Shelley Reeves McKenna resides in Prince Edward Island, Canada, with her husband and three children.

On January 18, 2007 she sent an email to her friends, relatives and acquaintances. It went like this:

A Very Special Day
Today is a special day for me, and this year I thought I would tell each of you, just why it is so special. There are many events that are significant in a lifetime. For me, some of these were the day I was born, the day I graduated from school, the day I got married, and those special days when our kids were born. You might not know that January 18th is another significant day in my life, so today, twenty-five years later, I want to share it with you.

From the time I was young, we went to Church where I learned from the Bible that I needed to be saved in order to go to heaven. I knew there was no sin in heaven and I knew that I was a sinner.

Life Isn’t All Sunshine and Roses
By the age of twenty, I had lived in twenty different places and had gone to twelve different schools and universities. My parents were divorced just before my seventh birthday in 1967. Mom took us, including my sister and brother to Summerside, Prince Edward Island to be closer to family.

Church and Altar Calls Didn’t Save Me
We attended the Church of the Nazarene where we heard the Gospel spoken each Sunday night. Many times I went to the front, at the altar call, but I never got saved.

My Dad remarried in 1968, and my Mom in 1972. In October of 1972, my sister and I decided to move to Saint John, New Brunswick to live with my Dad and stepmother. My brother joined us in Saint John the following year and two more siblings were born into the family between 1972-1975.

Let The Good Times Roll!
As a teenager, I had stopped going to Church, and had no interest whatsoever in going to any kind of service. My goal was to have a good time, and Church did not fit in that equation as far as I saw it.

I discovered that I was very good at having a good time. Later in my teens I started drinking and smoking. I was the 'life of the party', at the dances and Clubs. By this time I was smoking a pack a day and I knew that if I kept drinking the way I was, I would probably end up an alcoholic.

God Tries to Get My Attention
God used dreams throughout my life to 'wake me up' to my lost condition. When I was in Grade 4 at Elm Street School, I dreamt that I was sitting at my desk when the sky all lit up brightly. In my dream, the Lord Jesus Christ had come from heaven, and I was on the earth. I knew I wasn’t ‘saved’ because I never had a moment when I had personally trusted Christ's work on the cross to take away my sins. I had never been 'saved' from the punishment my sins deserved. In my dream, I did not go up to heaven with the Lord Jesus Christ. I had been left behind because I was not saved. This terrified me, but I did nothing about it.

What Happened to all the Fun??!!
In 1981, life wasn't going so well for me. Nothing in my life seemed to be working out. I started being disturbed about all my sins because of the punishment I knew they deserved.

On January 16th, 1982, I turned twenty-one. Since it was my 21st birthday, some of my family was going to Mom and my stepfather’s home for a birthday supper. I went there earlier in the afternoon. I was really tired and ended up falling asleep on the living room couch.

Again I had a dream. I dreamt I was standing in our kitchen in Freetown looking out the window. My Dad was standing there, talking on the phone. All of a sudden I heard a loud noise and the sky got really dark. In my dream I realized that the Lord had come, and I wasn't saved. I kept screaming, "It's too late! I've missed my chance! It's too late! I've missed my chance!!!”

I must have really screamed out loud because when I woke up on Mom's couch she was there, asking me what was wrong. The first thing I remember was the tremendous feeling of relief. My mom was saved so I knew when I saw her that the Lord hadn't come. Had He come she would have gone with Him in the Rapture. I was so relieved! I was really crying and was soaking wet in sweat because the dream seemed so real. I couldn't tell Mom what was wrong because I was crying so hard.

When I finally could talk, I told her the dream. She said, "Shelley, you know that the Lord is dealing with you, and you need to get saved." She didn't need to say anything else, I knew she was right. It was Saturday, and she asked me if I would go with her to a Gospel meeting the next night. She had asked me to go with her before to special meetings, but I never agreed to go with her. This time I said, "Yes."

Who Wants My Cigarettes?
Later that Saturday evening, after my birthday supper, I went to the store to get some cigarettes and then to visit some friends who were babysitting. No one was going to the bars that night, and for once that was fine by me.

I sat down with my friends and lit up a smoke. But then instantly the craving for a smoke was gone because there was something much bigger on my mind. I put out the cigarette, and asked the girls which one of them wanted the pack because I had just quit. They looked at me in disbelief and shock, and then took the cigarettes from me. I never did smoke again.

A Storm Outside – A Storm Inside
I went home to Dad's feeling miserable, longing to hear the Gospel preached the next night. But that night an Island snow storm hit us, and on Sunday the whole Island was shut down. I was beside myself all day.

I called Mom in my frustration and asked her why God would allow it to storm. After all, I really wanted to go to the Gospel meeting so I could hear again how to be saved. My poor Mother felt helpless! She got on the phone and called some Christian friends to tell them I was troubled about my sins. She asked them to pray for me. I found out about mom’s phone calls later.

It stormed all day and continued into Monday. I called Mom again on Monday from the upstairs phone. She told me to get my Bible and to start reading the Gospel of John. I hung up the phone and went to my room but my brother was there listening to my stereo and wouldn't leave.

The Happiest Day of My Life
I picked up my Bible off the shelf and went across the hall to his room. There, I got down on my knees by his bed and opened the Bible to the Gospel of John. I read from chapter one and when I got to verse sixteen of chapter three, it caught my attention. It said:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER... that word jumped off the page at me and I realized in an instant that I didn't have to go to hell because Jesus died for me. At that instant I was saved, and I knew it. The rest of the verse says, "Whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

I was so happy; I was crying tears of joy and relief. There, all alone in the bedroom, I was saved reading God's word during a snowstorm that had shut the Island down for a few days. Amazing!

Twenty Five Years of Peace
My life changed. The parties, the drinks and the sports, all the things that I had lived for no longer were of any interest to me. For the past 25 years I have tried to live for the Lord Jesus Christ who loved me so much that He died for me… for my sins. Am I perfect? Certainly not, as you and I both know! But because Christ took the punishment for my sins at Calvary, He cleared me of all my guilt, and some day I will be perfect.

When I get to heaven, I'll have no more pain, sorrow or crying, and I'll be able to spend eternity with my Lord who loved me enough to die for me. This is a Win-Win situation.

Not saved? What are you waiting for?

Know Christ - No hell
No Christ - Know hell.

The Bible says, "Behold now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of Salvation." Hebrews 2:3

I thank God that He saved me. I pray for all who may read my story that you will realize your need and seek salvation now. Later may be too late.

Shelley Reeves McKenna

It has been 35 years since this adventure began.  Those that have heard me tell the four-hour version of the story have repeatedly asked me to put it in written form.  So, here is a much-abbreviated account...

In the summer of 1971 after high school graduation, I had been partying regularly with some so-called friends.  I was depressed and very bored with my life up until then.  As usual, the never-ending search for excitement in whatever form I could find would end in emptiness and depression. 

I would try not to think about the godly influence of two loving parents and all they had tried to teach me about God’s Word and His ways as seen in the Bible.  Down deep I knew they were right, but I was not ready to give up my rebellious, self-indulgent ways.  I was so convicted when I was around them that I made up my mind that I was going to “run away from home” and try to get away from the Christianity that had always surrounded my life.

I not only wanted escape from what I thought were oppressive parents and church influences, I wanted adventure and lots of it.  Well, on a summer Saturday afternoon in late June, I hurriedly made the decision to leave my small Michigan town and head for the bright lights and fun of Miami Beach, Fl.

The flight south that afternoon was a cruel thing to do to my family, especially my mother, since I left without telling them where I was going.  However, I was not thinking about them.  I was only thinking about myself and about what I thought I wanted.  The adventures in the days ahead in S. Florida are too numerous to tell here; however, one thing I know now and suspected then was that God had His protecting hand on me.  This was no doubt due to praying parents and grandparents.

After two weeks in Miami Beach, my parents discovered my whereabouts about the same time I found a “dream job” aboard a world-class yacht that chartered to movie stars and millionaires.  A few days later we headed up the east coast to NY for the summer, just as I started receiving letters from mostly my mother and grandmother. 

The next 100 days spawned adventures that Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn would have been thrilled with.  But, even so, my days consisted of loneliness, disillusionment and despair.  At every turn God reached out his hand to spare my life and speak to my empty heart in my desperate search for peace and fulfillment.  My sins were a constant burden and reminder that there, indeed, was a God who had created within me a conscience.  I knew beyond any doubt that there was a Heaven to gain and a literal burning Hell to shun, but I tried to tell myself that I was a Christian.  I had no peace about it, and I tried to do everything not to think about it.

Those dark days of storms, hurricanes, waves crashing over the entire ship, and nights with the wind tugging at the anchor caused me to think of Eternity.  I was truly “Lost at Sea.”

After miraculously arriving safely back in Miami that November, the Lord through circumstances changed my mind about not going home.  I was determined to continue my quest for peace in spite of all that God had shown me and allowed me to survive through.  I had my heart set on another adventure to California via motorcycle, but God had other plans.  I walked down the jet-way in Detroit on a cold November morning, wondering if I was in my right mind to return home.

I let my family know that I was not returning home as the prodigal son, and I had my own plans, which did not include them.  Well, after being in the biggest cities in the U.S., and then coming home to a small town was more of a letdown than ever.  The emptiness, depression, and memories of that whirlwind summer and the adventures that God had allowed me to return home from made me more miserable than ever.

After being home for two weeks and being bored out of my mind, I decided to go to church to see some of my old friends. The church was having some special services conducted by two visiting evangelists.  I had no intention of listening.  After all, I had heard it a thousand times before.

The preacher was speaking forcefully and loudly about one of the last things Jesus said while on the cross.  It was the phrase, “It is finished,” that caught my attention.  He kept repeating it and explaining what it meant.  He said that it meant there was nothing we could do to save ourselves, that the work was already done, and that all of our sins were completely paid for.  He said that all we could do was to rest in it. 

In a moment of time, it flooded over me.  It was something I had heard many times, but never realized ‘til then…that Jesus, having no sins of His own, took my place and paid the price to satisfy the justice of a Holy God.  Furthermore, God was so pleased with the finished work that He raised Him from the dead with His mighty power. 

The wonder of it all!  Then the thought crossed my mind.  Could it be so simple?  The peace that flooded through me that night and in the days ahead was the answer to that.  What could be better in this world, than to know your sins forgiven and be assured of a home in Heaven.  It does not matter whether it is large or small sins.  We all have them and the Bible says in the Book of Hebrews, “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”  That night, at the end of myself, God gave me faith to trust and rest in the finished work of redemption, receiving it as my very own.

So my dear friend, I beg you to consider these matters carefully.  Read God’s Word, the Bible.  Read St. John, Chapters 1-4, and the Book of Romans.  Ask God to show you your need of His great gift.  My earthly father always told me that God only does business with honest hearts.  Remember, there is nothing you can do to be saved. He did it all.  “It is Finished,” “Paid in Full!”  Rest in Him, as I did all those years ago.

The real adventure began on that wonderful night, now so long ago, and furthermore, it will never have an end, as the Bible reveals—continuing throughout the endless ages of God’s Eternal Day.

For questions or more information contact me:

Philip T. Sarlo   813-782-4925 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

I was privileged to be born into a family that believed the Bible was God’s Word. Growing up I frequently heard the message of God’s “good news” that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. However, God’s good news was always bad news to me. All it seemed to do was remind me that some day I was going to die and leave this world to meet God. It constantly reminded me I was going to hell. It wasn’t until the night of September 2, 1979 that God’s message became good news to me. I wanted to have my sins forever forgiven. I wanted to know for sure that heaven would be my eternal home when I left this earth. Sitting alone in the back seat of my parents’ car I told God I would just have to go to hell and that is where I deserved to go. There was no hope of heaven for me. I was unable to get to heaven on my own. Sitting in the darkness, my mind went to Calvary. As I thought of God’s Son hanging on the cross I understood, for the first time, that He suffered there for me. He took my place. He absorbed the punishment my sins deserved. Because He died for me I didn’t have to go to hell. That night I received God’s gift of eternal life—a gift that I can never lose; a gift that can never be taken from me.

God saved me when I was eight years old. I came from a non-christian home. However, my father, being in the Salvation Army, decided that even though he and my mom did not go to church, he made sure my sister and I did.  I remember my Sunday school teacher speaking to us about the Lake of Fire and Hell.  They even gave us a chart that showed these places.

The Salvation Army would give every child a certificate that basically says “I want to live and serve God and I accept Him as my Lord and Saviour." Then you sign at the bottom and you were ‘saved’. While I do NOT agree with this, that Sunday I asked Jesus into my heart and I believed what was written on that paper.

I believed that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, and I did want to live for Him. In my child-like faith, God saved me and came into my heart to live forever. Did I do anything? NO! Jesus did it all!

Shortly after, I started going to the Sunday school at the Gospel Hall. Being from a non-christian home, I never had anyone to “confirm” that what I had was really salvation. So by the time I was 12, I was really convicted of my sin and wondered "Am I really saved??" But then God brought to remembrance the time I was eight years old and when I asked Jesus into my heart. He gave me the confirmation from 1 Peter 1:8-9, which says…”Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold…But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” And I knew…Jesus died for me!!!

On days when I doubt my salvation, I go to several verses, but one main one: 1 John 5:13 “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life…”