Testimony
Thank you for taking the time to be a witness to what the Lord has done and is doing in my life. My name is Archie, and I am no longer who I was, but I am being made new in the image of Christ. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). In 2011, broken by my sin and looking for hope, I surrendered my way to follow the Lord. That is where my life began when I met Jesus.
However, I would like to introduce you to the old me. I grew up in Wills Point on a local farm where I spent most of my time outdoors there hunting and fishing became my escape. I attended church with my family growing up where I had a head knowledge of God and knew of Jesus, but my life was not a reflection of Him.
“Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22).
I was deceived in my futile thinking I believed because I grew up in the church that I was right before God. Those of you who knew me would say I was a “good kid”. Although I didn’t cause outward problems, I had an internal battle waging war on my heart and mind that entangled me. The lust of my eyes and flesh, self-sufficiency and pride had me looking at things of this world for satisfaction but left me empty and longing for more each time.
This battle continued to bleed out into my marriage where it left its wounds. I had met my bride Desiree’ in high school where we pursued our own desires and the strongholds of my flesh kept my eyes on searching the world for satisfaction. I found my worth and value in my job title, hunting, and self-centeredness and lacked concern for pursuing my wife’s heart or mind. Nine months after we said our vows I was diagnosed with testicular cancer, surgery and radiation quickly followed. Even though I had a physical cancer and was seeking treatment, I was still ignoring the spiritual cancer (sin) that needed removal. God was trying to get my attention to turn to him for peace, but I kept doing things my way.
Even in our rebellion the Lord was gracious enough to bless us with two beautiful children, but it wasn’t until our daughter was born that the Lord began to soften my hardened selfish heart. In this season my job was to inspect and discard any “bad” fruit as I was a produce manager working at our local grocery store. In September of 2011, after a few months of trying to start going back to church I was invited to lunch with our pastor, and we had the first Christ centered gospel conversation of my adult life. I was asked questions that presented an opportunity to analyze the spiritual fruit in my life or lack of (Galatians 5:16-25).
• How confident was I in knowing if I would go to Heaven when I die.
• How sin entered and damaged our relationship with God.
Genesis 3 (The Fall)
"For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God” Romans 3:23.
• How without faith through Jesus’ sacrifice for my sin that my “good deeds” where meaningless.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Using God’s word to illuminate I realized I was separated from Christ because of sin and not allowing him to be Lord of my life. I had never accredited anything to Christ, I wasn’t praying or reading God’s word, and I had boasted in my own strength. For the first time I was broken by my rebellion and realized my need for a Savior.
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death”
(2 Corinthians 7:10).
After receiving the truth of the gospel of Christ and understanding how much we needed Jesus. My wife and I both trusted in Christ that night in our living room floor. What a glorious day that was to be saved. “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).
Here humbly surrendered is where the Lord began a work in my life, he has taken the broken pieces of my shattered sin patterns of lust, pride, and selfishness and made them a part of his redemption story. “But everything exposed by the light becomes visible and everything that is illuminated becomes a light” (Ephesians 5:13).
The Lord started growing and maturing me in my faith as I was abiding with Christ and being discipled by other men in my life. Through the Spirit at work inside of me I was gradually being convicted of anything that was in opposition to Christ’s Character. My marriage and my choices were slowly starting to honor Christ more.
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2).
Today it has been 14 years since I surrender my life to Christ, and I am no longer the man I was before. He continues to mold and shape me into the image of what he desires. “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Now I live on mission to “love the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strength” which overflows into how I can lead and love my family and others. God has entrusted us with His Spirit, His Word, and His people. My prayer is that I will be diligent and obedient with it all. I still make mistakes daily and fall short, but I’ve been saved by grace though faith in Jesus Christ. We have experienced many trials and hardships along the way on this journey; however, I have a renewed perspective.
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the test of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may mature and complete not lacking anything” (James 1: 2 - 4).
So, as we face a giant of cancer again after 20 years it doesn’t seem so big anymore because I know our God is greater than my fear and he has good plans. “Now I want you to know, brothers and sister, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel” (Philippians 1:12).