If I were a betting man, I’d bet you get a million of these a year. But I owe your congregation thanks, and I’m probably going to share more than you’d like.<\/p>\n
I’ve been a Christian since I was twelve. Raised in the church. I’m nearing 40 now.<\/p>\n
Several years ago, I was a drunk. A fool. I’d fallen. A father of two. A husband, but a poor one. Arrogant (a trait I still combat with the Lord’s help).<\/p>\n
I got drunk one night and was tempted, and I cheated on my wife. I flailed about for a year, devoured by guilt, my wife was wonderful, I had no reason or excuse to do what I did. But it had been done. Another year passed. I finally confessed.<\/p>\n
She was devastated. It was hell on earth. I wanted her to hate me. I felt like it was deserved. I was so very, very low. I went to our minister. I told him what I had done. He met with us and arranged counseling. My wife wasn’t leaving (the biggest shock to me at the time). With her permission and with her at my side, I confessed to my parents so they could help her hold me accountable. It hurt my parents deeply. But they handled it with grace, which shamed me so much more.<\/p>\n
I began seeing hope. Two years of guilt had robbed me of that hope. I started doing what a man with a sliver of hope does; I began reaching out for resources to cling to that hope.<\/p>\n
During this time, I found you. Don’t get me wrong, our minister and our elders are the warriors I credit most with helping us salvage our marriage. But you played a huge role. Your site sparked my curiosity. It fed me. Seeing so many have a lot of the same questions as me, and knowing that I was not the only one who struggled with a particular topic, but that there were men who had already been answering those questions from Scripture for years. It was such a blessing, and you’ll never know how much it helped me to get back onto the path.<\/p>\n
This year we celebrated our anniversary (over 15 years). Our faith and our marriage have been rock solid. I’ve had opportunities I never thought I’d have before. I’ve taught Bible classes; I’ve gotten opportunity after opportunity to serve the Lord. And you and the La Vista congregation played a role in that.<\/p>\n
I’ve started to write a thank you several times over the years. I’m sorry it’s come so late. You’ve been on my mind and in my prayers lately. I’ve thanked our Master for the influence you’ve had on our lives.<\/p>\n
I pray your work continues to be blessed, that you meet soft-hearted folks, and that maybe someday we can come visit and I can thank you in person.<\/p>\n
Have a wonderful rest of the week, brother.<\/p>\n\t
Letters like yours easily make my day, my week, and my month. Thank you for letting us know that the work here is benefiting people.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
If I were a betting man, I’d bet you get a million of these a year. But I owe your congregation thanks, and I’m probably going to share more than you’d like. I’ve been a Christian since I was twelve. Raised in the church. I’m nearing 40 now. Several years ago, I was a drunk.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[127,66],"class_list":["post-97435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-about-this-site","tag-adultery"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":31874,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-support-conscientious-objection\/","url_meta":{"origin":97435,"position":0},"title":"Do you support conscientious objection?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 19, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Do you or your church support selective conscientious objection and conscientious objection? Answer: Registering for the draft is a government law that does not violate any teaching of God. \"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1296,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-are-boy-girl-relationships-not-advisable-at-a-young-age\/","url_meta":{"origin":97435,"position":1},"title":"Why are boy-girl relationships not advisable at a young age?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 3, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Why are boy-girl relationships not advisable at a young age Answer: Youth is a time of impatient desires. They want the things available to adults, but adulthood seems so far away. The typical teenage boy enters puberty around the age of 11. The typical teenage girl enters puberty around\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":37138,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/we-lost-the-surprise-somewhere\/","url_meta":{"origin":97435,"position":2},"title":"We Lost the Surprise Somewhere","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 10, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I remember watching Mayberry RFD and related shows most of my childhood. Poor ignorant Gomer Pyle who worked as an auto mechanic was a notable character. But I can still recall my shock when I found out that Jim Nabors, who played Gomer, could sing --\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Gomer.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":32196,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-a-sin-to-take-out-insurance\/","url_meta":{"origin":97435,"position":3},"title":"Is it a sin to take out insurance?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it a sin to take out medical insurance or legal insurance? Are we rather expected to put our faith in the Lord to take care of those things? Answer: We were taught to pray, \"Give us this day our daily bread\" (Matthew 6:11), but God still commands us\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":61889,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-book-of-my-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":97435,"position":4},"title":"The Book of My Life","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Job 19:23-27 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Each week the paper publishes its list of top selling books \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Sometimes the books are biographies, fictional stories, or fiction placed in historical settings. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They hope that others will also purchase the books, if for no other reason than curiosity. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Many author\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6988,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-there-passages-that-refer-to-the-lords-supper\/","url_meta":{"origin":97435,"position":5},"title":"Are there passages that refer to THE Lord’s Supper?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 2, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: We have been studying the Lord's supper issues and one of our main concerns is about a second offering in which only a few partake, for the reasons you listed in your article (not doing it together). 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