Out of the Depths

We are recipients of the love of Almighty God - the Creator of the universe, Maker of heaven and
earth, has chosen to reveal His truth and love to us. We read in 2nd Corinthians 5:
14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died;
15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.

The Bible teaches that all - every human being - have fallen short of God's grace.  None of us can attain God's grace in and of ourselves.  But, because of what Jesus did, as an ultimate act of sacrificial love on the cross, we can come into a saving knowledge of the Most High God.  He draws us near to Himself, places His Spirit in our hearts, and brings about incredible life transformation, so that we might display His nature and His glory.

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In the fifth chapter of Romans, we can read about the overwhelming love of God, a love that reached out to you and me while we were apart from Him and drew us to Himself.  Here is a passage from
that chapter:
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

His life was out of control, according to a piece on the God Reports website. He had been "charged with 18 felonies and three misdemeanors for writing fake prescriptions and turning them in to pharmacies. He faced a maximum of 45 years in prison."  He had told CBN that when he was younger, when his father told him he could go live with his mom, his "world was shattered."

He tried to bring some control into his life through weightlifting and football.  He walked on to the football team at Middle Tennessee State, but he discovered drugs - like painkillers, to which he became addicted, yielding those charges I mentioned.  He only had to spend a month in jail, but when he was out, he became addicted to cocaine.

He overdosed three times, and ultimately his kidneys were shutting down and he had Hepatitis C.

As he waited on a kidney transplant and dialysis was imminent, as the story reports, David Valcich "cried out to God." He said, "I don’t even know if You’re real, but if You are, I want to know You. Please help me.”

The article continues:

The doctors came in the next day with shocking, yet great news. They didn’t know how, but he had a complete turnaround and was being discharged later that day.

That began a journey that led to his salvation.  God Reports relates:

On Christmas morning at 3:00 am, David couldn’t sleep and went out to his living room to watch television. The Gospel of John was playing and he knew, again, that “God was doing something in him and that Jesus had died for me.”

“I just knew that not only did God heal my kidneys in that hospital bed, but that Jesus Christ was real and was born into this world,” he says. “I didn’t have this full grasp of the gospel, but I understood in that moment on that morning that Jesus died for me. It was just mind-blowing.”

He asked God for forgiveness and was set free.

David Valcich has been doing ministry at the University of Virginia, including working as a representative with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.  He is part of the ministry of Hope Builders.  He experienced the depths of a life without Christ, and now his life is marked by his relationship with Christ and devotion to be used by Him.

There are some wonderful principles we can remember from David's story.  First of all, and I think it's something we can all be reminded of: No one can stray too far from God's grasp.  That includes the person who has rejected Christ and may (temporarily) show no interest in Him.  That also includes the person who knows the Lord, but who has strayed, who has wandered in sin and deception - God, like the father of the prodigal in Luke 15, stands ready to restore fellowship with a person who is willing to repent and come to Him.  Always be hopeful as you pray that God is working in a person's life.

We can know that the Holy Spirit is at work to bring people to seek Christ and to be saved by Christ.  His powerful, overwhelming love is reaching; and while He will not override a person's will, His love and His truth are overpowering.

Finally, we can develop a sense of anticipation that God will work in our lives and in the lives of others, for His glory.  We can pray for breakthrough in the life of another, and reach out to the Lord to provide spiritual breakthrough in each of our lives.  We can seek Him and trust Him for spiritual growth and develop a sense of expectancy for what He desires to do.