in the choir, and the choir had to be their at least 45 minutes prior to the 9:00 service, so they could have some last minute rehearsal time. In the meantime, I sat with Kecia's daddy and some of her brothers and sisters, trying not to act too nervous. It was probably the first time I had been INSIDE a church, and I really didn't know what to expect. But they tried their best to ease my nervous state, and they told me not to worry; but to just enjoy the program.
At 9:00, the service started, and it wasn't long before most everyone in the audience was singing along with the choir up on the platform. The choir members all looked pretty in their bright red robes, and they all sang beautifully; and I couldn't help but clap along to the soul-stirring music. The pastor of the church then came out after the first song, and he welcomed everyone to Christ Community Assembly of God, and he welcomed them to the special services that were about to take place. He said that the church was putting on their annual Easter pageant, and he told everyone to enjoy themselves.
The program centered on the Crucifixion of Christ, and they had a guy named Danny Grace portray Jesus; and the first scene was when he was carrying the Cross to the hill called Calvary, where He was to be nailed to the Cross; and when the "Romans" nailed Jesus to the Cross, the sounds of the "hammer" really got to me. It was all lifelike and all too real, and I couldn't help but to feel ashamed. During this part, Kecia's little sister, Ronee', sang "The Old Rugged Cross", and the words to the song caused me to get tears in my eyes and a lump as big as Texas in my throat. Apparently, according to the song, and the play, Jesus had died on the Cross to save Man from sin, and He took this burden upon Himself, so we wouldn't have to suffer. And if they were willing, people could ask for His forgiveness, and they could accept Him into their lives, assuring them a place in Heaven. In other words, if we just asked for Jesus to come into our hearts, then we could go to Heaven because we had admitted that we were sinners, and that we were "lost" without Him. At first, it didn't seem to make any sense, but as the play went on, I began to see the True Message behind the play, and I suddenly felt dirty and ashamed. I knew right then that I needed to make things right, and I needed to have Jesus come into my life.
There was much weeping in the crowd during the Crucifixion scene; but then, the mood turned from sadness and grief to one of joy and celebration as Jesus was "Ressurrected" from the Cross; and then "emerged" from the tomb, alive and wearing a celestial robe of white as a woman sang, "He's Alive". That was when the play ended; and afterwards, the pastor of the church asked the congregation if there was anyone in the crowd who felt they needed Jesus; and I shyly stuck up my hand. I heard him say, "Bless you, little one", and he invited me to come on up. He then prayed for me, and told me to pray the Sinner's Prayer. When I told him, "I don't know what to say", he said he'd help me through it; and that was just what he did. Immediately after the prayer, I felt a load rise up from my shoulders; and I suddenly felt happy and light inside; and I started to cry. When I asked the pastor what was wrong, he said, "Nothing, child. That's just the Power of the Lord; it is nothing to be afraid of. You have just been cleansed of your sins, and you are now sanctified and are now a New Creature in Christ. You just made the most important decision in your life, and because of it, you are now going to be in Heaven, with Jesus; and you will no longer be in dread of sin or eternal death. You are no longer a captive; you are now free in Christ, and you are now a born-again Christian." From the sound of his voice, I could tell that he was very happy for me; and I must say, it felt good.
People were then coming up to me, hugging me, and they were as happy as the pastor, if not more so, and Kecia (not to mention, Ronee' and the rest of the family) were all smiles. It was a wonderful feeling, and today, one day later, I still feel the joy and peace within.
Now if I can only explain what has happened to me to my parents. That will be so hard to do.....
(((karen))) beautiful, well written story of the decision glory-anne makes! i hope many more read this, and decide as glory-anne has (and we have) to accept Christ as Lord and Savior! (((HUGS))) and love, karla. :)
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