My 95-year-old dad, Ed Johnson, was baptized in Florida on his 95th birthday on April 23, 2016.
We showed this video at North River two weeks ago, and so many people told me how it has encouraged them to believe their parents will become disciples regardless of their age. Many have taken encouraging steps to share their stories and their love again with their parents. It has given many hope again and increased their faith.
Comments from Ed:
The words of the great hymn, “Amazing Grace,” are so fitting to me:
“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now I’m found,
was blind, but not I see.”
I’m 95 and those years just kind of slipped up on me. I now know why God let me live so long; long enough to turn my life around! I’m so happy about my baptism and I feel so good about myself. I finally know for certain I will be with the Lord when my time is up and I’ve never felt so sure about that before!
Even though I am 95 and in a nursing home, I want everyone to know that I have much to do here to share my faith and to help others come to know the Lord as I have. God has been so good to me! Pray that others will come to obedience here as I share God’s word with them. All 120 of us here have served in the armed forces as I did (25 years, Air Force). If I can encourage anyone please send me a note to the address below:
Edward S Johnson
Room Alpha 147-B
Clifford Chester Sims State Veterans Nursing Home
4419 Tram Road
Panama City, FL 32404
Comments from Mike:
“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And, pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message…” Colossians 4:2
Sometimes all we can do is pray! I’ve prayed for nearly 40 years that God would open a door for my father to accept the gospel. After almost giving up, I prayed once again in the fall of 2015 that God would do whatever was necessary to make my dad "wake up" spiritually, not knowing what God would do.
I knew something needed to happen to humble him and cause the message to penetrate his heart. Not long after that prayer, on October 12, Dad broke his hip. After time in the hospital and rehab and visits to see my Dad, he called me and asked if I could come and stay with him again. I left Atlanta immediately that afternoon.
It was during that visit in October that God opened his heart; we studied some of the same scriptures we had studied many times over almost four decades. After studying together one night, Dad said to me, “This is so clear; how could anyone not understand this?” I was shocked and amazed! It was like the spiritual blindness left him and finally he could see. The next morning he announced to my mom and me, “I’m going to be baptized and Mike is going to baptize me.”
During the next several weeks his repentance proved genuine as he apologized for ways he had treated family members over the years. By the way, I apologized too! He worked hard in physical therapy to get strong enough so he could be baptized on April 23, 2016, on his 95th birthday. Now, in the nursing home, he attends Bible discussions and shares his faith at every opportunity. He longs to help others come to know the Lord as he has. He says he is “striving to do the Lord’s work every day.” God amazed me over and over again as I prayed and partnered with him and others to help my dad become a disciple after so many years.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!”
My encouragement to all those who long for their parents to become disciples:
- Imagine. Imagine seeing your parent(s) baptized (Ephesians 3.20-21).
- Plan and pray. Make specific plans to write, talk, apologize, study with them and commit those plans to the Lord (Proverbs 16:3, 19:21 and Psalm 20:4).
- Courage. Ask God for courage to speak and to follow through on your plan and acts of faith. But, be very humble and respectful while being bold (Colossians 4:2-6).
- Expectation. Expect God to answer your prayers and get ready to be amazed (Psalm 5:3). Consider reading the Gospel of Mark and look at how often people were amazed at Jesus. Ask God to amaze you (again).
Don’t give up. Let me know if I can encourage you. I can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..