My name is Frank Samuels. I am 84 years old. Twenty years ago, I was out in the world and was a real mess.
When I was about 20, I joined the military and took part in all of the bad things that a lot of young, single soldiers do when they get away from home for the first time. I was drinking regularly and truly “out in the world.” I’m really ashamed of the things I did then.
After I got out of the military, I married and had a family. Later, I separated from my wife and had a girlfriend. I was drinking and doing all sorts of things that no true Christian should ever do. One night I had a dream that I was climbing up a big mountain. Before I got to the top, I slipped off and started falling. I thought I was going to die, but a voice said to me, “No, you’re not. You’ll be okay.” I landed on what felt like a soft pillow. I know now that it was the Holy Spirit speaking to me.
I ended up breaking up with the woman I was going with and told her that we were through. She didn’t believe me at first, but I knew that I was doing wrong and that I needed to stop.
I was going to rent a place in Manhattan, but something told me not to rent there; so I moved to the Bronx instead. After settling in, I started going to the senior center nearby. A lady working in the kitchen asked me if I ever went to church. I told her that when I was a kid, my mother always took me to Sunday school and church, but when I was 18, I stopped going and started drinking and doing all sorts of worldly things. As I said, I was a mess.
This lady then told me that Saturday, the seventh day, was the true Sabbath, not Sunday. I was surprised. I had never heard that before. She told me that she was a Seventh-day Adventist. I told her I had never heard of Seventh-day Adventists, so she gave me a little booklet to read. I don’t remember what it was, but over time, she gave me several other little booklets. I read them all and decided that Saturday really is the true Sabbath.
I stopped drinking and all of my sinful behavior. My family told me that my conversion was only temporary and that within a year, I would be back to doing all the bad things I had given up.
Well, it’s been over 20 years, and I’m still keeping the seventh-day Sabbath and trying to live right.
God is good. If He can take someone as steeped in sin as I was and give me a new heart, He can do it with anyone.
Frank Samuels
Bronx, NY