poem: Someday

Someday
Someday the pain and tears will be over,
Someday the work will be done, the harvest in,
Someday, yes someday, the faith will be sight,
Glad faces turned upward in joy of hope fulfilled.
Then our final good-byes will become hellos -
The grave has not triumphed,
Death has itself had death imposed -
Then we who toiled in the heat of the day,
Side by side or miles apart,
Will rest together in the shade of our Lord's presence.
I have many people I will look for.
Some will be surprised I am there.
I can't wait to see their faces -
"You? You made it here? Oh, God is so good!"
Yes. Oh, yes. Our Lord is wonderful.
And we will rejoice.
Others will be friends I have not seen in years.
I will find the lovely man who led me to Christ.
There, at the foot of our Savior
We will do together what in life we had always done apart.
Worship.
In that great someday the only tears shed will be of
Joy, the only worship will be of
Christ, the only life will be
Eternal.
Someday, my friend, we will meet and greet,
Live and love,
Joy and delight,
At the foot of
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

God on the Internet

(Posted to the Internet newsgroup "soc.religion.christian" on September 9, 1996. It is Charles' story, and it is time that I dust the cobwebs off of it, and give him his voice once more. It is time for others to once again see his view of my conversion. It is very different from mine, and therefore adds to my story, giving it a richness and depth that it could not have standing alone. My story from my perspective can be found here. )


God on the Internet

This is the story of the salvation of a young woman, Victoria, and how she came to know Christ. Contacts offered by an Internet e-mail list played a significant part in this, as did the forum offered by "soc.religion.christian" (a Christian newsgroup). This is an occasion where God has seen fit to use the Internet to His ends.

Charles joined the mailing list in the summer of 1995, and was a member for six months. A brief thread on witnessing to co-workers prompted the formation of a four-member virtual prayer group. It is in existence today. They pray for the needs of others, and provide advice as needed.

That prayer group played a significant role in a Wiccan Witch coming to Jesus Christ. It did so by praying for her salvation, and offering advice and prayers of support regarding the spiritual pressures that arose in Charles' home during (and after) this process.

A brief background may be helpful. Victoria attended a Christian church, but left it for a variety of reasons. First, the image of God she was presented was that of a vengeful, angry killjoy who was constantly disgusted at sinful humanity, and only tolerated us because He had beat up on His Son, Jesus, at the cross. Second, God wanted more than she could give--demanded too much obedience. Grace was noticeably absent from this picture. She was a Pharisee, trying to observe the letter of the law but missing the spirit (and the point!). Third, she had been tricked by Satan into believing she had committed the unforgivable sin.

Not surprisingly, this image of God did not appeal. She left the church, and after some searching became involved first with the New Age and then with Wicca. She was dedicated to the Pagan path four year ago, and initiated as a practicing Witch three years ago.

God was slowly working with her to heal the hurts the she had received from the church, and her anger at Him. A couple years ago she befriended a Christian woman who made a great impact on her simply by showing her Christian love. Several months ago she met another Christian, this time on the Internet, and had extensive contact with him. Due to her academic interest in Christianity, she took a few courses in undergraduate studies at university, and "tuned in" to soc.religion.christian (or s.r.c. for short).

God hooked Victoria and Charles up in February 1996 on s.r.c. They began to have conversations on salvation (she brought the subject up in the context of hell), and the spiritual pressures at Charles' home began to increase. That's when he told the virtual prayer group of the situation, and they began to pray for an end to the pressure, as well as for salvation for her. The prayers certainly helped--although the pressures escalated for a time, they finally waned.

The turning point in their correspondence came when they became friends (Charles does not bestow this title cavalierly). Victoria ceased to be "the Witch with whom Charles is having theological discussions," and became "his friend, who sees things differently in some crucial areas." They discussed their respective struggles regarding God, both past and current. Far from destroying Charles' witness for Christ, his admission of his struggles and rebellious tendencies played a role in showing Victoria the reality of Christ in his life.

Although Victoria was not really aware of it, God was drawing her strongly. At the end of March she passed up two Pagan events to attend a Christian concert (though at the time she was hardly aware she had scheduled it this way). At the concert she clearly sensed the presence of God, and the love she felt made her rethink her image of Him as an uncaring despot. She could then sense Him calling her, which she resisted strongly. While her soul longed for God, her will resisted giving up control to Him. Victoria and Charles corresponded at length on this, with their prior discussion of Charles' struggles setting the stage for her to share her own.

One part of the search involved a Roman Catholic book outlining the fundamentals of Christianity. It said that God had come Himself to personally bear the consequences of our sins, rather than simply beating up on His Son. God continued to draw her in several ways, and even used a bad period in Charles' life to produce an uncharacteristically blunt charge that she stop explaining away the appearance of God and face His calls.

Finally, after 4 1/2 weeks of intense struggle and a great deal of thought, Victoria phoned Charles and asked him to pray with her. At about 6:45 p.m. on Friday, May 3rd (1996), God gave him the privilege of leading a Wiccan Witch to Jesus Christ. It was four years to the day from her dedication into the Pagan path--to the very day.

The changes since her conversion have been dramatic. She no longer considers herself a Wiccan, and has dismantled her Pagan altar. She has been spending a great deal of time and energy searching out local Christian contacts, and a church to join. She has been baptized. On the more mundane side, she is getting along better with her boss at work. The tone of her notes displays more peace, even though her external circumstances are far more stressful than before her commitment to Jesus. As an added bonus, God provided an opportunity for them to meet briefly three weeks to the day after her conversion, when Charles had an airline connection through her city.

Charles would like to thank the prayer group for its efforts, and to let the members know that God has used them for His purposes. We would both like to encourage those who are telling others about Jesus Christ on the Internet that their efforts are not in vain. The seeds planted electronically do indeed bear fruit. Finally, we seek to glorify God, not ourselves. He can indeed work in any situation, and we are very aware of Whose hand was behind every step in this process.

Your brother and sister in Christ,
Charles Scott
Victoria Shephard

Link: http://home.earthlink.net/~second_coming/charles.html

Taking down the altar

Waking up this morning last night seemed just like a dream. But I know it wasn't. The book is missing from my shelf, and there is a second necklace around my neck. It was real.

Soon after getting up today, I decided to take my altar down. It just felt right. I don't know why. I wrapped most everything in newspaper and packed it away in the travel case. I took the cloth off. There's a few items sitting on the table still, but it is a table now, not an altar. What is happening to me? I'm quite sure that if yesterday had been a "normal" Friday and I had not met Charles, that it never would have occurred to me today to take down my altar. There was something magickal about our meeting last night. What else could cause me to dissemble something I've been creating for years?

Eleanor said she never know that the concert had had such an effect on my life. After talking to her today, though, I think she understands a bit clearer. She had offered to take me to see "Godspell" tomorrow.

Eleanor made me aware of one of the blessings of living in SF. If I was still living in Chico there's no way Charles and I could have met. There's no way he could have flown through; here he can. Here God has a chance to work.

Meeting Charles

I didn't want to be on campus today, but I had financial aid to take care if and needed to take care of a couple things at the campus bookstore. Naturally, since I was on campus, I logged on to the Net. There was a note from Charles in response to my last note to him, but there was another note as well stating that a relative had died and he was flying toward Florida today. Due to Memorial Day weekend, instead of passing though Chicago or some such more direct way, he was coming through San Francisco. Did I want to meet him at SFO for his short layover?

His Air Canada flight was 20 minutes late. We only had about an hour to talk before he had to board a flight to North Carolina where he will be staying with some family. A true (and for me highly emotionally charged) bittersweet moment. And a true gift. Thank you God.

I met him at the arrival gate, and spotted him in the crowd immediately. I had my old dog-eared, highlighter-penned, used-looking copy of "The Truth About Witchcraft Today," which he's never quite got around to picking up, wrapped in newspaper (to give it more the look of a gift). I had written a sort of "dedication" to him inside the front cover. He also had a gift for me - a small 14 karat gold heart with a cross inside it. It's real tiny on a real delicate, short chain, but it's the most wonderful gift, and how he came up with it on such short notice I don't know.

So I am touched. I see God's hand in Charles' flight coming through San Francisco. It is a wonderful gift (even if the circumstances could have been better) - undeserved, unexpected, a true present that also shows God's enormous power, and is bit humbling as well. How can I thank you, God, for this completely undeserved meeting? Thank you. You know how much it means to me.