God has a way of leading those who desire Him. But some of us, like myself are not
always quick learners. It took God many times to teach me some simple truths. I thank
God for parents that loved me, trusted God and tried to raise me well.
My father was a wood carver from Greece who came to this country and met my mother,
the daughter of Greek immigrants, while she was vacationing in San Diego California.
My parents took our family, consisting of my two brothers and myself, to St. Mary’s
Greek Orthodox Church in Minneapolis.
When I was a little child in my house, I lied and my mother told me it was wrong, and
that it was not only something I did that hurt others but it bothered God as well. She
explained that sins are things we do that are against God. If we want to get right with
God we need to turn away from the bad actions, telling God of the wrong that I had done
and asking for God’s forgiveness. I never knew that things I did could offend God. It all
seemed like a very serious matter. So, I prayed to God telling him how sorry I was and
asking for his forgiveness and asking him into my life.
I can’t say I was a perfect boy after that. But I can say that I felt I had a heart for God
and doing the right thing. I still got in trouble at times but I kept coming back to God.
My parents sent me to a Lutheran junior high school for 7th and 8th grade where there was some Bible training in school as well as Minnehaha Academy, a non-denominational
Christian high school in Minneapolis where there was more Bible training. I remember
learning many verses of the Bible like John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He
gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life” and “For by grace you have been saved through faith, not by works lest
any man should boast.” I trusted God for my eternal salvation but felt it was my job to
get myself perfect. The problem was I could not make myself perfect. The harder I tried,
the worse I felt because I was not improving. On the outside I was a nice guy, kind of
quite and shy, but on the inside I was struggling.
I had some aptitude for math and science so, in the fall of 1975, I went to the University
of Minnesota, Institute of Technology taking up Mechanical Engineering as my major.
During my lunch hour I enjoyed studying my Bible. Some noon times I would join an
on-campus group called The Christians. Other times I would study individually doing
Bible Study Fellowship or my own study.
During my junior year I studied the book of Romans and found myself really struggling like the apostle Paul wrote about, where I did the things I hated as explained in Romans 7:15 “For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate.” And verse 19 says “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want.” Looking for a solution to this problem I read on to verse 25 where he wrote “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” And chapter 8 verse 14 “For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
All this meant was that my struggles to try to fight my sinful nature in my strength were
over, I needed to switch to living in the Spirit of God because Jesus already had gained
the victory over sin and death and given me the Spirit as part of my adoption as a son.
Now, instead of trying to use my strength to overpower sin, I would turn those struggles
over the God and let God’s Spirit show me the road to life. In doing this, I noticed some
real changes in my life and a new peace came on me. Instead of focusing on how not to
sin, I focused on living the new life in Christ.
Since then, I have continued to seek the direction of God in life and to know the power of
his resurrection in my daily living. I realize that my old self has died with Christ on the
cross and now Christ lives in and through me. I know I have not arrived but Christ
continues to draw me closer to transform me into his image through his sanctifying
power.