I Don’t Know What I’d do Without You

One morning on the way to work a couple of weeks ago, I was inspired when a familiar Christian song by David Meece came up on Spotify. The song is called, “I Don’t Know What I’d do Without You.”

Here are the words to the chorus:

And I don’t know what I’d do without You
Oh, I don’t know what I’d do without You
And I don’t know where I’d be
If You hadn’t rescued me
Don’t know what I’d do without You

I was moved to worship God as I listened to the lyrics of the song. My mind flashed with images of how beautiful my life has been since I became a Christian at age 17. Here are just a few of the radical transformations I experienced since then: I have been forgiven and set free from sin and death, my relationships are sweeter and less selfish, and God has brought me immeasurable peace and joy.

Then I thought it might be worth imagining what my life would have been like if I had not been saved.

This idea connects with the classic movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Clarence, the guardian angel who desperately wants to earn his wings, gives Jimmy Stewart’s character George Bailey a wonderful gift, a chance to see what life would have been like if he had never been born. I want to give myself and my readers a gift – a chance to see what my life would have been like if I had never been born again.

I have been set free

When we become Christians, it is like the ultimate fresh start. Jesus said that we must be born again. Paul adds that if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Cor. 5:17). Scripture makes it clear that when we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, all our sins are forgiven: past, present, and future. Jesus said that “whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). We cannot earn this; it is a free gift by grace through faith in Christ.

Moreover, we are no longer slaves to our sin or our own fleshly desires. (See Rom. 6:5-6.) We have power over the flesh, the world, and the devil that we did not have as a non-believer. When we allow the Holy Spirit to change us from the inside out, He makes us more like Jesus. That process began on Day 1 and will continue until the Lord returns or takes us home. The Apostle Paul stated that he was confident “that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6.) We merely have to obey what we know is true and trust God for the results.

If I hadn’t experienced all of what I just described above, I would have been a slave to my flesh. There would have been no hope of becoming a better man. I would have never felt the relief of forgiven sin.

Relationships have been transformed

David Meece sang, “I don’t know where I’d be”. I can state unequivocally that I would be in a completely different place with regards to my relationships if I had not become a Christian.

Jesus taught us to love our neighbor. This applies to how we treat people in general. It also applies directly to how I pursued relationships, specifically with regard to the opposite sex. In my teenage years before I met Christ. I know that I was using people and only looking out for my interests.

After I became a Christian, my motivation changed completely. I was committed to pursuing purity in my relationships. As a result, God led me to a woman who was also committed to the same thing. He brought us together and gave us a beautiful life and marriage the past 42 years, with three children and five grandchildren. If I had not understood the importance of loving my neighbor and never learned to truly love others sacrificially, selflessly, and unconditionally, I would have had a pretty empty life.

There is peace and joy

One of the unique elements of the Christian life is receiving the peace and joy that flow from a relationship with Christ. These hard to find qualities come from Jesus Himself. He taught, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives” (John 14:27). He added, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11).

This aspect of my faith means much to me as I have experienced this daily. There has been peace in the midst of the storms of my life through every season, whether it was getting through college, finding my first job, learning how to be a husband and a father, getting fired, or losing a parent. The joy of the Lord has indeed been my strength. Without it, I would have been anxious and sad most of the time.

Closing thoughts

 In summary, here is the kind of person I imagine that I would have become if I’d never met Jesus.

Quite simply, I would have never found God’s forgiveness. I would have been continually frustrated about my failures and limitations, but would have had no hope of achieving any lasting results from my fruitless self-improvement efforts. I would have selfishly pursued love for many lonely years, but would have had to settle for less than God’s best because I would have had no way to find it being lost, blind, and God’s enemy. Lastly, I would have never understood God’s truth or experienced His presence in my life, which has brought me immeasurable peace and joy over the past 45 years.

I trust that this vivid contrast between what is true of my life now (only by the grace of God) and what would have been if I had never heard and responded to the gospel of Jesus Christ was eye-opening. Perhaps it will spur you to not take for granted the irreversible transformations you have in Christ.

Russell E. Gehrlein holds a B.S from Colorado State University and an M.A. from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. A retired Master Sergeant, he continues to serve the U.S. Army in a civilian capacity. He and his wife of 43 years live in Missouri and enjoy spending time with their grandchildren. To read more of his work please visit Reflections on Theological Topics of Interest

Image by brfcs from Pixabay