Zapped
I had no idea what had just happened to me. I did know that for the first time in my life I had spoken to someone I wasn’t sure even existed and asked him to take over my life. Of course being “Fast Eddie,” I tried to turn it into an episode of “Let’s Make a Deal.” I said, “Jesus, you take all my worldly treasures in exchange for peace, happiness and filling the emptiness in my soul.” Incredibly, I was actually trying to horse-trade with God! Of course, He wasn’t interested in my stuff; He just wanted my heart. But I didn’t know that yet. Fact is, I didn’t know anything about Jesus or what I should do next. I just knew I’d been zapped by something or someone very powerful and it had staggered me.
I got behind the wheel of my car and began to drive aimlessly around the city, alternating between tears and laughter. I was filled with joy, excitement and peace all at the same time. I had everything I had asked from Jesus and had never felt this wonderful in my entire life. I was willing to do whatever it took to keep the joy alive. I just didn’t know what that was. In the midst of the excitement, I was confused. So I pulled into a coffee shop and called Ken at the radio station. After all, he’s the guy who started all this by talking about Jesus.
Ken’s secretary later said that something in my voice caused her to put my call through to Ken even though he was in a meeting. When Ken picked up, I blurted out; “Ken, I don’t know what you said to me today, but whatever it was got through to me. What should I do now?” Ken simply replied, “Where are you right now?” I told him that I was in a coffee shop trying to sort things out. He said “I’ll be there in ten minutes.” I found out later that he was in the middle of an important staff meeting when I called, and that he hung up the phone, stood up and announced to his staff, “I’m sorry folks. Something more important has come up and I need to leave now.” And he walked out of his meeting.
When Ken came into the coffee shop, I swear he was beaming. You would have thought he was as excited as I was: he told me later that he was. He had been aware of my partying, gangster reputation and didn’t know if he’d reached me at lunch. So yeah, he was excited. He sat down and immediately embarrassed me: he grabbed my hands and started praying. Yikes! I’m peeking out of the corners of my eyes to see if anyone is watching and hoping no one is. Then Ken began to explain what it means to follow Christ and to surrender my heart to Him. He said it’s about building a personal relationship with Jesus. This, he said, is how you stay zapped. Then he began to tell me what Christianity is NOT.
• It’s not about being “good enough” for Jesus to love
• It’s not about earning salvation
• It’s not about learning how to be a hypocrite
• It’s not true that only one particular denomination can get you to heaven
Finally, Ken handed me a small plain English copy of the Book of John and told me that if I read it all the way through three times, I’d know what to do from there. So I went home and stayed up all night reading it all the way through three times.
And Ken was right…I did know what to do. I surrendered my heart to Jesus Christ.
Zap!
Epilogue
Then Jesus told them this story: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep but loses one of them. Then he will leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the open field and go out and look for the lost sheep until he finds it. And when he finds it, he happily puts it on his shoulders and goes home. He calls to his friends and neighbors and says, 'Be happy with me because I found my lost sheep.' In the same way, I tell you there is more joy in heaven over one sinner who changes his heart and life, than over ninety-nine good people who don't need to change. Luke 15: 3-7
Thought for the Day
“There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation. One is by the sword. The other is by debt.” John Adams
Turn the radio on
Listen to God & Ed’s Excellent Adventure on the Radio. Monday through Friday at 4pm on “The Word,” 98.5/99.3 FM. Or listen on-line at KLGO.net. It’s the place for Christians of all varieties to hang out and be loved, entertained and uplifted.
Semi-interesting fact
The circulatory system of the average human would extend about 60,000 miles if it could be laid end to end.
Joke du Jour
After starting a new diet I altered my drive to work to avoid passing my favorite bakery. I accidentally drove by the bakery this morning and as I approached, there in the window were a host of goodies. I felt this was no accident, so I prayed ... "Lord, it's up to you, if you want me to have any of those delicious goodies, create a parking place for me directly in front of the bakery."
And sure enough, on the eighth time around the block, there it was! God is so Good!"
Cool Music
Cool songs you’ve never heard on radio. Check the player on the upper right, click and brighten your day.
Questions I ask myself:
Why do fat chance and slim chance mean the same thing?
Really?? Actual News Stories
From Hurst, Texas comes the story of a couple of out-of-town bozos who were involved in a hit-and-run accident. Police were dispatched and soon spotted our heroes. Knowing they were in big trouble, they tried to flee, but not being familiar with the city they took a wrong turn. A very wrong turn. Into the parking lot of the Hurst Police Department. Oops. They're under arrest.
Speecy, spicy meatball Four men from Philadelphia who stole a teen's meatball sandwich at gunpoint
are now in police custody. The armed robbers took the $5.50 sandwich but left the 13-year-old victim's cell phone, which he then used to call police. The robbery happened as the teen was walking home after buying a meatball sandwich for dinner at a deli. He was approached by men who brandished a black revolver. “If you do anything, I’ll cap you,” one of the men reportedly told the teen. The four men have been charged with offenses including receiving stolen property, robbery, and criminal conspiracy to commit robbery, and are being held on $150,000 bail. Police recovered a .38 caliber revolver, and the sandwich, which was reportedly still in the wrapper.Close call A Chinese motorist's quick reflexes saved him from being impaled after his car
collided with a truck carrying hundreds of steel rods. Yang, 24, was driving an unlicensed vehicle, without a seatbelt, on October 26 when he spotted a police checkpoint further up the road. He panicked and performed a sharp u-turn, swerving his car into the path of an oncoming taxi before rear-ending a truck. "I realized that the car was crashing into those steel rods, so I threw myself on the passenger side," Yang said. “When the car stopped, steel rods were all over my head with one only a few inches away from my face."Good deed comes back to good Samaritan The Wisconsin State Patrol said Saturday Victor Giesbrecht, 61, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, was driving on Interstate 94 near Menomonie, Wis., when he pulled to the side to help a driver change a tire. After helping out, Giesbrecht got back behind the wheel of his pickup truck and took off down the highway but moments later, was struck with a heart attack. His wife, Ann guided the truck to a stop, called for help on her cellphone and got outside the vehicle waving her arms -- attracting the attention of the same driver whom Giesbrecht had helped out only moments before. That driver, Lisa Meier began doing cardiopulmonary resuscitation on Giesbrecht until emergency personnel arrived. "If he had been a few more miles down the road and had his heart attack, it could have been a different outcome," Patrol Sgt. Michael Newton said. "It's an interesting turn of fate."
Are you kidding me???
The Bible was first divided into verses in 1448.
Groaner
How are a Texas tornado And a Tennessee divorce the same?
With either one, somebody's gonna lose a trailer!
Forward…Mail!!
If you enjoy this weekly blog…and I hope you do… please let me know in the comment box below. Then, forward the blog to all your email friends. I will really appreciate it. The web address is wwGodandEd.com.
Remember, Christianity is more about walking than about talking
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1 Comment:
I enjoy reading your blog each week. You have a great testimony to the lost while encouraging Christians to reach out to them. I have several friends inAustin that are connected to you. I currently live in Singapore and look forward to listening to you when I am in Austin. God Bless, Karen
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