Article January 1, 2000 Issue

Poetry and punk

Joshua Sprague—Tulsa, Oklahoma

I wrote this poem because I have so much gratitude for God and all that He's given me. Whenever I'm in trouble, or even when I'm not, I turn to Him—in every action, every part of my day.

I was raised in a loving and supportive family, but I hadn't always been the most principled person. I had a life-changing experience that got me where I needed to be. I'd been involved in the punk scene for quite some time. It wasn't good for me. I was constantly surrounded by drugs and alcohol, as well as messages from lyrics that I didn't want in my head. I thought I agreed with them at the time, but then I realized that I wanted to get away from them. That was really hard because I was dating a girl who was involved in the punk scene when I was trying to get away from it. Then we broke up, and I was really hurt. But God helped pull me through all that.

The biggest change came when I was moved to a different Sunday School class. I had a new teacher, and he taught like no one else had. His teaching was Bible-based. I was able to get a foundation from the Bible, starting with the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. I really got into them—started to study them and consider their true spiritual essence. I had no idea that so much depth and inspiration could be found in them, and I learned that they required absolute consecration of thought.