When I was 14 years old, I started a brand new life of being a follower of Jesus Christ. I had made a mess of my life up to that point. I dutifully woke up every morning at 4:30 am to sneak outside and smoke my cigarettes before my mom got up. When I no longer needed or wanted them, it was no big thing to get up at 4:30 am to read the bible and pray. God’s love letter to me and my response to those words began to shape and transform my young life.
In my assignment to learn how the scripture applied to my life I began to have a relationship with the One who loved me more than anyone else. I started learning how to talk to God, to build my relationship with him day by day.
My bedroom had, not one, but 2 closets. One was for my clothes and the other one, I turned into a prayer closet. I cleared it out, put a makeshift alter in, a little lamp and placed a world map on the wall in front of me. The only way I could fit in there was to get on my knees. That closet became my daily alter where I met, and communed with God, creator of heaven and earth. Oh, the thought of him waiting there for me, each and every morning! It was there that I received my nourishment for the day. What once was a time of hiding and smoking around the back of the house, turned into a time of receiving my daily “orders” much like a soldier would. But I became a soldier doing battle on my knees.
This is where I learned to hear and know the heart of God, His love, and compassion, His yearning for relationship with His creation. I also came to know the agony of seeing His children make choices that would cut off that connection with Him.
The world map with the name of current Presidents of each country and a few statistics about each nation took me all over the world without even leaving my closet. My mode of travel was prayer! During my time there, I began to grow in my relationship with Him and bring the needs I encountered around me to Him in prayer. As a result, I began to see that heart from the closet on the street, at school, and everywhere I went.
That closet became my refuge during some very difficult times for my family. A place where I found out that being a Christian is not about a set of rules. It is building a relationship with the God, who, if I allow Him, will RULE my heart. It is there that, as a soldier for Him, I was learning that my God, is a God who is waiting for anyone who will call on His name and come, through faith in Jesus Christ, to begin a brand new, slate wiped clean, awesome adventure and nourishing relationship with Him. It’s not a religion, but it is a relationship!
If you feel God’s love tugging at your heart right now, and you want to know more, go to this link and hear the words of Rapper, Deitrick Haddon who puts it so well!
Jana Lackey 