Testimony of Conversion

I was born and raised in a Roman Catholic Church. My parents were hard-core Catholics, so they raised me and my other siblings in the Catholic faith until I was about sixteen years old. 

My life was just like that of any other sinner. I indulged myself in all kinds of sinful behavior, for I had no purpose in life. Even though I consistently went to church, I didn’t really believe in the things that were being taught from the Bible. The older I became, the more immoral I became.

When I was 16, I was selected to go to a boarding secondary school, or what is called high school in other places. In my first year, I shared a room with a believer (a born again Christian), who time and again invited me to their Christian gathering called SCOM (Student Christian Organization of Malawi). One day, I decided to go with him. Not only to see what they do, but also to make sure that he didn’t bother me anymore. I used to be annoyed at his constant advances with the Bible.

The visiting preacher whom they had invited preached the gospel from Isaiah 53. It revealed to my heart that the reason why Jesus went to die on the cross was not because of his sins, indeed, Christ had not sinned in any way. He was the perfect son of God even during His earthly lifetime, but because of our sins. 

My sins in particular.

He also explained that the offer of salvation God makes to sinful individuals is not in any way on the basis of any merit residing within man himself, but that it is all grace. It is the gracious gift of God which can only be received by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, upon placing faith in his saving work and repentance from sin, one is saved from God’s wrath and judgment as he is reconciled back to God through the righteous work of Christ. The Holy Spirit convicted me with these words, and that was the turning point of my life. I was one separated from God, and brought back to Him by Him. 

I believed I was a sinner with no hope of saving myself, but only through Jesus Christ who gave himself for us. I repented of my sins, and on that day sixteen years ago, my life was changed forever.

Call to Ministry

Five years after I got saved in 2008, I started working for an agricultural company that sold farm equipment. They sent me to a remote area in Malawi; a district called Nkhotakota. When I thought about what I wanted for my life, I thought that this job and Nkhotakota just wasn’t for me. I wanted to tender my resignation a few days after accepting employment. 

But in just a few days, the Lord opened my eyes to the need that was in the area. Not physical needs, but spiritual. The people were spiritually poor, blind and in need of the gospel. I stayed in that place, joined a church, and served for almost a year. The only thing I found bringing joy to my heart was the ministry I was doing. By the time my job with the agricultural company wanted to move me somewhere else, my heart did not want to leave because of the ministry I was involved in.

When I had moved, the church I became a part of was also very active in the work of missions. Going out and sharing the gospel in villages was a great desire for them. 

It was again that I realized my joy and passion was in doing the Lord’s work, and not for contributing to a company looking for profit. The more I served in the church, the more my desire to serve the Lord grew. All I wanted was to see God’s people come to a more clear and full knowledge of Him, and also to take this Gospel of grace to a people that were still living in darkness. I wanted them to be like me; eyes open to the wonderful mercy of God’s grace and lovingkindness.

I prayed that if it was in His will for me to serve in the church body, that there would be an open door for me to study, and to be equipped for the monumental task of teaching God’s truth. 

The Lord answered my prayer. 

After four years deep in the study of the Lord, God again confirmed the call to ministry by opening a door at Reformation Bible Church. 

For me, this was clear. 

This was what the Lord had put in my heart!

My love for the Lord and his church has been growing ever since. Serving Christ and His church has been, and always will be life’s delight.