Despite how the picture may appear, Gil is not a serious guy about most things. But when it comes to the things of the Lord, Gil is serious & passionate.
This past Sunday, Gil shared his testimony of how God sought him & found him & caused him to become wonderfully “bothered” about things he wasn’t bothered about before. Read & rejoice!
My earliest memories are of being here in Athens. Ingleside school, City Park, the Junior High, McMinn High School, and being raised in the church–sort of. From an early age, I attended a prominent church in town and after my confirmation, my parents decided I could choose whether I wanted to keep attending. I decided to sleep in on Sundays.
I grew up thinking I was a Christian and identified as a believer. I prayed, and even asked God for guidance. I considered myself morally a pretty good person. Certainly better than most. In my early 20s I was living in South Carolina (near the beach), I was doing a moderate amount of drugs and living with my girlfriend. My conscience told me it was wrong, but it just didn’t bother me that much.
When that relationship ended, I moved to Chattanooga, and I immediately moved in with another woman. Again, I knew it was wrong, but this time it began to bother me. I didn’t know it yet, but the Lord was at work.
I was 25 years old, miserable with the direction of my life was heading, sitting alone on my couch, and thinking about the purpose of MY life. I looked up and there was a book staring me in the face, The Purpose Driven Life. I had never seen that book in my life. I still don’t know who gave it to me as I was not an avid reader. I opened it up, and the first words were, “It’s not about you.” That was exactly what I needed at that moment–that my life was not all about me. It confronted all my sins that were rooted in selfishness.
40 chapters and 40 days later, I’m a born again Christian. I realized that I actually needed the Lord. I asked him to forgive me of all my sin and gave him the steering wheel of my life.
I was not expecting it, but everything began to change. I began to hate the things that I used to love and love the things I used to hate. God had given me a new heart with new desires.
I even saw my girlfriend with different eyes. Action steps were taken. First we got separate apartments, and I began pursuing her in a godly manner. Before I was saved, I had no intention of marriage, but then I began to see that she would make a great wife and mother. I still had a terrible fear of commitment, but I knew I loved her and marriage was right. I decided to propose despite my fears. (She said ‘yes’ by the way. Second best decision I ever made.)
As for growing in the Lord, Rick Warren is big on the local church. So, we began attending a small, old, dying Methodist church near my apartment… and the pastor delivered a Christ-centered message. He and his wife took me and Melanie in and discipled us.
After we married we soon got pregnant and moved to back to Athens in 2007 to be close to family. Over those years our circle of friends grew. And when we heard about this church plant coming to Athens, we wanted to take part in what the Lord is doing. We are so thankful to be with a group of people who encourage and challenge us to be more like Jesus. We’re excited to grow in the Lord with you this year and hopefully many more to come.
