From Christian to Atheist Pt. 4

It was about 1985 when I back slid from the church and my Christian ways, I had been in the church for about a year in a half. At the same time it was a tough year in a half for me personally, so much so that I found it impossible to serve God and deal with my personal issues all at once. I had made an oath to myself in those days that if I can't serve the Lord one hundred percent then I would not serve him at all. It would not be until 1990 till I came back to the ways of God and began to serve him and returned to the church once again on a mission and on fire for God.

I had gone to the Park one afternoon a few blocks away from my house and all of a sudden this van pulls up. Out came the Spanish Pentecostals with mics and speakers etc. and within a few minutes of their arrival they were preaching and those that came along were handing out bible tracts to everyone around. I sat there and listened to the evangelist preach his message and when he made the altar call I responded but my only intention was to receive some prayer. Then as he prayed for me he stopped and told me that God had revealed to him that he wanted me to accept him then and there and that I should testify. I did as I was told and then after the street service was over the evangelist invited me to their next church service.

That day I arrived home from that service and told my mother that I had accepted the Lord back into my life and that I would be attending church very soon. I went straight to the garbage can and reached into my pocket and pulled out the pack of cigarettes I had there and tossed them in the can. As I did so I recall saying to myself : "If I am going to serve the Lord, it's all or nothing". With those words began my second foray into the search for holiness and divine guidance into whatever it was that I believed God called me for. I began once again to pray fervently and constantly seeking the presence of the Lord. I delved into the scriptures daily, seeking guidance and answers to my own situation; things that spoke to my heart and at the same time seemed to speak to me directly.

I began attending church and that same evangelist that found me in the park became my closest friend and ally in the church. It wasn't long before he invited me to partake with him in his street ministry which he conducted every weekend without fail. We would preach in two different sections of Brooklyn, NY on Saturdays and Sundays looking for the lost souls of the world and hoping to lead them into the light of Christ. It also wasn't long before I was back at it casting out demons and praying for the sick and watching people pass out to my own amazement just by a mere touch of my hand or stare. I had matured this time much more than when I was in high school so I was a much more effective evangelist my second time around.

Within a year I was already preaching in many Spanish churches in the community, and often would get invites to partake in outdoor tent revivals. Sometimes I preached or when my partner in the ministry preached in Spanish I would serve as his interpreter in English. With our combined efforts we were bringing in new church members every week and our congregation began to grow quite fast. I went on like this for about 3 years and then came two events that became the turning point in my life that led me to once again doubt the veracity of scripture and even the very existence of God! On my next post I will go into this in depth so I will see you all then.