Rod Gable’s Testimony Half Of All Marriages End In Divorce- Were We JustLucky?
We Are Rodney and Susan Gable, and This Is OurStory.
Both of us were raised in what most Americans would call aChristian home. We were taken to Sunday School and church regularly,and we had both finished the Catechism classes offered by ourreligious denomination.
We met in 1975, and began a normal dating relationship. Thisincluded breaking up for a short time in order to date others, butconsummated with us getting married in 1978.
Shortly after our wedding day, we entered the normalAmerican rat race for material possessions. After ninemonths of marriage we bought the American dream home. Unfortunately,with the American dream home came the American dream home monthlypayment. This monthly payment, coupled with our continued desire formaterial possessions, led to us working five jobs between the two ofus. Looking back now, we can see that divorce was on the horizon ifsomething didn’t change – and it did.
Our lifestyle became cramped when our first child was born. Susanhad to go back to work for us to keep our house and our”toys”. I remember well meeting the couple that was about towatch our little girl. The baby-sitter, Debbie, and her husband, Dan,stood out in a peculiar way: no smoking, no drinking and notelevision. They kept a neat house, they were polite, and theyappeared to be people we could trust with our daughter. I rememberleaving their home and telling Susan, “I’d rather have someoneoverly religious watching our child than a soap opera addict thatsmoked and swore.”
As time passed, Susan noticed Debbie reading and studying herBible. Debbie began asking Susan questions and one day she opened herBible and showed her John, chapter 3, verse 3: “Except a man beborn again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”. We had both beenfairly religious, but we did not understand the need to be “bornagain.” (Note: “born again” is a biblical concept referring tothe forgiveness of sins by God and the rescue of the person from thepower and penalty of that sin. This is God’s requirement foreverlasting life.)
In the meantime, our little girl was starting to repeat words andI became very conscious on my habit of cursing. I made severalresolutions to stop, but I could not. This began to really bother me.
Debbie finally invited us to attend a special service at theLehigh Valley Baptist Church. As the pastor preached, it was as if heknew what we needed to hear. He showed us from the Word ofGod how foolish it is to accumulate material possessions and toneglect one’s own soul. He showed how Jesus Christ had made provisionfor our souls to have eternal life, if we would repent of our sinsand receive him as our personal Savior.
That morning, we both went forward at the invitation at the end ofthe service and Susan received Jesus Christ as her personal Savior. Ialso prayed a prayer, but I was not sincere. I just wanted to get outof there.
The following Wednesday, Susan went to the church prayer meeting.I came home from a class that I was taking at a community college andI was in our home alone. I went to the bedroom and knelt by our bed.At that time, I saw myself as a sinner, worthy of the harsh judgmentof a holy God. On that day in February 1982, I saw that my shallowtrust in a religious system was sending me to an eternity in hell.That day, by faith, I repented of my sin and asked the LORD JesusChrist to save me and become the Lord of my life.
Today my wife and I know that when we die, we will be with ourLord in heaven – not because we are better than anyone else, butbecause Jesus paid our sin debt on the cross of Calvary. Back inFebruary of 1982, we both individually trusted in what God has saidin his Word, not in what man puts forth in his false religioussystems. No longer do we trust in our infant baptism, churchmembership, or good works that we might do, to get us into heaven.The Lord Jesus Christ is our only hope for life after death.
Because of our acceptance of Jesus Christ, Susan and I both havea purpose to our lives that we never had before. Wesee regular answers to prayer, and we experience the real joy ofsharing with others the message of salvation through Jesus Christ.Both Susan and I have surrendered to full time service for the Lord.I am currently serving as an assistant pastor at the Lehigh ValleyBaptist Church.
While it is true that half of today’s marriages end in divorce, itis also true that half DO NOT. Thanks to a living Savior, Susan and Ihave discovered the positive half of that truth – and so can you.
Rod and his wife, Susan, live in Alburtis, Pa. If you would liketo know more about the Savior that changed the lives of Rod and SueGable, you are welcome to attend the
Lehigh Valley Baptist Church4702 Colebrook Avenue
Emmaus, PA 18049
Or call us at (610) 965 4700 or 1-800-893-9586.