"And they brought unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him. And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is "Be opened." And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. And he charged them that they should tell no man; but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; and were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well; he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak." [Mark 7:32-37]

This passage of scripture I have read time and time again, thanking God for sending His Son Jesus Christ to pay my debt. This passage of scripture became so real to me about 30 years ago. I was seventeen years old. Like any other teenager I grew up a little rebellious. However it was more so, because I was a very angry young man. I was not dumb like the scripture states, but I had a severe speech impediment. Not once could I open my mouth without stuttering. Teenage years always brings confusion, but my stuttering combined it with anger. Even if there was God: which I couldn't understand how there was, He had a poor sense of humor. Church to me was a social club; God was something mankind made up because they were afraid of death. I wasn't too much afraid of anything for a lack of brains.

In the summer of 1970 after a series of events, I found myself attending a Gospel Music conservatory in a small town in Texas. I hadn't plan on learning gospel music, but there was a man there teaching guitar who could really play jazz well. That is what I wanted to learn! One night a gospel quartet gave a concert at the school. Right before the group sang their last song one of the men said one verse from the Bible, then they began to sing. That verse was, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son for us." There were 400 + young people in the audience that night. One by one they started to go to the stage. I can remember at first saying to myself, "what is going on?" As the time passed I began to cry. That verse kept repeating itself in my mind. I continued to cry. I knew that my heart was changing, the pain, hurt, and anger was leaving me. There wasn't thunder, lightning, and the earth didn't shake, but I was at peace with God and myself. There with hundreds of others who gave life to Jesus Christ that night.

That night my heart changed, but my stuttering was still the same; those times of hearing a phone ringing, and I wouldn't answer it. Times that I would walk around a store for hours looking for something not wanting to ask a clerk where it was. Times that I wanted to ask a girl out on a date, but was afraid she'd laugh when I open my mouth. As I started to read God's word, and allow Him to explain it to me it all became clear. At the end of Matthew Jesus gave the disciples the "Great Commission." "Go into all the world and preach the gospel." Well I knew then I couldn't preach, a fifteen-minute sermon would last three hours. I could sing though and people seem to enjoy my voice. So that's what I did. The world to me wasn't overseas, but the world around me.
For the "Rest of the Story " follow the cross............