Who is Meet Lynne

OK . . . I'm going to switch back to first person to write this.

I really love to write. I love to write songs, articles, books, but no matter what I write there is a central topic that I always come back to . . . Jesus Christ.

I was raised in the church. To some that statement alone might seem like enough to make you think I've been brainwashed. But the truth is I've questioned my faith, the faith of my parents and the dogma of the church more often than you might imagine. There were many influences in my life that helped form me into the person that I am today.

My grandmother died when I was just 16. And although Lupus ended her life way too early (she was only 58) and she lived the last 8 of those without my grandfather because of another rare autoimmune disease, her faith never wavered. Even though I was relatively young, I always knew she believed strongly in Jesus Christ. We didn't even talk about it alot. It wasn't that she pushed her beliefs on me. But her life was different than most. The strength that she showed was unbelievable. In fact, it wasn't until I was much older and realized the pain that her deformed fingers signified and understood what all those trips to the hospital meant, that I finally began to understand just how strong she was.

It wasn't long after Grandma died that I found out I was pregnant and not married. In my immediate family "being good" was stressed a lot more than faith, so immediately I got married and then stopped going to church. I really felt like I wasn't good enough and my new husband wasn't really interested.

For three years I went to church just often enough to make my parents happy. But in that third year, I began to worry about my daughter. Even though I didn't feel like I "deserved" to be in church, I thought she did. So, I made a commitment to myself to attend at least three times each month.

Moving eight hours from my family took me back out of church for a while. It was really difficult for me to go a new church all by myself. For those who know me now, it's probably hard to believe that I was ever that backwards or shy, but it's true. I just couldn't bring myself to walk into that place alone. So, finally Steve went with me a few Sundays and I began to attend the base Chapel. There I met a group of ladies from different denominations that helped me to begin to peek into what faith really was. I began to see that Jesus Christ wanted a relationship with me. Christianity became a lifestyle instead of a list of rules. Faith became my freedom instead of a box that I had to live in.

I think I'd heard all the truths about Christ earlier in my life, but for some reason all that really sunk in were the "do's and don'ts". I know I had a few Sunday School teachers and at least one pastor who tried to help me see the truth about Christ. Yet, like so many who attend church or claim to be a Christian, I didn't understand all that Jesus really came to be.

Now, I know that Jesus didn't come to make rules. I have standards in my life, but they aren't restrictions. I live by these standards because I'm grateful to Christ for His gift of life for me. Plus the standards that He's set for me actually make my life better!

Now I know that Jesus wants a relationship with me. He wants to be my friend, not a tyranical ruler. Christ wants to talk with me and help me in every aspect of my life. He protects me and stands up for me. And as a friend, I try to do the same for Him.

Now I understand the magnitude of His sacrifice on the cross. I used to take Christ's death for granted. Jesus died to save the world. However, I finally began to realize that His death is for me. If I was the only one who ever sinned, He would still have died for me. When I began to take His death personally, I became more and more convinced of His love for me. I understand now the depth of His love and how much abundance He wants to bring into my life.

All the other links you find on this page. Everything you read on my "about" pages on my webpage andblog is because of this! Because of the love of Jesus Christ and all He does for me, I am privileged to live my life for Him.