Living the Journey

Since the Journey to the Heart, the Lord has taken me on a roller coaster through the desert. Although I confessed many things, and wanted to seek the Lord, my heart still felt dark and dry at times.

Before I went on the Journey I was addicted to worldly music. Whenever I would write or listen to a sensual song, thoughts and feelings would arise that were not honoring to God.

I was in the middle of recording one of my “not so wrong” songs when I received a call from Mr. Gothard’s office – they wanted me to help on an upcoming Journey! Even though my parents and others encouraged me to go, I knew I shouldn’t because of this unresolved issue. Due to procrastination I was not able to go on the Journey, but still had the chance to meet with Mr. Gothard. After discussing the situation, he challenged me to come to Headquarters and be cleansed by listening to the Word all day while serving on the lawn crew. With my parents approval, I started the month long trek.

It has been one of the best experiences of my life! Through various circumstances, testimonies and daily immersion in the Word, I came to the point of making a vow. After talking it over with my father, Mr. Gothard, and several others I stepped out on God and made the vow. “I will not willfully listen, perform or rehearse in my mind music that is worldly, sensual or not glorifying to God.”

By God’s grace this vow will glorify and honor Him. Another path leads from here, and where it leads I know not. But this one thing I do know – the Lord has lifted another burden from my shoulders and I will continue this journey with joy.

~ Tim
June 2008 Guys’ Journey

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When I came to go on the Journey to the Heart I was thinking I would come, get it over with, go home, give a testimony and act the same. But God had different plans. The first few days my plan went great, but after that God started working on me. He showed me areas of sin and moral failure in my life. So I called my Dad and told him about these areas and asked him to forgive me for times I had lied and been disrespectful to him. I asked God to forgive me and I felt like a load had fallen off and the Lord began to speak to me from His Word. It was great.

~ Lance
March 2008 Guys’ Journey

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So it all began when I moved to a different neighborhood that my life started to go down hill. First, I was made fun of and picked on. I decided to change so that I could “fit-in”. I began hanging out with the wrong friends, using drugs and such.

I found out that I had to go to Journey to the Heart and I got all excited about coming…but it was all for the wrong reasons. I arrived at the headquarters and I met this kid named Charles. I soon found out that we had almost the exact same interests. We both LOVED rock music, and we enjoyed playing it on our guitars. We also had similar struggles in different friendships. We decided that we would go and ignore God and everything and everyone and just play our guitars and listen to music. But God didn’t have that in mind for us. Later that night I had an interview with Mr. Gothard and I told him that I listened to rock music. He sat and thought for a moment and then asked me to pray and dedicate my music to God. I did but really deep down inside, I didn’t mean it.

On the way to Northwoods our leader told us to get out our Bibles and have a quiet time with the Lord. I was trying to think of something to read when I looked in the front of the Bible that my leader had given me and saw a list of references that you could go to during times of struggle with your relationship with God. I read Matthew, chapter five, which was convicting, but I tried to ignore it.

The first day in Northwoods we began talking about other religions and Satanism. It scared me so much that I was shaking with fear. I recognized that there is only ONE true God that can save and give you eternal life or destroy and sentence you to eternal damnation. That night I verbally asked Jesus to come into my heart and that I would know that He was real…and He did. The next day I recognized that I needed to call my parents and confess some of the struggles and failures that I had kept hidden. I confessed my moral failures, pornography, my language, and wrong music, which was the hardest thing to do. After I had confessed these hidden failures and different
struggles to my parents, I felt a WHOLE NEW freedom come over me. Later on in the week, we went on a walk around the lake and it was like I was having a conversation with God.

When we got back Charles and I went straight for our guitars but I was pricked in my conscience and recognized the need to play the right kind of music. As I look back on the Journey, I see God’s love for me and His abundant mercy that is so great. He desires our whole heart to be seeking Him, not just part of it.

~ Jesse
March 2008 Guys’ Journey

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