MY TESTIMONY.....

My Testimony

When  I was a little girl I used to walk to our quaint little Congregational church across  busy railroad tracks  and highway  to get there .. Whoever my Sunday school  teacher was, taught me about Jesus..
I remember even as that little girl how much I loved God..

I also remember loving Sunday school . Every Sunday my mom would take a Hanky tie and a few pennies , nickels, and if I was really Fortunate,  a quarter, dimes.
I remember dressing up in a white robe and a black bow over my Sunday clothes and I would light the alter candles every Sunday after Sunday school , before church..
 I always loved CHRISTMAS time in that church.. Each class would stand in front of the church full of people and recite what I know now were scripture verses to celebrate Jesus' birth in a CHRISTMAS program on Christmas Eve .
The CHRISTMAS Tree was always a huge floor to ceiling tree decorated majestically ..
When I was about 10 years old our family moved to a smaller town and I dutifully attended Sunday school in the little Methodist church .

When I was about 12-13 years old, one of my best friends invited me to a revival at the  Baptist church in my small hometown..
I listened carefully thinking how different the services were from the Congregational and Methodist churches I had attended prior as a little girl .
 The visiting pastor preached that you must repent, ask forgiveness of your sins and ask Jesus into your heart ..
At the end of the pastors SERMAN, I felt an incredible urge to go forward and speak to the pastor during alter call. I really did not fully understand the urgent feeling .. But of course I know now it was the Holy Spirits nudge and conviction..
I remember saying something kinda off the wall when he asked why I came forward ..
Thankfully he asked me pertinent questions
Like,  did I understand Christ died for my sins and do I want to ask for forgiveness and ask Christ into my life?
I said "yes I do"!!
I believe that is the day I was saved..
Years went by.. I fell away from going to Sunday school and church..
I met and married my husband and we had our first child and I remember talking to my husband Larry and telling him that I wanted to start going to church and raise our family "in church"..
We visited several churches and found a church we liked.. I remember the feeling and thinking, yes, God is here and this is the church ..
Little did I know my sister Claudia had been saved and she and her mother in law had been praying for Larry and I to find a church home and be saved ..

We attended church several Sunday's until one Sunday we both felt that familiar call and nudge of the Holy Spirit to go forward and ask Christ into our lives ..
I had never really forgotten the first time I had repented and asked him into my heart many years before..
But this time I followed  through with being baptized  that was a public confession that I was saved ...  the death burial and resurrection of Christ ..
As I grew spiritually, I began to serve many years as a Sunday school teacher with the youth group and later in the young married couples .. Three of our children accepted The Lord in that church..
Then problems happened .. We had to move to Seattle because  that was where construction jobs were. The company my husband had worked  for several years, decided to bid jobs on that side of the state..
Economy was bad in Tri Cities.. In fact so bad we almost lost our home.. But by a mighty act of God we sold our house ..
The move was difficult on our older kids, now pre-teens and or teenagers.. We started having problems with
them .. My husband started drinking ..I could not understand why ..  AFTER ALL ,
I LOVED AND SERVED THE LORD ALL THOSE YEARS..
 I would go to church and cry all through the sermons!!
We started having marital problems as well, of course  .. We stopped going to church..
Oh! I still felt like I loved The Lord.. I just couldn't go to church..
Again with the fervent prayers of my sister with many years away from the fellowship .. I began to yearn for the fellowship of Gods people and mainly to worship God again.
So when Claudia moved here from MN. I promised myself I would search for a church with her and get back to where I belonged..
One scripture that God has giving me during my search and helped me to understand is
Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV -
'For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."
It was not up to me, but God!! It is His gift.. His grace!! Nothing I do or could ever do would I be worthy!!
So yes, even though my heart is heavy, and I cry during worship .. I have learned, truly it's ok to cry .. It's The Holy Spirit and    I have to just put my complete trust in him.. It is victory over the deceiver ..Get back into the fellowship .. And know that ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR THOSE Who  LOVE THE LORD.
Romans 8:28