Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new
creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Cor. 5:17
Who do you think is the most unlikely person to become a Christian? The atheist you work with who constantly argues that the Bible is full of errors? The lesbian who has the rainbow flag proudly displayed on her car bumper? Or what about the guy on the street corner selling drugs, or your cousin who’s been in and out of rehab more times than you can count? It’s human nature to judge a book by it’s cover. We read the stories in the Bible about God’s power to save, but do we really believe it?
You’d have to put Carl Sartor at the top of the “most likely to never go to church” list. I read about his story on the Christian Headlines news website. Carl was not just your garden variety atheist, he was a Satanist (Which is an interesting contradiction; how would you explain Satan’s existence without God?). One of his favorite t-shirts to sport had in bold letters “Saved by Satan.” In his Facebook post Carl wrote of himself, “I've never been a spiritual person. I believed when you die, you was dead. That was it. I've been running from God since I was about five. I would argue you tooth and nail that He did not exist. I was living in a vicious cycle of drugs and alcohol. I had a severe anger problem. I blamed everyone and everything. I also blamed God.”
Carl’s life continued to spiral out of control, when he crossed paths with the pastor of Cross Church in Parkersburg, WV, Rich Walters. The pastor invited Carl to church, but he quickly threw cold water on that idea. “It will be a cold day in hell before you ever see me in church,” he assured the preacher.
After a failed suicide attempt, Carl suddenly found himself open to Christ. Then the unthinkable happened. Carl went to church. According to Pastor Walters, Carl was so overcome during the time of worship music that he was ready to be baptized before the sermon even began! That’s right. Fifteen minutes into the service and Carl was running for the altar begging Jesus to save him. He asked to be baptized that very moment.
“I feel completely whole. I feel at peace with myself. There is no longer a void,” Carl wrote. “Everything has changed about me. I'm spiritually alive now. For the first time in life, I had a spiritual experience. God is real, and I will continue to walk this path with Him beside me. By his grace, I'm by far the best version of me I have ever been. My God is an awesome God, and I pray that everyone gets to experience his love as I have.”[1]
Wow, what a testimony! What
a reminder - don’t think someone is “too far gone” that God can’t reach them. Don’t
think your simple invitation or witness won’t make a difference. Don’t forget
that the Gospel still saves and there is power in Jesus’ name. Keep praying for
that prodigal. Keep sowing that Gospel seed. Keep loving people who are from God.
-DM
[1] Milton
Quintanilla, “I Feel Completely Whole': Ex-Satanist Shares How God Changed His
Life,” Christian Headlines, 27 January 2022, <https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/milton-quintanilla/i-feel-completely-whole-ex-satanist-shares-how-god-changed-his-life.html>
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