Three Births

As a Christian we usually celebrate two birthday’s – one physical, the other spiritual. Today is my physical birthday. I was born on July 17, 1953 – 68 years ago. I certainly don’t remember anything about that day but my parents and my birth certificate clearly confirm my physical date of birth. But approximately nine months before my physical birth was another birth called conception. It was at this time marker that the foreknowledge of God became the reality of life and a tiny single cell named Curt Blattman entered the universe. For you see at conception the Curt Blattman story really begins.

At conception my soul was created and I was alive, just very tiny. This real first birth was when God put into my first cell all the genetic material that, nine months later, would become a six pound bundle of joy to my parents. From conception to my second birth, nine months later, all that was added to help me grow was the nutrients my mother supplied me while I was in her womb. From single cell to fully formed baby, I was truly a masterpiece of the creative genius of God and I can truthfully say I was fearfully and wonderfully made.

While I was totally unaware of these two “births” I clearly remember my third birth which happened on October 12, 1981, almost 40 years ago, when I gave my heart to Jesus and was born again. You can read more about my story in the “About Curt” page of my website.

One thing that all three of these births of mine have in common is just as I had nothing to do with my first two physical births, I had nothing to do with my third, spiritual birth. All three are a divine work of God. For you see salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. While, yes, it is true I made the decision to turn my life over to Jesus, God did all the work, through the Holy Spirit, in preparing and changing my heart to even want to invite Jesus into my life.

Before I came to Christ I was an atheist and rebel against God. I wouldn’t give God the time of day and yet He sought after me, wooed me, and opened my blind eyes, to make me realize that I was spiritually bankrupt and a totally depraved sinner. And praise God He drew me to Himself and saved my soul – something I was incapable of doing on my own.

Conception, physical birth, and spiritual birth are all the sovereign work of an all-powerful and loving God named Jesus. And may I dare say that when I physically die I will begin another chapter in my life called eternal life. It’s almost as if physical death will give rise to another phase of my existence where I will enter into a beautiful portal of life and time called eternity – the best is yet to come!