Not unlike many children who grow up attending church with their parents I came to know about God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. When I was young, we attended a Christian Reformed Church in the Southern suburbs of Chicago. I was involved in Sunday School, Catechism and youth group. However, it was not until my dad moved us to a small Baptist Church in Oaklawn, IL, did I come to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. It was there that I learned about Grace and Mercy. In our previous Church it was all about keeping the law and Church Doctrine. My family moved to a small town in Pleasant Hope, MO when I Was 17. We attended 1st Baptist Church in Buffalo during which time I was baptized. After High School I married and began attending 1st Baptist Church in Pleasant Hope, a wonderful small community Church. As in many small Churches you wear many hats if you choose to serve. That included for me, Youth Director, Music Director, Sunday School Teacher and Deacon. I served in that Church for several years and began to feel a sense of burnout with the Church and my marriage. I did not have any answers for the issues I was going through and did not know where to turn. At the end of that time I separated from my wife, stopped going to Church and finally divorced. I surrendered my Deacon papers at that time as well. It seemed like it had all come apart, but the Grace and Mercy of my Heavenly Father was always there. I believe the Lord led me to my wife of now 31 years. He has led us to attend and serve faithfully in many Churches as we have moved around Missouri. We currently attend and serve at Blue Springs First Baptist Church and His Love, Grace and Mercy have never been more real. I did not have as many would say, a miraculous healing of some kind when I came to Christ in faith but, Jesus Christ is alive, and He works His miracle in everyone who decides to follow Him in faith. He will never leave you even though there are times when we walk in the opposite direction from where He is leading.
