I thought the first night of the Fall Bible Conference was over, and I desperately wanted some free evenings. Right as I was about to leave, I noticed that Dr. White took the stage. I felt disappointed because I just wanted to get back to my room and relax, but I knew I could bear the wait. During his talk, I noticed him saying something about the Holy Spirit calling you, and I
figured that since I was already there, I might as well listen.
“So right now, on the count of three, if you need to be saved, I want you up, I want you out, and I want you down here. And we will rejoice with you.” It seemed like he was calling people to come down to the front of the stage to repent and come to Christ. I figured I didn’t need to do that because I was already a Christian, but something about Dr. White’s statement got me wondering whether or not I had ever truly accepted God.
As I pondered that question, I saw the first person head towards the stage, and he was quickly followed by several others. There were quite a few people accepting Dr. White’s invitation and I found myself tempted to join them. “Wait, what am I saying?” I thought to myself. “I’m a Christian aren’t I?” But if that was the case, why did I feel like I needed to go down there?
I naturally started to think about my relationship with God and realized that I was just following the crowd rather than building an actual relationship with him. This realization hit me like a truck, and I knew I needed to join the others down at the stage, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. I felt the Holy Spirit pulling me, but the Devil holding me back. “I can do it.” “No, I can’t.” I kept repeating these lines to myself, an intense battle for salvation going on inside my head.
“Just take the first step,” I thought to myself. “Just take the first step and you’ll be able to go the rest of the way.” I knew I needed to ignore the doubts, fears, and questions, and just go. I could feel the Holy Spirit pulling me, but I felt like I was pushing against a gale-force wind. “Come on!” I was screaming inside my head. “Just, one, step.”
And I took it. I actually took the first step. And then I took another step, and another, and another. I could hear people clapping and I knew they were staring at me, but I didn’t care. I was on my way to the stage and nothing could stop me. “Thank you Cedarville. Thank you Dr. White. And thank you, God. I’m coming God. At long last, I’m finally coming home.”
