My name is David Alexander and I live in
Selmer, Tennessee.
I was formerly an abuser of alcohol and
various other sinful drugs that had overridden my life to the
point of near death physically, and was already past the
point of being spiritually dead. I was
so severely depressed with my life that
I kept myself drowned away from it with booze
and pills and such. There were days at a
time where I could not sleep, due to
the anxiety that had overcome me. It
eventually came to the point that my own family had
to disown me, in order to save their own sanity.
After a succession of explosive events
in my life leading up to, and including, Memorial Day 1998, all
the sinful, worldly things which had been built up around me were
reduced to rubble. I feel the Lord had simply leveled the
playing field and I then had no choice but to see the
light. And that light was the precious light of salvation through
Jesus Christ, and His death, burial, and resurrection. I
stopped the drinking and the drugs immediately and have
never went back. From that day forward, I began a climb form the
depths of this world that I had sank myself into. I was so far
beyond any "earthly" assistance that I
turned to the ultimate assistance available to us
all: God,
through His son Jesus Christ. I spent
the next seventy-two hours in an almost constant prayer with the
Lord, begging for forgiveness, begging for relief.
On the third day following my incident, I finally began to
feel the burden lifting from me. I knew at this time that God
was taking control of the situation and that I was forgiven of my
sins. I immediately began sleeping
peacefully at night instead of pacing the floors
all night. The immediate reaction from most of the people in my
circle of friends was that I was just desperate and trying to
make a show of things. To a certain extent I am truly thankful
for these people. For being the stubborn person that I am, this
only fueled my determination to live my life in a better manner.
In the past, my personal problems seemed to be so scattered, such
as like fallen leaves beneath a tree. While life is not free from
problems now, the problems I do encounter are neatly filed away
so they can be addressed in some orderly fashion. This I fully
attribute to the power of prayer and the grace of God, the credit
is not mine to claim. I now try to include Him in every decision
I make, even the smallest ones. We are not meant to walk
through this life alone. I tried it; I fell. Many times I got
back on that old horse called life without help. But the last
time I mounted that old horse, I was placed firmly in the saddle
by the hands of God, to never be thrown again. I had been
raised up around church and I knew a lot of things about the
Bible and Jesus, I had just never been willing to actually let
Him work in my life. I had always been too stubborn to submit
to His will and let Him take full control. Now I see that all
things are possible through the Lord and "I can
do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
Philippians 4:13.
A year and a half has now passed by and I have been blessed
with the ability to resist the temptations of the
poisons that once controlled my life. It would not have been
possible for anyone to make me believe how wonderful life could
be. God has shown me that through the many blessings I have
received since accepting his son, Jesus, as my Lord and savior. It
is amazing when the moment arrives that you know you will be all
right.
God wants us all to come to Him and can put any of
us into service. I will close this with some scripture written by
the Apostle Paul and a quote from a famous pastor from over a
hundred years ago. Whatever troubles you may be having in your
life, God can and will help you
overcome them. Only through Jesus can we receive this precious
gift, and none of us deserve it. But by grace and grace alone, we
can all have it. Today is the day of salvation,
and none better moment than right now. There is a link at the
bottom of the page that will guide you through God's plan of
salvation through Jesus Christ. If you accept this plan, and pray
for Jesus to become your Lord and Master, contact
a local New Testament, Bible-believing, Bible-preaching church so
that they can encourage you
through this life-changing experience.
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has
strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me
into service; even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a
persecutor and a violent aggressor. And yet I was shown mercy,
because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord
was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found
in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full
acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners, among whom I am the foremost of all. And yet for this
reason I found mercy, in order that in me as the foremost, Jesus
Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience, as an example for
those who would believe in Him for eternal life. Now to the King
eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory
forever and ever. Amen. (1 Tim. 1:12–17)
Stairs
O
long and dark the stairs I trod
With
trembling feet to find my God
Gaining
a foothold bit by bit,
Then
slipping back and losing it.
Never
progressing; striving still
With
weakening grasp and faltering will,
Bleeding
to climb to God, while he
Serenely
smiled, unnoting me.
Then
came a certain time when I
Loosened
my hold and fell thereby;
Down
to the lowest step my fall,
As
if I had not climbed at all.
Now
when I lay despairing there,
Listen
… a footfall on the stair,
On
that same stair where I afraid,
Faltered
and fell and lay dismayed.
And
lo, when hope had ceased to be,
My
God came down the stairs to me.
Author
unknown
My hope lives not
because I am not a sinner, but because I am a sinner for whom
Christ died; my trust is not that I am holy, but that being
unholy, He is my righteousness. My faith rests not upon what I
am, or shall be, or feel, or know, but in what Christ is, in what
He has done, and in what He is now doing for me. On the lion of
justice the fair maid of hope rides like a queen. -- C.H.
Spurgeon
"I have
been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but
Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I
live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered
Himself up for me. Galatians 2:20
God Bless,
David Alexander