by Gary Nale
So Blessed!
Good way to start the day by quoting: “This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24
My siblings and I were so blessed to have grown up in a Christian home. As a small child, our family attended Southside Church of the Nazarene. We were conditioned at an early age to be at church when the doors were open, which meant Sunday mornings, Sunday evenings and most Wednesday evenings—unless we had homework or a school function. Even on vacation, we were expected to pack some clothes that were appropriate to wear to church because Dad was planning on finding a church for us to visit.
Our parents taught us to love the Lord, love each other, be kind, try to do the right thing and to treat people how we would want to be treated. Another thing Mom and Dad instilled in us at an early age was to tithe. I remember even as early as 7 years old, I got an allowance of one dollar a week. They expected us to put 10 cents in the offering plate the following Sunday. Obviously, we didn’t always do it, but they were pleased when we did.
When I was in the 4th grade, there was a week-long revival at our church. I remember at the end of one of the services, they turned the lights down low and gave an alter call. I felt led to go to the alter and asked Jesus to come into my heart. I had always attended church and felt like I was a good person but had never officially asked Jesus to be my personal Savior. It was an amazing feeling.
I went to summer church camp the next few years in Marion. It was a great time of studying, fellowship, arts and crafts and recreation. A couple times, I had a baseball game the week of camp. My dad came and picked me up and drove me to the game. After the game, he took me back to Marion. He knew how important church camp was for me, but he also knew how much I enjoyed playing sports and honoring the commitment to my team.
Growing up, I saw the value in being raised in a Christian home and was looking for a mate that was brought up in a similar fashion. Debbie and I started dating my senior year, and a little over two years later, we got married. We continued to try to live our lives the same way we were raised. Several years later, our daughter was born, and we took her to church almost every Sunday. We did the same thing when our other daughter came along. Fortunately, both of our girls picked guys who were also raised in Christian homes. They are now teaching their children that God should always be an important part of their lives. Again, so blessed.
Both of my parents have gone on to be with the Lord in the last eight years. God was there to comfort our family. We also had each other and were so glad the way Mom and Dad had raised us and the way we still loved each other. It was very comforting to know that they were going to heaven. As we live our lives, we constantly do things that don’t please the Lord, but we know that He is a caring and forgiving God. Someday, we will be reunited with our amazing, wonderful parents.
