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INfocus
by Beth Lakey
Key-Way-Tin Bible Institute Student
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My parents became Christians when I was five, so for the most part I
can say that I was brought up in a Christian home. That same year my
brother said that he was going to ask Jesus to come into his heart. He
was younger than me, so I thought I'd better do it too! But there was
nothing real about it for me personally.
One night, when I was eight, my mom was giving us devotions and the
idea of hell came up. Because my faith was not real to me, I thought, "Well, I better say the words and ask Jesus into my heart again."
Yet I had no peace while growing up -- there was always something
missing. There were three areas that didn't make sense to me. For one
thing, I could not understand the Bible. I can remember putting my head
in my pillow and screaming because it was so frustrating for me.
Another thing was prayer. It was like I was in a box and my prayers
were bouncing around inside and not going anywhere. A third thing was
that I found myself not wanting to hear people talking about God. It
didn't have to be preaching -- even the subject of God would make me
want to leave the room.
This continued through my life. I got married at a young age -- my
husband, Greg, had already graduated from KBI. Four years ago we decided
to work at a Bible camp in BC. We worked there three summers, and the
Lord used that to show me where I really was spiritually. Kids would
come up to me and say, "I asked Jesus into my heart." I was excited
for them, but at the same time wondering what was missing in my life. I
hoped that the reality of God would be true in their lives, even if it
wasn't in mine.
When Greg and I decided to do camp work full-time, we found out that
I was required to have one year of Bible school. We decided to come to
KBI where my parents (Jack & Darlene Coy) are on staff. The first
semester was a struggle for all of us. I could easily pass the tests,
but it seemed it was all in my head -- there was nothing real about it.
Then in January I took a class in teaching children. I had already
taught Sunday school for eight years, so I thought it would be easy.
Soon we were given an assignment to teach a Bible story. I was to tell
about Cain and Abel, and bring out the true message behind the story.
It was amazing how God used that story in my own life! As I was
telling it, I began to realize that I was a lot like Cain. I wanted to
come to God on my own terms, just for the sake of making everyone happy,
and to fit in as a Christian. About the same time, a staff member shared
how, after many years, he realized that his Christian life had just been
an act, and there hadn't been total repentance. It was like a light
came on for me! I hadn't been willing to give up everything for God.
That's when I decided to give my life completely to Christ.
I praise God for leading us here. Ours plans for camp work have
changed, and we'll be staying in Lac La Biche instead. But I know it
was God's plan for us to come here to Bible school just so I could
find Him!
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Key-Way-Tin students
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