Have you ever started out planning to go one way and end up going another? As a young teenager my life was sports. I excelled in baseball, football and basketball. As a 9th grader I made the starting line up on the Spartanburg High baseball team. That year I lettered and made the triple “A” All Star Team which opened a new door for me. The seniors on the team took a liking to me and invited me one day to tag along with them.

Have you ever done something you wish you had not done? Well, I was offered my first drink of alcohol. My thinking was, “One beer can’t hurt, can it?” To be a leader on the football field is one thing but to stand up to ones peers and say “No” to alcohol is another. I found myself a coward. Have you ever lived a double life? I continued to excel in sports but the double life was catching up with me. My parents found out that I was drinking. They were strongly disappointed in me. I was even more down about the turn my life had taken. I was trapped. I could see the problem, but finding the solution would take much longer.

Making the right choice, a friend invited me to attend church with him. I had not been in a church for at least 10 years, yet upon his invitation I said “Yes.” I listen to the sermon that day I wanted to hide. My life was a wreck. As I continued to listen I heard the preacher say that JESUS loves you and has provided forgiveness for you at the cross. He said we have all fallen short of the Glory of GOD. I learned that JESUS loved me just like I was. That day I invited the LORD into my life. It was the greatest decision I have ever made. The next day I told as many of my friends that I could find about JESUS. It is my prayer that you decide to follow JESUS today.