The New Year's Eve That Changed Everything

A New Year's Eve that changed everything. In this raw and deeply personal episode, I share the heartbreaking story of how my boyfriend and I—both backsliders from our faith—made plans to return to church on January 1st, 1993. We had it all mapped out: recommit to God, get married, build our lives together. But he never made it to that day.

The shocking 6 AM visit that brought news of his sudden death became my spiritual awakening. At just twenty-something years old, I learned the hardest lesson possible about the danger of postponing salvation. His funeral became the place where I recommitted my life to Christ—a second chance he never received.

This episode isn't meant to frighten you but to illuminate a truth we often ignore: tomorrow isn't guaranteed. When we say "I'll get right with God later," we're essentially playing God ourselves, assuming control over time that isn't ours to command. Romans 8:28 reminds us that God works all things for good for those who love Him—even our deepest pain can become part of our purpose.

Whether you've never known Christ or you've wandered away, don't fall for the enemy's lie that you have unlimited tomorrows. God's love and forgiveness are available today, regardless of how far you think you've strayed. No sin is too great for His mercy. I pray this episode serves as the gentle nudge you need to make your spiritual decisions today rather than postponing them to a tomorrow that may never come. Will you join me in prayer right now? Your eternal destiny is too important to put off until later.

I hope that in this episode, you will be reminded that ONLY God has control over time; we don't. 

If you enjoyed this podcast episode, please share it with someone else so it can be a blessing to them as well. Have a blessed day.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome and Episode Introduction
• 1:50 Devon's Story: Plans Interrupted
• 5:12 Tragedy Leads to Recommitment
• 7:27 Tomorrow Is Not Guaranteed
• 9:45 God's Love and Call to Salvation
• 12:33 Closing Prayer and Final Thoughts

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hi and welcome back to another episode of Positioned for Purpose Conversations with Colette Marie. Hi guys, how are you doing? On today's episode, I don't know if you've been following my conversation about two weeks ago where I was just talking about the message that the Lord gave me about his coming again. Now this week, something triggered a memory that I have and a reminder that tomorrow is not guaranteed to any of us, that there is a time set, that when God is ready, he's going to call us home, whether we think we are ready or not. I know you might be wondering is this the episode that says positioned for purpose? How does talking about salvation and giving your heart to the Lord, how does that match up in this? But can I tell you I like a feeder, a little shifting in the conversation to talk about the reality of life that God is coming again, but even so, that there is a set time for each of us and then, when that time comes, whether we think we are ready or not, we can't say no to that time, right? We can't say no to that time. We won't have an opportunity to bargain it away. We won't be able to say, lord, give me another chance, give me another opportunity and I will make it right.

Speaker 1: 1:50

In 1992, I remembered I was in a relationship with this young man. We both were backsliders, we walked away from the faith and we were in a relationship with each other. He was a musician at the time and he had an event that he was going to be playing for the night, and this night was December 31st. And so we had it all planned out. We said, come 1993, come new years, we would be in church and the intention was that we were going to give our hearts back to the Lord and we were planning to get married and all that good thing. And so I remembered him coming to the house the night and you know we hugged and you know we said see you tomorrow, january 1st, 20 sorry, 1993.

Speaker 1: 2:56

I was outside, I was doing some washing. I remember where I was standing at the time, I remember what I was doing. I can still even visualize the woman coming through my gate and I was wondering why were they coming here so early? And this was maybe about 6 am thereabouts and I was wondering why were they coming here so early? So I was continuing what I was doing, chatting to them as they were coming up. They were so early so I was continuing what I was doing, chatting to them as they were coming up.

Speaker 1: 3:27

Nothing prepared me for the news that they gave me, absolutely nothing. They said to me that he died. Devon died last night. Like I was shocked, I no, cannot be. I saw him. We planned to go to church and they said no, he didn't make it. He did not make it. He went to the place where he went to play. He um, something happened. He's allergic to shellfish and I know he does not eat that. I don't know what happened, but he lost consciousness and he died on the way to the hospital and so he left, and I don't know where his soul. All I do know is that the last time I saw him, we had not yet made a decision. We had only just said we were waiting on the Sunday to make a decision to serve God, to give him back our hearts, to serve him with our whole hearts, and he didn't make it, but I did.

Speaker 1: 4:46

It was one of the hardest and most difficult and most challenging of times, because we were young persons, we were in our early 20s and this was. We were planning out a life before us and it didn't happen. His death propelled me to give my heart to the Lord. At His funeral, I recommitted my life to the Lord and I've been walking ever since. And walking doesn't mean I have not made mistakes I have made a ton of them, but it meant that I get another chance to give my heart to the Lord.

Speaker 1: 5:32

As I said, I don't know what happened to him. I don't know what happened. I don't know because when you lose consciousness, I don't know if you're able at that point to even understand what is happening. And this event that triggered was just a reminder that when someone tells us about you know giving our hearts to the Lord, we have this thing of saying that we have time and we'll be able to do it later and not know. And what has been coming back to me is almost like we're playing God, because time is not guaranteed, it is only our times are in God's hands. So, even when we say a simple thing as see you tomorrow, what we've been told to say is that, if the Lord tarries, because anything can happen. So, while we're talking about position for purpose and talking about the hurt that we've experienced, the pain that we have gone through, and to know that God is going to work all things out for our good and to use our story to bring others to Christ. That is part of my, that is part of my journey, my story, that is part of the conversation that I now want to have to say to you that if you don't know the Lord Christ as Savior, don't think you have tomorrow. My friends, my sister, don't think you have tomorrow. It's not guaranteed any at all. It's not guaranteed any at all.

Speaker 1: 7:11

We've heard so many times of persons either just falling ill, losing consciousness, having cardiac arrests, or just going to their beds and never waking up. And so, when they thought that they had it tomorrow, tomorrow came today and we don't know where they're spending their eternity. And so my conversation, my words of encouragement, all I want to leave with you today is to make it right with Almighty God, make it right with Him. My conversation is not to scare you into going to Christ. No, my conversation is to say to you that the word of God says For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes on him should not perish but have everlasting life. It's for you to know that God loves you and he is giving you an opportunity to give your life to him, to give your heart to him, to surrender your everything to him. Because this thought that the enemy wants us to think that we can do it tomorrow and when tomorrow comes, we put it off until another day. We don't have that. No, we don't have that, my brothers and sisters. We don't have that any at all.

Speaker 1: 8:38

And so you may know the Lord as your Savior, but how about telling someone else that God cares, that God cares, that God wants your life, because he wants us to spend eternity with him. And I know sometimes we can think that we're too far gone, the things that we've done. God cannot forgive us, and that's the life from the enemy. He will if we confess our sins. That's what the word says. He's faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man should lay down his life for his friend, and that's what God has done for you and I.

Speaker 1: 9:24

And so if you are listening to this podcast today, I pray that you found some kind of word that will remind you to stay close to God or to give your heart to the Lord, because tomorrow is not guaranteed. There are persons who are in mourning right now because their loved one thought that they would have had tomorrow, so there was no opportunity to make anything right with anyone else. There was no opportunity to say, oh, I did you hurt, I am sorry. Or, if your relationship has been in turmoil, you don't even have an opportunity to make that right anymore, or it takes just so much variables. And so I just want to be obedient to this feeling that I have to talk about the fact that tomorrow is not guaranteed to any of us. No way, no how. Only God knows the day, he knows the hour, just as all. He's the only one who knows when he's returning and he's the only one who knows when you and I will leave this earth. So I pray that this conversation might not be what you're expecting, but I pray it is what you need in this moment. I pray it is what you need in this moment.

Speaker 1: 10:47

Devon passed, but I got another chance to give my heart to the Lord, to walking purpose, to share my story, to remind others that there is purpose in the pain and, as Romans 8, 28 says, for we know that all things work together for good to them that love God and are called according to his purpose. So continue. Today I'm begging of you just to ask the Lord to help you to give your life, to surrender your life over to him. He is God, and he is God all by himself. He determines the times and the seasons and I pray that you will know that God will accept you once you give your heart over to him. Can I pray with you, daddy, how much we love you, heavenly Father, because you first love us and you gave your life over for us.

Speaker 1: 11:48

Almighty God, I thank you for my friends, my sisters, who are listening to this episode today. I pray that you will minister to them in a special way, lord God. I pray, lord God. If they do not know you as Lord and Savior, almighty God, that you will stir their hearts and that you'll draw them by your Holy Spirit. It's only you alone who draws people to you, almighty God. So draw them, my God, for those who may have wandered away from you, almighty God, around the fence, speak to their hearts even now.

Speaker 1: 12:22

Almighty God, to make a decision. Lord, in the name of Jesus, to be fully in. Almighty God, strengthen them today, god. I pray in the name of Jesus. I pray, lord, god, that your words will find root in our heart, that the encouragement Almighty God will be a blessing to someone to remind them that tomorrow is not guaranteed. Blessing to someone to remind them that tomorrow is not guaranteed. Today is the acceptable day of salvation and I pray that they yield their lives over to you, have your way in their hearts even now, father. I pray in Jesus' name. I pray with thanksgiving. Amen and amen. If you enjoyed this video sorry, this podcast episode I hope that you will share it with someone else and make it be a blessing to them as well. Have a blessed and life-saving day. God loves you.