NJR DIGITAL MARCH 2023 MAGAZINE

Editors Letter Continued
I recently read a story Pastor Jeff Gannon
shared:
One day, the phone rang in my office. A
young woman said, “I have just one
question: may I come to your church?”
Jeff was stunned. “Of course you can! Why
would you feel like you need to ask?”
“Let me tell you my story before you
answer.”
When she was a junior in high school, she
got pregnant by a young man who had no
interest in her or the baby. She kept the
baby and decided to get her life back on
track, so she started attending the church
she was raised in. After a few months, she
talked with her pastor.
1 John 3:1 "See what great love the
Father has lavished on us, that we should
be called children of God!" And that is
what we are!
The Father lavishes His great love on us!
He calls us His children—and it’s true!
That’s what we are! You are God’s beloved
child. Think about it: God calls you His
child. Do you love your children? Crazy
love! You’d do anything for your kids;
you’d die for your kids. God did that for
you. He loves you like a parent loves his
or her children. He is absolutely
committed to your well being, to doing
what is best for you.
DO YOU BELIEVE THAT?
She thought that other girls might learn
from her mistakes, and offered to talk
with middle school girls about the
pressures of dating and sex.
The pastor told her, “I would never allow
that. I am afraid that YOUR TYPE of
person might rub off on them.” She was
hurt, but still kept coming.
After her baby was born, she called the
pastor to schedule a baptism service for
her baby.
The pastor said, “That is not going to
happen in my church. I would never
baptize an illegitimate baby.”
“Now that you know my story,” Pastor Jeff,
“can I still come to your church?”
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NJR DIGITAL MAGAZINE
The young lady whose pastor rejected her
offer of help, and refused to baptize her
baby? She ended up in another church
where she learned that God loved her.
Her baby was baptized. She was asked to
work with young people there. She went
on to finish her education and eventually
went into mission work. Today she and
her daughter live and work as
missionaries in Africa where they tell
people that there is a God who loves
everyone always.
God is love. This is the God the world
needs to know!