My name is Janice Almquist. I was born in 1945
in Little Rock, Arkansas. We lived in Arkansas until I was 3 years old when we moved to Illinois.
We lived in Illinois (with just a short move back to Arkansas one time) for the rest of my life...until recently retiring
and moving to Florida with my husband, John.
My parents were not Christians when I was born, but
on my 7th birthday, my dad accepted Jesus as his Savior and my mom a few weeks later and our lives went an entirely different
direction. He felt God calling him to be a minister not long afterward, and that's when we moved to North Little Rock,
AR for him to attend seminary. About 1 1/2 years later, we moved back to llinois where my dad pastored his first church.
We lived there for a few years when my dad felt that God wanted him to become an interstate missionary to the state of Illinois
and start new churches. We lived in Illinois in the Quad City and Peoria areas where he started 5 different
churches. I met my husband during the spring of my senior year and were married the end of the year.
We have three children. Two sons
and one daughter born in 1965, 1968 and 1971. We have 4
wonderful grandchildren. We just celebrated our 42nd anniversary last December and are praying for many more years together.
We thank God daily for His many blessings on us: a wonderful family and for taking care of us throughout the years.
When I was about 7 or 8 years old was the first time I remember hearing about
what Jesus did for me on the cross. I talked to my mom and prayed for God to save me, but didn't really understand at
that age what salvation really was. I knew Jesus had suffered on the cross, that He was beaten and died on the
cross because of sins, and if I had caused it I felt really bad about it, but as far as actually trusting in Jesus to forgive
me for my sins, I did not understand that. But, throughout my younger years, that is what I depended on for my salvation.
I was baptized and went to church with my parents, received all the teachings at Sunday School but was not a born-again
believer. When I was a teenager, I was under conviction about my sins, but couldn't admit that I wasn't saved because
"I was the preacher's daughter". I would go forward at church and "rededicate" my life, but when you don't have the
new birth to rededicate, that did nothing but relieve my guilt for a little while.
After my husband and I were married, the Holy Spirit really began working on
me. I would wake up in the middle of the night to make sure John was still in bed beside me. My constant fear
was "What if Jesus has come back while I was asleep? or What if Jesus came back while I was home alone and I didn't
know it?" I was living in a constant state of fear of being 'left behind'.
My dad walked in one day in the autumn of 1964 while I was ironing. I will
never forget that day...can't remember the exact date but know everything else about it. I told my dad I didn't think
I was saved. He told me, "Well honey, let's take care of that right now." So, we knelt beside the couch and I
prayed the sinner's prayer and Jesus came into my life at that moment and became my Savior for the rest of my life and eternity.
I wish I could say that from that moment on I always lived my life for Him,
but that isn't what happened. Life and it's problems gets in the way and temptations come along. After many years
of "playing at being a Christian" we dropped out of church and spent wasted years living what we thought were fun times, but
looking back it wasn't fun at all. Marriage problems came and without turning to God for help, got worse instead of
better. But, thank God He is a God of many chances. He never walked away from me, I walked away from Him but He
was always there waiting with open arms for me to come back. Through some circumstances I won't go into for personal
reasons, the Holy Spirit began working in me again to bring me back into God's will in my life. I was again brought
to my knees in my living room with my husband beside me and confessed sins and asked God's forgiveness. Not asking for
Him to save me again, because I was already His child, just asking for Him to give me back the joy of my salvation so that
I could walk with Him beside me again. You see, God has a plan for each of us. He formed us and made us to
be something special for Him. God protected me through those years of disobedience and He never stopped loving me.
He never gave up on me even when I was not deserving of His love. His love is unconditional and we don't have to do
anything good to deserve it because we can't do anything that would be good enough to deserve His love and grace.
Grace is receiving His love without deserving it. Mercy is not receiving
His judgement when we do deserve it. God is so wonderful!
My life hasn't been perfect since that day, but it has changed drastically.
I love to spend time with God in His word and in prayer. I love to go to church and be with other Christian people.
I am even learning how to love the people that aren't easy to love through God's grace. This growth is part of
His plan for me. Nothing I went through is held against me, but He uses them to make me who I am now becoming.
Circumstances, past failures, all help to form us into the person God knows we can be if we just allow Him to work
in our lives. I know God has more for me to do. I'm not for sure all that will be, but I am asking for His
leadership in my life to show me what He wants of me.
I felt led by God to share my love of Jesus through this website to others
that may not know of Jesus' saving grace.
Also, I hope that it will help other Christians to know that we all fail at times,
but to not give up because God doesn't give up on us. Satan has lost our souls and he knows he can never get it
back because God holds us securely and will not allow him to touch us. But, he can sure try to ruin our reputation and
testimony. He loves to point our faults and failures out to the unsaved in the world...see there, just another Christian
that's a fake. Well, we're not fakes, we are just forgiven sinners that love Jesus. We know it will not be easy
here on earth, but our promise of eternal life in heaven with Jesus is what keeps us going. Also, a desire to take as
many of our friends with me as I can is what spurs me to tell others about what Jesus has done for me.
It is God's love flowing through me to the many people that need Jesus.
My prayer is that you will search the scriptures and see for yourself what God
can do for you in your life. I'm not promising a life of no problems, but I do promise that He will be there beside
you when you go through the tough times. He gives peace, love, and hope to all those who trust in Jesus as their Savior.
I felt it necessary to be baptized again last autumn, not for salvation because
baptism has nothing to do with salvation. I was saved in 1964 on my knees beside of my couch with my dad beside
me. Baptism is a picture to others of what has already happened in your heart, that you have accepted Jesus as your
Savior and you have given your life to Him, turned from your past life and are living your life like the example Jesus' gave
us while He was here. I felt I needed to make a new statement to my family and friends that I was now going
to live for Christ and try to do what God wants me to do. Not perfectly for sure, but taking each day at a time and
putting God as the Head of my life.
It is my prayer that God will use my testimony to speak to hearts through the
Holy Spirit to bring lost to a realization that we are all sinners and there is nothing we can do to make up for that to God.
I am praying for each person that reads this to be touched in some way to bring you closer to God.
In Jesus name and for His honor and glory because He alone is worth of our praise,
Janice Almquist
