Conversion

I came to it late in life - so many years wasted!  And I was amazed that something so wonderful could have been completely distasteful to me before.  I am, of course, speaking of my conversion to asparagus, which happened in my 50th year.  It actually began some years earlier when my oldest son (then 11 or 12) asked for asparagus to be part of his birthday meal.   I tried in vain to talk him out of it.  "Pete, it's HORRIBLE stuff!  It always made me gag when I was growing up.  Seriously, you'll hate it and you definitely don't want to have it with your birthday meal."   I really thought I was doing him a favor, and would have done a similar kindness if he'd asked for (shudder) lima beans.  However, the laddie insisted and I, having always granted the birthday meal requests, gave in with a sort of "you'll be sorry" kind of sigh.  I bought fresh asparagus, steamed it, buttered and salted it and, just to show my exalted state of maturity, tried it too.  Hmm...not bad.  In fact, it wasn't nearly as disgusting as I remembered.  I assumed it was a fluke and let it go for 8 or so  more years, at which point the lingering memory prompted me to agree to grow it in our back yard.  After tasting the first harvest, the conversion was complete.  Now I await the first appearance of asparagus spears each spring with joyful anticipation and haven't been disappointed yet.  I'm always ready to extol its goodness (try it!  what have you got to lose?).

And so it is with Jesus.  I came to Him late, as well - in my 25th year.   Throughout most of my growing years I found Jesus distasteful.  I didn't even want to say His name.  The concept of sin was unpalatable.  Don't make me eat that stuff!  Then one day, like a fresh breeze blowing, the thought occurred to me "What if it's all true?  What if there is a God who made the world, who made me?  What if Jesus really was who He said He was?"  If you knew the state of my heart, you'd know without a doubt that a breeze of that nature did not originate from within - it was Holy Spirit driven, all the way.  Still, I tarried and fussed over all sorts of objections - things that seem silly in retrospect.   And what's all this about sin?  Really?  Not me - I certainly was a very nice, kind and altogether good sort of person.  I'm not saying I lived in a continual state of happiness and peace, but I just didn't think the charges fit.  I blush to think about that first prayer in which I challenged God: "Okay, if I've sinned, you'll have to show it to me - I just don't see it."

I'm not sure I've ever since had a prayer that was so swiftly and penetratingly answered.

Over the next 24 hours I saw it all, the soul full of deceit, selfishness and pride, packed in a general mud sauce.  Yuck.  That fresh breeze blew up into a massive humbling whirlwind.   But after all my tarrying, there was grace, mercy and forgiveness, and when I said yes to Jesus, an unquenchable joy.  He has never disappointed me and I will forever extol His goodness.

O taste and see that the Lord is good

Psalm 34:8