Fire Insurance

Growing up I remember my mom always taking me and my siblings to church. My stepfather never went, but it was always important to my mother that we go. She grew up in a very strict Christian family and my grandfather was a Deacon. My grandmother sang in church and from what I gathered their family was very involved in church when she was growing up.

My earliest memories of attending church though were with my neighbor. I remember my mother getting me, my sister and brother dressed and sending us out the door with our neighbors. I remember the church was small and hot. I also remember always taking a nap every Sunday. I think I must have been around 4 at the time.

A few years later, my mother started taking us to our step-grandfather's church. He was a minister and preached at a small "mission". I am not sure why it was called "mission", but it was possibly because it was not a church building but the upstairs of an old grocery store that he rented. For some reason that I don't know or can't remember, we only had church at 3:00 pm on Sunday when he was at this location. My step-father attended this church only once upon the prodding of my grandmother. It was one Easter morning and he never went back again.

We continued to go church. Eventually my step-grandfather moved to another building which was actually a church. There he had normal church services and we attended pretty regularly. However, for some reason we started attending yet another church. This was my "home" church and the one that I remember most.

I have very fond memories of Bethel Baptist. The church always had a wonderful VBS. In Sunday School we had Bible Drills, which I loved! I loved trying to be the first to find a particular scripture and read it. Of course, there were several church camps I attended too. Also, I had a very special Sunday School teacher who dedicated her time and love to teach the same group of girls for years.

One of my most vivid memories is of a play production, THE GATES OF HELL. I was so excited to see this play because there was so much hype about it. However, I had no idea what I was in store for!

I was around 10 years old at the time. My brother and sister who were both older than me, had professed their salvation and been baptized. I was so concerned because I had not. My mother kept telling me to not worry, because when the time came, I would know that the Lord was calling me to salvation.

Her consolitations and assurances didn't help much. I was always the child who wanted to please. I liked to be the first at anything and the best. Most of all, I loved positive affirmation and I strived to get it any way that I could!

The play left a huge impression. Again, I was only 10 and I am sure the acting and scenes were very amautuer, but to me they were so real! There was a curtain pulled across the front of the church . People that I knew, elders in the church, were going down to their final judgment. I don't really remember anyone going forward and going to heaven. They probably didn't given the name of the title. However, the actors did such a good job in portraying hell! My most vivid memory is when one lady, who used to scare me anyway, let out a blood curdling scream and begged and begged to not be taken into hell.

It was then that I knew that I needed to do something! In my mind, I needed fire insurance! God's call or not, there was no way that I was going to go to hell. I made a decision that day and went forward like my my brother and sister and so many of my friends had done.

That day, I received fire insurance. I had nightmares for weeks about hell. I still shudder today thinking about the play and and way that hell was portrayed. I know in my heart that no play can portray what hell is really like it. I believe that hell is much worse than our minds can matter. I believe that it is a real place. I believe this, because I believe the Bible!

I was sure glad that I had gone forward that day at church. However, this "decision" at 10 years old that I made "on my own" haunted me for years. I had fire insurance, as the years passed, I learned that this was not enough.