Meet Paul Vagis

I became believer when I was 21, that was 28 years ago. I grew up in a Christian home in northern Indiana, but the word ‘Grace’ was very foreign to me. I was raised in a single parent home. My mother and father were divorced when I was around 2 years old and growing up I had no fatherly figure of any kind. This was hard on me as a little boy. My Mother did the best she could for me and my sister. There were times where she worked 3 jobs just so we could have food on the table. Times back then could be difficult, but my Mom never wavered from her faith in Jesus. One thing about my Mom; if the Lord told her to do something she did not hesitate. Because of some things that occurred in our family, we moved to Texas in 1980.

The Woodlands was much different back then than today. Again, my mother did the best she could in her situation. But, a boy who lacks a father, for a single mother, can be very challenging. Over time my mom and I’s relationship became more and more difficult. She had a harder and harder time controlling me. When I was 17, she told God “Lord I have done what I can, I give him up to you.”

During that time in my life I got involved in things I am not proud of, but Jesus did not forget about me. One day while I was at a friend’s house watching TV, I saw preachers being arrested on street corners for preaching the Gospel. Something inside of me snapped. I knew this was not right. Right then and there I started telling my friends, who were there with me, as much as I could remember about Jesus. That night I drove home completely convicted. I laid in bed and confessed to Jesus I had been running from Him and asked Him to forgive me. The next day I woke up and found my Bible, took it to work, and started reading in Matthew. The Lord be my witness, as I read the scriptures it was as if Jesus himself were whispering the words into my ear. When I stood up from my desk, it was as if someone had wrapped a blanket just taken from the dryer over my shoulders on a freezing winters day. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus was exactly who he said he was. At that point in my life I had never felt that safe and secure as I did right then and there.

As all of us know, life is not always easy. But I can tell you God has always been faithful. There are other times He has intervened in my life (too many to go into here!). He has given me an incredible family, an amazing set of friends through our small group, and an understanding of grace that I never had before growing up. I am so grateful for this church and the amazing men and women God has put forth as our leaders. Truly, we serve a loving and caring Father, something I am starting to understand more and more every day.