I was 25 years old. I wasn’t a religious person, though I often wondered if there really was a God—and if there was, how anyone could truly know Him. Those questions churned inside me like a tangled ball of confusion. What I did know was this: my life was unraveling fast. I had far too many close calls with death. I saw no clear way out of the destructive pattern I was trapped in, and deep down I knew it would never lead me to the life I truly wanted. To the contrary, I was convinced it was going to kill me.
Then one day, a kind and caring person named Sharon shared the love of Jesus with me. She helped me pray and ask Jesus to forgive me of my sins and to be my Lord and Savior. I prayed that prayer and meant every word—but I had no idea what was about to begin.
When I woke up the next morning, I felt like a different person. Though I knew nothing about the Holy Spirit at the time, I later understood that He came to live within me the moment I prayed that prayer. Something had changed on the inside. All I wanted was to understand more. Sharon suggested I visit a Bible-teaching church where my many questions could be answered.
Just a few days later—on a Wednesday night—a group of guys came over to my house to play cards, smoke pot, and drink beer. It was a regular routine for us. When they arrived, I told them to come in, make themselves at home, and have fun—but that I was leaving.
“Hey guys, I’ll see you later. I’m going somewhere,” I said.
They stared at me in confusion.
“I’m going to check out a church someone told me about. They have a Wednesday night service.”
They were sure I was joking—but I wasn’t. I walked out the door and headed to that church. I wanted to know more about God.
The experience was unlike anything I had ever known. In 1978, I heard my first sermon preached from a pulpit. It was about Jesus, His Word—the Bible—and how it could change a person’s life. Until that night, I had never read the Bible. I still didn’t fully understand what had happened when I prayed with Sharon. She told me my sins were forgiven and that I would go to Heaven and be with Jesus when I died—but honestly, I felt undeserving. It was hard to believe.
Then the pastor began teaching from Scripture. The only way I can describe it is this: it felt like I had been wandering in a desert, parched and dying of thirst, when suddenly someone handed me an ice-cold drink of water. Life began to make sense through God’s eyes.
He read: John 7:37–38 (TLB): “Jesus shouted to the crowds, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water shall flow from the inmost being of anyone who believes in Me.’”
That was exactly what was happening to me. Every Scripture was like a drink of water, quenching the thirst of ten thousand unanswered questions. The jigsaw puzzle of my life began coming together—one piece at a time. With every verse came another sip of living water, bringing understanding, joy, and peace.
If you are a believer, then you have the Holy Spirit living within you. He is there to help you receive that drink of living water—but you must give place to the Word of God.
Many people don’t read the Bible or prioritize it. They treat “read your Bible” like an obligation—and our flesh always resists obligations. But that’s not what God intended. The Bible is a drink of living water. It reveals who God is, His will for your life, His great plan for mankind, the depth of His love for you, and His desire to be personally involved in helping you live.
It’s not an obligation. It’s refreshment. It brings wisdom, peace, strength, and life to your soul. Ask God to speak to you through His Word—and He will.
Isaiah 55:1–3 (NIV): “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, that you may live."
