Lehigh Valley Baptist Church

LVBC Service Times

Lehigh Valley Baptist Church
4702 Colebrook Ave.
Emmaus, PA 18049
(610)965-4700
www.lvbaptist.org

My ignorance had me bound for hell
My name is Orlando Garcia, and this is my story

I was not brought up in a Christian home, so Bible doctrine and truths were not part of my childhood. My parents neither went to church, nor gave any indication they prayed. Of course, they believed in God, for everybody, in their own way, believes in God. Believing in God will not get you to Heaven, for the book of James, chapter 2, chapter 19 tells us, “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe and tremble.” Even the devils believe in God, but we all know what their final destination will be.

My first contact with religion was when I was approximately eight years old, after a Lutheran pastor, the brother of a next-door neighbor, asked my mother to send us to Vacation Bible School one summer. My brother and I went and enjoyed it. My parents decided to attend the Lutheran church for a while, but there was no real change in their lives. They continued living their lives as before. The Bible tells us in Second Corinthians, chapter 5, verse 17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Since there was no tugging of conscience because of sin in their lives, they soon quit going to church, and so did I.

In spite of a lack of a religious upbringing, I can say that my parents instilled in me a desire to do right, otherwise, I would receive the “board of knowledge” on my “seat of understanding.” We may like to think that we are good, and do the right thing, however, Romans, chapter 3, verse 12, says, “There is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Although I was lost and did not know God, nor did I have a relationship with Him, no peer pressure was felt to belong to any group or crowd. My parents always made me feel welcome at home, so I did not have to look for a sense of belonging elsewhere. During my high school years, although I participated in sports, I was mostly dedicated to my studies because I wanted to go to college. Dancing, drinking, smoking and parties were not an attraction to me, therefore, I did not gravitate to any of them during my high school years.

After I graduated from high school in Newark, NJ, I was accepted at a university in the state of Ohio. Days before I had to depart my home and go to school, I was pondering the thought of what would happen to me if I should die in a plane crash. I begged God to allow me to arrive safely and, in turn, I would look for a church to attend. The plane arrived safely. I searched for a church I could go to, but found only an Episcopalian church within walking distance from my dorm. This church just did not hold any attraction for me, so rather than look for another church, the devil told me I had fulfilled my promise to God. Thus, I could continue to live my life the best way I knew how. I had not been inside a church since my Vacation Bible School days, when I was eight years old. By listening to the devil, I had quenched the Spirit of God which was tugging at my heart.

In the meantime, my brother had visited a Church of Christ and had asked me to do the same. I visited one, but did not feel the Spirit of God in the assembly. After my third visit, the director told me that I had to preach a message the following Sunday. That struck me as rather strange. Here I was a visitor, only having visited the church on three occasions, and now I was to bring a message the following Sunday. What was I to talk about? I did not have the Spirit of God within me. Romans, chapter 8, verse 9, says, “...Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Needless to say, I never again returned to that church.

An emptiness was now gripping my life and soul. This emptiness I now tried to fill with social activities, friends and alcohol. Not being much of a partygoer, I was never at ease in this type of environment. It did not occur to me that what I needed was a relationship with God. One college experience that never left me was when I met my future wife. She was different somehow. She had religion in her life. After getting to know her better, she dropped a bomb on me by stating that our relationship could not go on unless I was “born-again.” (Note: salvation, saved and born again are Biblical terms referring to the forgiveness of sins by God and the rescue of a person from the power and penalty of that sin. This is God’s requirement for everlasting life.) I had no clue what the term meant. The Bible says in John, chapter 3, verse 3, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”  Having an interest in her, I decided to visit her church. I went to church with an open mind and heart, but did not get anything out of the services. I continued to go to see if my understanding would broaden, but it was to no avail. Not being one to put on an act, I decided to break off the relationship and go my way.

Upon my graduating from college, I obtained my commission in the U.S. Air Force and was sent to a radar site in northern Michigan. Having been a “city boy” all my life, and now stationed in a rural area of only 400 people, mostly elderly and married, I was climbing the walls for lack of anything to do. This void in my life was temporarily filled by working 18 hours a day, seven days a week. One day, a Catholic priest approached me and invited me to visit the church. I decided to go. It just happened that that Sunday was Palm Sunday. Not knowing what to expect, I entered the church, took a seat and waited for church to begin. When the priest came in, he said something, to which the church replied; he then said something else, and the congregation responded. This went on for a period of time. No sermon was preached. All I heard was the repetition of words from a book. Upon the conclusion of mass, I found myself walking out with a palm in my hand, having no clue what to do with it. I remember leaving the church frustrated and deceived. If this was what church was all about, I was not coming back.

One day after a meeting at work, a sergeant offered me a ride in his vehicle. He had a bumper sticker on his dash which read, Ride at your own risk, I am leaving with the rapture. Not being a Bible student, I did not understand what that meant, so I asked him. He told I could find out about it by looking in the Bible in First Thessalonians, chapter 4, verses 16-17. Opening the Bible, he showed it to me. This was the first time I had ever heard of the term rapture and I found it interesting. The sergeant asked me if I would be interested in a Bible study, to which I replied in the affirmative. In the process of the Bible study, a revival service was taking place in the local Baptist church. I was invited and went.

So much truth was presented to me during that week. I finally understood that I was a sinner; and that my good works would not be able to get me to Heaven; and that Jesus Christ paid for me to go to Heaven. I only needed to respond by repenting of my sin and trusting in Christ. During the Wednesday night service, with tears running down my face, I walked the aisle during the invitation and gave my life to Jesus. An immediate peace flooded my soul. I had never in my life felt like this before.

The very next day at work, I talked to everybody about Jesus Christ. Romans, chapter 1, verse 16 says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth…” Jesus Christ has changed my life. No, I am not perfect nor do I claim to be. Christ has even called me to the ministry. You, too, can experience the salvation power of Jesus Christ. Isaiah, chapter 50, verse 2 tells us, “Is my hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? or have I no power to deliver?” It says also, in Hebrews, chapter 13, verse 8, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever.”