My Story

~~ Matt's Testimony ~~

I grew up in a little coal camp around Bluefield, West Virginia. My upbringing was typical of those around me. The day would consist of playing in the woods, usually cowboys and indians or Army, complete with stick horses and oak machine guns.

I occasionally attended church, but not very often at all. I suppose I didn't go a dozen times throughout my entire childhood. My Mom would not go because every time she did, my Father (an alcoholic, among many other things) would ridicule her, in how she worshiped God, and he would also always make accusations of her "flirting" with others that went to church, because of his own insecurities, coupled with the fact that he was left to practically raise himself and he didn't really know anything about life... There was no one to teach him either.

God did, however, reach out to me one day, as recluse as I was from the ways of God. This memory would later escape me until a much later time. But there was a day when I was, I don't know for sure, maybe 11 or 12 years old, when I was sitting in the living room by myself. My mother was washing the supper dishes, and my father was in his bedroom reading the daily newspaper after supper.

Billy Graham was on the television preaching as he did quite regularly back then. I can't remember the sermon exactly, but I do remember him talking about the people that would not make it to heaven. By the end of his sermon, I was convinced I was one of those people. I was very worried that there was absolutely no hope for me what-so-ever.

But... At the very end of that sermon, Rev. Graham said, "But if you have been sitting here listening to my voice, and are thinking there is no hope for you, let me assure you, there is a Hope. And His name is Jesus Christ! If you wish to become a born-again believer in Christ and what he has done for you, say this prayer with me please."

Needless to say, I was overjoyed to learn there was hope for me! I did say the prayer with Rev. Graham, and I didn't just bump my gums together seeking fire insurance... I said it with all my might! I gave my "HEART" to God right then and there!

Thank you, Reverend Graham, for reaching me when no one else did/could! From the bottom of my heart, Thank You!

Well. I got up from there, wiped the tears from my eyes, and continued with my childhood. Everyone around me was totally unaware of what had happened to me, because the environment I was in didn't exactly promote or encourage such things... I felt as though it would be considered nothing more than foolishness by my father... But anyway! I grew older. I still did not attend church except for a handful of occasions. I didn't grow in spiritual things nor the knowledge and wisdoms of God.

By age 14, I was beginning to develop an interest in music. It was in my bones. It was a part of me since birth, thanks to God. But at age 14, my father gave me my first lesson on the bass guitar. My father regularly played the night club circuit locally, and in this particular instance, his bass player had just quit (a regular event in this realm).

My first lesson on the bass guitar was, we were playing for "A King For A Day" event, in Brushfork, WV. It was at an armory. There were about 6 or 7 hundred people there. It was sponsored for the mentally handicapped. My father had taken me with him, plugged up my amp and guitar, strapped the bass around my neck and said, "I don't care what you play, just don't quit playing." The first thing that happened was, the bass came loose from the strap, hit the floor and sounded like a civil war cannon going off through the amplifier I was plugged into! That was it... Lesson number one...

posted by Motivated By Grace @ 6/26/2005 08:27:00 AM 2 comments