Tuesday, May 7, 2013

My Faith Journey


Herman S. Allman
When I reflect on my past 70+ years, I see what has collectively been a force in my recognizing the growth in my faith. I have not had a “sudden” experience, as some have had, where I came face to face with the reality that God is supreme and is the ruler of my life, whether I want Him to be or not.

In my early years while attending church I remember memorizing Bible verses and was able to locate the various books of the Bible with little difficulty. I remember becoming a Christian and joining the church at age thirteen, but I read my Bible sporadically.

By the time I was married, I didn’t remember as many Bible verses, and I struggled to find books of the Bible with ease. When I married, I joined my wife's church. I had never heard of the Apocrypha, especially Ecclesiasticus (I just thought Ecclesiastes had been misspelled). My wife and I would read “Forward Day By Day” everyday (and still do) and would then search out the daily Bible readings listed after each reading. But, I was a skimmer when I read; not reading with understanding of what it meant. On Sundays I didn’t bother to read the Scriptures at all, because we would do that at church.

Then, a little over four years ago, we moved to be near our daughter so she wouldn’t have to travel to help take care of us in our old age. We began attending her church. It was while going there that the senior, lead, and teaching pastor, challenged the congregation, at the end of his sermon, “to be in the Word of the Lord, every day”. So in addition to reading “Forward Day by Day”, my wife and I began using the aid of a universal “Read the Bible in One Year Schedule” which resulted in our reading the Bible in its entirety that year.

That challenge “to be in the Word of the Lord” has made me more aware of God, others, and the world. Furthermore, it led me, along with my wife, to be more involved in our church life by working at a street mission one day a week. This was a part of a Life Group (Bible Study) and working with a Care Ministry in our Church called “New Commandment Ministry”. Now it is not so much being in the Word of the Lord, but being of the Word of the Lord.

We are now in our fourth year of “being in the Word". We read the Bible daily, even when we go on vacation, whether in our RV or flying to another part of the world or on a cruise. The Bible and our devotionals are with us every day. No longer am I a "skimmer", but I read with intent to understand what God is saying to me. Each morning between 4 and 6 a.m. is my time to pray, read, and reflect on what God wants me to do to magnify and amplify, as well as to glorify His name that day.

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