An Invitation to Sunday School

By: Melanie Ewers

When I was about four years old, one of my neighborhood friends invited me to go with her to Sunday school at the Apostolic Faith Church. Because of her invitation, I attended Sunday school for ten years.

During those ten years, I had faithful Sunday school bus drivers and teachers who taught me the Word of God. They taught me the Bible stories, how much God loves me, and that I could be saved, know Jesus, and make Heaven my home. However, what stands out most to me is that not only did they teach these things to me, they lived it! I watched them walk with the Lord, and even as a young child I knew that what they told me was the truth: it was obvious.

In my teen years, I developed a rebellious streak and stopped attending Sunday school. Though I wasn’t deep in sin, I was far enough away from God to know that I was not where I should be—I did not have peace. At night when I went to bed, I felt so afraid that the Lord was going to return and that I would be left behind. I often prayed and asked God to forgive me for the things that happened that day, just to get me through the night. My prayer helped me feel better enough just to get to sleep, but in the morning I was back to doing the same things I did the day before. I had not truly changed because I never made a real commitment to God.

On Easter Sunday, during my first year of high school, I decided to go to church. The Sunday school lesson was about Jesus’ crucifixion, and our class listened to a tape depicting the story of the two thieves on the crosses beside Jesus. I knew that I was like those two thieves—I could either accept Jesus and go to Heaven, or reject Him and go to Hell. The Lord met me there right at that moment, and reminded me that He died so that I could be saved. How could I resist Him? It was overwhelming.

That evening, I attended the church service and went to pray at the altar. I asked Jesus to forgive me and to make a change in my life. He did not disappoint me, and I had victory! That night, as I got into my bed, I was a little worried that I would wake up the next morning and things would again be back to the way they were before. However, when I woke up the next morning, God’s victory was still in my heart, and I knew my life was truly different.

Since then, the Lord has been with me every day. My salvation is not simply an experience that I look back on fondly; it is still alive in my heart today. Jesus has been with me through every situation that I have gone through. I am so thankful for all those people who were faithful to show me God’s love, and it is my heart’s desire to be as faithful as they were so that I, too, can lead others to know Jesus.

Melanie Ewers is a member of the Apostolic Faith Church in Portland, Oregon.