The earthquake violently ripped through my 13-story hotel in the middle of the night, causing it to sway precariously.  I was seven floors up, and the walls and floor swayed so dramatically that I braced myself, expecting tons of concrete to collapse above, burying me at any moment. 

I was alone in my room on a group trip in Mexico City.  I had been getting ready for bed, but with this sudden disaster, I heard doors opening up and down the hall, and the sound of people rushing toward the stairway.  I staggered to the door, opening it as my friend across the hall opened hers.  A man rushed past wearing only his underwear.

"Oh Mary," Judy moaned, "This is a bad one.  I've grown up with earthquakes all my life in California, and this one's really bad.  We need to just stand here under the structure of our door frame-that will be safest, because this building may collapse any minute."

I was terrified, my body rocking back and forth with the swaying floor as if I were on a ship in a wild storm.  I was surprised to hear my voice praying loudly, "God, please hold this building together.  Please ...hold this building together!"  I grasped the sides of the doorframe to keep from falling.  People continued to rush past.

Judy prayed, "Lord, if it's my time to die, then I'm ready to be with You."

I felt a tinge of shame-her prayer seemed much less selfish and more spiritually strong than mine, but fear drove me to say again, "Please, please, hold this building together, Lord."

Then, as quickly as it had started, the swaying subsided and the motion stopped, miraculously leaving the building upright and intact.  My teeth chattered involuntarily as Judy and I rushed down the hall, down the seven flights of stairs, into the lobby.  It was filled with hoards of people spilling out into the street. We found others in our group there, all relieved and amazed.

Judy and I felt intensely grateful to have such a special, personal relationship with the God of the universe which had enabled us to confidently call out to Him.  We both knew we'd go to heaven to be with Him if we died under the collapsed building, but we also knew He had the power to hold it together.

Though I had known about God all my life, it wasn't until I was 17 years old that I read the Bible in depth, learned the truth about who Jesus really was, invited Him into my life and asked God to make me the person He'd designed me to be. Ever since then I've experienced His great love and commitment to me personally.

You can know Him confidently also.  I'd like to explain to you how to enter into this magnificent relationship . . .