MY TESTIMONY:
I am a true miracle of Salvation and one day I’ll get to thank the saints that had a burden for lost souls and prayed for me.
I didn’t get to grow up in church. I didn’t even get to go to church. If I stayed the night with a friend who would be going to church on Sunday morning then I had to make arrangements to be home before church.
Honestly I can’t remember a lot of the details but somehow I had been invited to a Valentine’s Day banquet at a church and while there they played a game. It was a question and answer type game. When you answered no then you had to sit down. I’m very competitive by nature and i was doing pretty good at this game and it was down to me and a few others….. because I was cheating and not telling the full truth. After the banquet then I was invited to come back for church the next morning. I wanted to go….but at the same time I was making all kinds of excuses as to why I couldn’t. I ran out of excuses and found myself telling my new friend that I’d go but I didn’t have a dress and that I’d buy one soon. My new friend was so precious and offered to let me borrow one of her dresses. So that’s what I did.
The next morning I went to church and heard a message about a rich man that died and went to hell. He was begging for one drop of water to touch his tongue.
I grew very quickly afraid of this place called hell that this preacher was talking about. The preacher finished his message and asked everyone to stand and bow their heads. He asked for a musician to play softly. I was glad of that so that maybe everyone else couldn’t hear my heart pounding. The preacher then began telling about a place called heaven and began explaining how we could each get there. He reminded everyone to keep their heads down, eyes closed and no looking around. He asked if there was anyone within the sound of his voice that wanted to accept Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. He told how a sinner could be made whole and become a righteous saint of God. Then he explained there’s a heaven to gain and a hell to shun (but he used different words) and then he asked those that wanted to give their heart and life to Jesus to simply raise your hand. Before I could stop myself my hand was raised but then I yanked it right back down. It was too late though and the preacher had seen it. He said “I see that hand” and then instructed those that raised their hand to come forward and accept Jesus as their personal Saviour.
I wanted to go so bad but I was also terrified! I don’t even know what I was terrified of…but I was. I didn’t stand there long though before I took my first step out of from the pew and into the aisle and then it was as if I was simply floating down the aisle. I can remember that I was about three pews from the altar and my body felt as if it had went through a fire. It was the strangest thing I’d ever felt. I instantly felt different. I got to the altar and knelt to pray. I’m not even sure what all I said but I knew I meant what I was saying and I wanted my life to be different than it was. When I said amen and looked up I felt like I was a brand new person…because I was.
I later realized that the fire it felt like I’d walked through was actually the Holy Spirit coming to me to fill my heart and make intercession for me.
That was 30 years ago and it’s only gotten better since then. I’m so thankful I get to serve a living God that cares about me and loved me enough to die on a cross to save me from my sins.
I can’t wait to spend my eternity with Him.
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