From Death to Life
Ronnie knew God had intervened in his life, but he was still addicted to drugs. Parking his van, he shot drugs into his vein. This time, he overdosed.
Ronnie could feel himself sliding down into a place darker than any darkness on earth. The further down he traveled, the darker it became. He had never been afraid of any man, but he’d always been afraid of the dark. The black that surrounded him now was terrifying. Suddenly, he remembered something he had heard: “If you call on the Name of Jesus, you will be saved.” Unable to speak, from deep inside his heart Ronnie screamed: Jesus, help me!
Ronnie felt himself gliding upward toward the light. When he came to in his van, he had a needle in his arm. He drove home shaking from the experience. Still, he was addicted to drugs.
“I was under a tree one day cutting drugs,” Ronnie remembers. “The wind blew the tree and I heard these words: 'You’ve got to choose between Me and what’s on that plate.' It scared me so bad, I left and went back to the liquor store where deals were done. I was selling dope in someone else’s territory, and the big man who ran the area wanted to meet with me. It was a beautiful June day. Just gorgeous. But I had a sense that something was off.”
Ronnie told his girlfriend, Gwendolyn, to go home and not ride with him that day.
“I took her home and then returned to the liquor store,” Ronnie recalled. “When I arrived, they blocked my car and shoved me into a corner. Fear hit me so hard my knees shook. I knew I was dead. There was no way out.
“Suddenly, it turned black outside. Lightning struck and thunder seemed to rock the world. Everyone was distracted, and I heard that voice again: 'Get out of here, now!'”
Ronnie ran outside into the storm and escaped.
A New Man
Back home, he took off his gold necklaces and stuffed his dope under the bed. Shutting himself off in a closet, he fell on his knees and repented, thanking God for saving him. The light in the closet was off, but the small space lit up like the noonday sun. Colors Ronnie had never seen before overshadowed him. Stunning colors washed over him from his head to his feet. He could feel the colors swirling over him and running through him.
Gwendolyn opened the closet door and turned on the light.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
* * * * * article concludes on p. 26 * * * *
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