Testimony of Conversion

I grew up as a religious Roman Catholic who thought that his life was right with God because of what I was doing, and not because of what Christ had done for me.

I got offended in college when people asked me if I was born-again. I was convinced that I was saved, couldn’t they see that?

I attended several prayer meetings for Catholic students and other denominational groups at college. One of which went by the name of SCOM (Student Christian Organization of Malawi). During the SCOM gatherings, I responded to lots of altar calls by the Pentecostal preachers who would visit, and I was told the same thing every single time.

“You’ve answered the call, you’ve prayed the sinner’s prayer. You’re born again.”

I knew that I was not changed in terms of my sanctification. I was committing the same sins even after I was declared saved.

Several years after I finished college, I started to work and make money. The gravity of my sinfulness became evident to me as I self-indulged; giving myself fully to sin over the course of four years. At the end of the four years, in 2011, I started to experience difficulties at my workplace and in my private life. The sickness and death of my sister hit me with particular force.

One afternoon, while sitting at my desk in the office, I was in great distress. I went to the bathroom to pray, and I broke out in tears, crying loudly after I realized that I was a sinner in need of God’s grace and forgiveness.

My cries turned from that of a sinner’s, to that of joyfulness and I realized that Christ had forgiven me of my sins. All of them, even the ones I had committed against my mother as an unruly child.

Many things in my past convicted me, even things I hadn’t seen before.

That was the beginning of my Christian life.

I joined Antioch Baptist Church the following year, in June of 2012.

Call to Ministry

After some time had passed, and after joining the congregation at Antioch Baptist Church, the Lord placed a burden on my heart for unbelievers. I would look out through the window in my office and see people walking around, wondering how many of them, if any, were saved.

On another day, I went out to buy some things at the mall, and saw more people. The same thought popped into my head.

Later, I went to a funeral in my home village. Same questions: “Lord, how many of these people know you?”

Over time, I started accusing God of being ungracious and unloving to sinners. Oftentimes I would come to Him in prayer, asking, “How can You allow so many people to die in their ignorance and not save them? You’re God!”

I came to realize that my accusations were baseless. The very same God who was gracious and merciful enough to save me from my sins could never be ungracious and unloving. I knew that He wasn’t what I was accusing Him of being.

After this realization, my question, as well as the One asking it, changed.

“What are you, Masa, doing to make sure that these people hear My Gospel, and be saved?”

The burden of the Lord’s inquiry grew stronger and stronger, until one day, I engaged with the leadership of Antioch Baptist Church to consider me to serve as a pastor. The Church prayer on the matter, and put me on probation in January of 2017.

Five months later, I was confirmed as a pastor.