I would have to say that it started, for me, around 6th grade. This new notion of “cool” slowly but surely made itself prevalent in this new atmosphere of middle school. Everything began to revolve around who you hung out with, what clothes you wore, which girls were interested in you, what kind of music you liked and how much could you stand out among the sea of other kids trying to quickly find their “image”.
By the time high school rolled around, popularity seemed to have grown immensely more important then it was in middle school. I never really had a strong urge to be the most popular kid in school, but it seemed that being on varsity sports from freshman year onward certainly threw me into that crowd. You get invited to all the “parties with the older kids”, your clothes begin to conform to the group you’re associated with (jocks, skaters, goths..etc), new girls begin to like you. It was almost like middle school all over again, just a different atmosphere (and with booze).
Needless to say, I followed the same pattern of choosing who I associated with, chasing girls, and drinking frequently into my college career. Nowhere else could you go kill 30 racks 5 nights a week, still make it to class, and have time for girls on the side. By every definition of Hollywood’s “College” scene you see depicted in movies such as American Pie, Animal House, and Van Wilder, I was not only doing everything right…..I was doing it exactly right! Right?
God tries to warn people with little unpleasant nudges here and there throughout their life when He knows they’re heading down the wrong path. Looking back I can easily count 10 clear indications of such off the top of my head. The greatest thing is, however, that He will not give up on you. And for people as prideful as I was….sometimes we won’t give in until He shows us how low we have sunk. Blurred vision, alcohol radiating from my sweat, in handcuffs, with no shirt, vehicle on the tow-truck, balling my eyes out in the back of a police car was that point.
I can look back now and understand that this was all His plan from the start….it would take a massive blow to my sinfully, comfortable, irresponsible life to wake me up. Some people can accept His love easily, others need to be shown how to the hard way. I will forever be haunted by the ghost of a person I had let myself become prior to accepting Christ into my life. However, even though it may take ME half a lifetime to forgive myself for my actions, I know that in the eyes of Christ…I’m forgiven.
I pray that it wouldn’t take a life altering experience for whoever is reading this to come to know Christ…but then again…..It has been more beautifully life altering then I could have ever hoped for.
When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.
Jimi Hendrix
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