Allen’s Story

I was born again when I was around eight years of age.  I asked Jesus to save me, out of shear desperation, alone in bed one night.  I had known for some time that I was a sinner under the righteous judgment of God but was painfully shy and would not walk down the aisle in the Christian Church we attended.  My prayer was short, “Jesus, I don’t want to go to hell.”  I did not know or share what happened at the time but was comforted and no longer under conviction.  I later realized that I had expressed  faith in Jesus Christ (Heb 11:6)

My family left that church and later moved.  We were invited and became members of an Independent Baptist Church when I was around twelve years old.  I began to grow in Christ under the teaching of the Word and the influence of a few godly men who introduced me to teaching by Watchman Nee, John MacArthur, and others.

After high school I attended a Bible college to major in Missions.  (The institutional church really messes up our kids – teaching them that the ultimate commitment to our Lord is to be a professional clergyman.)  I knew after a year in college that missions or pastoring was not something learned in college.  I believed even then that the Biblical model was plural leadership by men who where grown not graduated.  I was disenchanted with the attitudes of the students and the system as a whole (I was looking at men rather than God).  I came back to my home town determined to do things God’s way or not at all, quickly became discouraged (looking at men again) and quit attending church.

I married (by God’s grace to a Christian who is now growing with me) and had three children.  I was miserable, sure of my relationship to God and of His faithfulness but, for fifteen years, in the desert herding sheep.

Then, the Lord graciously drew me back to Himself. I placed myself under the authority of the church where I had been a member and told the Lord that any ministry he had for me would be under the auspices of the church based on His Word, though I did not totally agree with the Independent Baptist practices regarding church life.

A few years later, during a missions conference, I was listening to a brother, a missionary, give his report.  It meant a lot to him that the Pastor and Deacons had prayed over him and laid their hands on him, sending him out to start Independent Baptist Churches.  As I sat listening, the Lord said, “This church will never be able to do that for you.”   My beliefs about church leadership and practices were different enough that I could not ask my own church to send me out in that way.  The Lord released me from my commitment to remain under the authority of my church as I listened to the speaker that day.

The next question was, “Now what?”  I had been teaching through the book of Ephesians in the mature adult Sunday school class.  When I came to Ephesians Chapter Four, I began to understand the necessity of authentic mutual ministry in the body.   Worldly Christians, broken families, unwed parents, isolated and hurting people who had found little help in our church had weighed heavily on me.  I began to understand why the church was not working as it should.
Since then we have done house church and later became members of a wonderful fellowship. Its great to be free to serve our Wonderful Savior and Lord Jesus Christ as He leads.
–Allen Blake