Christian testimonies

Jon
My early years could best be summed up by the Superman stickers in my Bible.

I did some of the usual things that teenagers did, including sneaking into my bedroom late at night via the garage roof so mum wouldn’t hear me! My life started to change for the better when I met Sharon who is now my wife. At this stage in my life I was solely reliant on myself and I was ignoring the sin building up against me and I often sought to ignore my conscience at this time. There was no space for God in my life.

After moving to Hampton a few years ago I met a few people from Amyand Park Chapel and that led me to playing football with others from the Church. I noticed that there was something different about them. They were sincere and genuine – but I tried to ignore the reason why that was so.

Things began to change however, when I began to experience difficulties at work and both my parents had mild heart attacks. My whole life was shaking and it really started to make me wonder about my life.

It was during this spell that I started to attend Church here: I suppose I was looking for answers because my life wasn’t making much sense. I would sit at the back, enjoying the services but they weren’t personal. I knew that something was keeping me from God yet drawing me closer all the time.

When my business in Hampton folded in December 2001, Sharon and I really struggled for about three months both financially and mentally. Up to that time I had wanted it all my own way, choosing to ignore the reality of the situation and pushing God again and again to the back of my mind.

Sitting in Church the message would often speak to me but I knew that I wasn’t right with God and that I needed to gain his forgiveness for my sin and wanting it all my own way for all those years. I started to think more about this and I knew that by believing in Jesus he would take away my burden and change my life and so I asked him to come into my life and give me forgiveness. But nothing happened!

About this time I was reminded by one of our Pastor’s sermons that if I wanted to be saved from my sin and accept Jesus, I would have to want it more than anything else. Soon after this I was in a Christian bookshop and bought a book which I thought would be a help to me. I began to read it in my car and my eyes rested on a verse from the Bible which jumped out of the page at me: ‘You will find me when you seek me with all your heart.’ This seemed too easy, too simple, but I digested that verse and again asked Jesus to come into my life and save me.

As I was asking this, it was as if a glow came over me and I felt so much peace within, as if a burden had been lifted off me. I knew that I had been saved and that which Jesus had done on the cross had made me righteous before God and had taken away my sin. This was the happiest feeling that I have ever had in my life. I was at last right with God and all my searching was over.

I now know that, no matter what comes in the future, my Saviour and best Friend is beside me and no one can take that away. I can look forward to an eternity in Heaven and put behind me all that self-doubt and lack of direction that I felt before.

Now I have a new burden: to tell as many people as possible the Good News, that they too can have that same eternal life through the Lord Jesus Christ.