And he just laid it all out for the preacher to hear. From the devil worship to the drugs he told his story to a pastor who refused to offer any condemnation. After he was finished spilling his guts and crying out for help, the pastor invited him to church that evening.
And he went.
I don’t have to tell you that Darrin made it back from New Hampshire alive. Otherwise, we would not have met this summer by a poolside in North Carolina. But I neglected to tell you that Darrin was soaking wet throughout our conversation because my friend Mike had just dunked him in the pool.
Just before Mike baptized Darrin he read a little statement from our born-again-again friend. The statement said that he never really thought during those lowest points of his life that God could have any love for - much less any use for - someone like him. But I think we all know how he is being used today.
It wasn’t really that long ago that Darrin’s neck and wrists and fingers with covered with satanic jewelry. But today a cross hangs around his neck as he goes walking through the world with a glowing smile upon his face.
I can’t help but wonder how many times conservative Christians like me see a man covered in tattoos wearing a cross and think to ourselves “why is he wearing that cross?” We do ourselves a great disservice when we fail to see God in the eyes of those who do not look or act or dress like we do.
I was glad I got up to go introduce myself so I could hear more from Darrin about his walk with God. Like countless others now hearing his wonderful story, I’m really happy that Darrin got up, too.