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Originally Posted by kclee4jc
I'm going to go against my better judgement and respond to this once more. I was raised by alcoholic/drug addict parents. Mother was deeply involved in New Age and i received the Holy Ghost on the street corner when i was 12..not because i went to any kind of church that believed in it (never been to a pentecostal church) but because i read about it in the scripture and wanted HIM! 4 years later, after a great deal of difficulty holding onto my experience due to the environment i was raised in, I was led to Baptism in the Name of Jesus Christ and holiness. I spent many months studying the Godhead, water baptism in the scripture and in history, and holiness. After several months of God dealing with me, i finally left the Assembly of God i had been attending and was baptized in Jesus name, got a hair cut (it was pretty long!) and began to walk in the revelation God had given me. So no, I was not raised this way. Yes! I have sought truth and come to this truth by the revelation of Jesus Christ! I pray that i NEVER back down from what HE has given me!
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Then, it sounds like we both come from environments where there was no solid faith foundation. To tell you the truth, I've been inside nearly every type denominatioal church there is...from Baptist, Methodist, Mormon, Pentecostal. The common demoniator is they all believe they've got the truth. Sadly, NO ONE has the truth they say they have...and by that, I mean all the extra stuff added to what it takes to getting to Heaven. I found my salvation on my own, salvation in Jesus with the Holy Ghost baptism. It wasn't my parents, grandparents, aunts or uncles. It was me. Becase of the emptiness I was feeling, the lonliess I was sick and tired of. So, off I went to a moderate Pentecostal church in Mesquite, TX under the pastorship of Keith Layne. Got a hold of something there, but he passed away. So, I moved away to a church in Terrell, which was quite a bit more conservative than where I was in Mesq. Not a big deal. However, things quickly took a turn for the unexpected when my folks kicked me out of the house for taking such drastic measures to clean up my life. I mean, what else was there for me to do other than get rid of this and that 'cause I wanted to be "used of God." Well, long story short, it's been a back and forth type thing with relatives over and over for the past nearly 10 years, speaking and not speaking. 3-1/2 years ago, we moved to where we are now and had started going to a church pastored by Jeff Hennigan, who's the son-in-law to the Manguns in Alex, LA. Talk about a change! So much was put into perspective, that living for God is not about extremes one way or the other. It's about you and God, on an individual basis. Still a spirit-believing chuch, no doubt, with baptisms in Jesus' name occuring often. So, after experiencing a more moderate atmosphere of worship and Christian living, I don't foresee myself leaving what I know now. For those, like I said, that choose to keep their walk in a more traditional manner, do it. Just don't view me in a different light as being a backslider since I don't follow the same path. And I've seen that all too often. It's ridiculous. I have friends who are still the same in their faith walk, yet carry on and fellowship with me as if I've always been a part of them. Makes a big difference!
Would I go back and change some things on decisions I've made, I sure would. And it would be with the same people that have been in my life for the past 10 or so years. Instead of living in regret for what choices I've made, I've had to look at it as learning experiences and believe God orchestrated every step of the way to become stronger in Him...