Our testimonies can speak louder than any argument or debate,it's your/our own and it's worthy enough to share!
You can share of how you came to know and have a relationship w/ Christ,or you can just share stories of how God has been good,how God supernaturally intervened to where you know it could only be the hand of God,so on and so forth!

GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME, AND ALL THE TIME GOD IS GOOD!!!

Written by: Kellie in the original "Testimony Time" post

AMY-POOKIEBREWSTER'S TESTIMONY

Well my main testimony would have to be having my daughter. We had been ttc for 18 long months when I finally conceived her. We now know why God waited so long to bless us with her.

We were living in a lower apartment under this woman who wasn't someone you would want to live under. She made my life miserable. After I had known I was pg for 2 weeks, we started looking into finding a new place to live. We had a dog, so we had to find somewhere that would allow us to have a dog. Which is NOT easy to come by with a low enough rent we could afford. We looked at a really nice lower apartment in a house. It had a nice front yard and backyard but there was a train track about 200 feet from the back of the house. We figured it would be a lot better living there than where we were currently living. We really wanted the apartment but couldn't afford a security deposit and first months rent right away. The landlord asked us what we thought and when we seemed hesitant, he asked us if we would have a problem paying for both right away. He said that he would take half the security deposit then and first months rent in a week and asked when we could pay for the rest of the security deposit. This was the week of Thanksgiving and we told him we would be able to pay it the middle of Jan. He said that was great and we could move in right away and he would even keep the utilities in his name until the 1st of the month which was over a week away. We jumped on it knowing that God had provided the place for us. We moved in 2 days later.

I had always wanted to be a SAHM and with Mark's salary, there was no possible way that it would be able to happen. He brought home about $200 a week. I was due on July 11 and Mark started looking for a job the end of May. He had an interview with a really good company making over double what he was making. But because of the insurance, he wasn't going to switch jobs. This company really wanted him and called to ask him if he was going to take the job. He explained the situation about the insurance and he told Mark to not have that be the reason for not accepting. Mark did take the job and we had to go on Cobra, which is REALLY expensive. Mark started the new job on May 31, so his insurance with the company would start on Aug 1. If he started the next day, it wouldn't have started til Sept 1. For the month of June, we only had to pay for Cobra coverage on me. Then the company let us pay for single coverage on me until the baby was born and then started the family coverage. We were amazed that they were willing to do that for us! It was TOTALLY God!

I went into the hospital on July 10th as I thought my water was leaking. The resident dr checked me and said I was peeing on myself. I KNEW that is not what it was but he wouldn't let me say a word edgewise because he was the dr and he knew better than me. On Friday, July 14, Brooklyn was born with NO water. She was perfectly healthy and did not contract an infection from being without a water for almost a week. THANK GOD!!

When Brooklyn was 1 week old, we went to a friend's house. We were there for 15 minutes and kept Brooklyn in her car seat the whole time. The next day I get a call from the emergency room telling me that my friend's son was admitted into the ER that day. She told me that he was VERY sick. I found out he had meningitis. He would have died had they not brought him in when they did. I was REALLY scared that I had just had my baby at that house the day before. There was no way to prevent Brooklyn from getting it since she was so young. She NEVER had any problems.

When I brought Brooklyn in for her 2 week check up, her head had grown so much that it was off the charts. The dr was pretty concerned about hydrocpheylus. I called my church that day and had everyone praying for her. Her head had been at 50 percentile from birth. When I took her back to the dr in a week for a re-check, her head was right back on the chart at 50 percentile!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!! I KNOW that he healed her!!

All of this came about in less than a year's time. We had MANY trials that God brought us out of in the amount of time from conceiving Brooklyn to shortly after her birth. God really worked in our lives and this all happened after we started tithing faithfully every month! We have NEVER stopped tithing since. We know he continues to bless us but it hasn't been in ways that are so clear as all of these testimonies!

Amy
Brooklyn 7-14-00

Aly's (alybear) testimony (2-26-03)

I became a Christian a few years ago (19?)...or maybe when I was 6. At 6, my parents brought us to church (catholic/christian) and the preist/pastor said to the congragation: today we're going to help these little ones ask Jesus into their hearts. (I wasn't one of them...this was our first time to the church). Well I went home that night, and before going to sleep, thought: well, if they can ask Jesus into their hearts, I can ask Him into mine. So I did. All I said was: Jesus, I ask you to come into my heart. (talk about childlike faith). Now that I'm typing this, i really believe the spirit is saying: yes...that is when you were saved. hmm

Well fast forward a bit Here I am 19, just finished college and working at my 2nd radio station full time. (I had worked at the most popular station in Vancouver...2nd biggest city in Canada I believe. But only worked there as an intern...but got to go on the air with the morning show team! Total foot in the door to the industry )

Okay, this is looking like it's going to be super long!!
Anyway, I start going to church there (in a small town called Merritt). meet my best friend, Tammy. She falls away from the Lord (7th day adventist...don't know if it's a cult or not, that's not the point anyway) and gets married to a non christian man. Anyway, that night my girlfriends (who lived a town away) asked me to come back with them. i was so tired, but finally gave in to sleeping over at their house.

the next day was sunday...Church day of course! Anyway I'm sitting in church and the Lord decides to pour His love over me. So I'm sitting there, church is over, snot and tears running down my face when my friend Barb goes: "LOOK THERE'S BRANDON, 21 AND SINGLE!!" she was perfectly serious!! Okay, so she gets him over and I'm like, yeah whatever "hi." (really I'm not a valley girl!! ) At that point I really didn't care if I ever had a guy in my life again, as long as I had God.

That night we went to another church for evening service. I'm worshipping the Lord, praising Him for what He had done that day...giving me His love etc. And I notice the same guy I had met that morning staring at me. i thought, oh he thinks I'm weird (I was dancing around, singing, lifting my hands).. and then I thought...who cares! Maybe I am weird
Well Brandon didn't take his eyes off me, and I just decided to keep on doing what I was doing...offensive or not!! (no one else seemed to be as excited as i was for God..at least no one was showing it the way I was). I found out later that it was because he thought I was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, and that i was too good for him

Well at break (this was a vineyard church so they have coffee between worship and the word) i went up to him..he was talking with another group of my friends and said "hi." (i was a little standoffish that morning).

Anyway, we all (yes the whole church) went out to eat that night and my friends were about to drive me home and one of them asks Brandon to come with us. Well he just kept talking to me the entire way, as if no one else was there

Oh Jeepers... could this get any more drawn out???

Anyway, I kept the suspense up for awhile (didn't bother to call him even though he gave me his card) and eventually all of my friends and him came together again.

We prayed and prayed and got tonns of confirmation of us being together. To make a long story (haha) shorter he proposed to me 2 1/2 months later and got married 2 1/2 months after that. YES you read right...5 months!!

We fasted touching during that time (one month) and decided God didn't want us kissing until our wedding day. So we didn't !! It was the most amazing wonderful thing in the world!

Oh I forgot to add that I brought him into my car after about the 3rd time hanging out together and said "I know you like me and I like you. Except I am not going to be kissed until my wedding day." God brought me the book "kiss dating goodbye" right before Brandon came into my life. OY talk about blunt. Well he agreed right there...we weren't going to kiss unless we were married! Boy was it worth it...not that the kiss was spectacular(it was too), but our relationship and friendship was even more enhanced by God!

Well right after we got married we started having problems. I was so scared he would leave so I became a doormat.(a lot different than the person in the car scene). I remember breaking down almost every night wondering why he was with me...I wasn't good enough etc etc. I hadn't been a Christian for more than a year (or going to church that is) and hadn't had any relationships in that time. I was scared. After everyone in my life had pretty much left me...all I had was God. no one at the church even cared that I was saved. I was just the radio girl and they assumed I had it together I guess. So I didn't understand the gospel. I didn't understand that I didn't have to be perfect...and I didn't understand that Brandon or even God wasn't going to leave me.

(oh by the way we went to disneyland for our honeymoon!! yipee)

Well it just kept getting worse...I was so scared and so depressed. Brandon couldn't handle that and would just go hang out with his other friends. He would come home drunk a lot...high other times. I started working again after I found out that we were going to stop trying to have a baby (we wanted to for a couple of months). And in this time we moved to Kamloops, BC. I was out of radio too since we had moved. I had no desire to go back to work at another station (another long story).

Anyway, i felt like i was going crazy...no husband most of the time...I was always appologizing for things. i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry...and nothing got better. I was submitting...and really feeling abused. Yes, I let that abuse happen because I didn't think i was worth any more than that. And I said to myself...see, he's going to leave you...everyone else has. Well I ended up in the psyche ward of the hospital...for about 10 days...it was horrible (reason being my husband thought I was going to kill myself). No one came to visit...I didn't tell anyone I was so embarrased. I hated it...I felt like a weirdo.

Continued in next reply.....

Aly's testimony continued

There was a guy in there who thought he was Jesus. There were probably about 3 Christians in there...yes, satan loves to destroy relationships with Jesus. After being in the hospital my husband and I thought it was a good idea to separate. He couldn't handle me and my depression anymore...and i couldn't handle it either. I was so dead inside. Oh by the way, being in the hospital didn't keep me from witnessing. I believe a boy was saved after I preached to him about Jesus. i prayed also for everyone before going to sleep at night. When you're that low, anything is a comfort (I'm talking about the unsaved. They let me pray my heart out) I also witnessed to the nurses. No one could understand why I was there...a "pretty girl with her head on straight." Every guy there wanted to date me ( At that point I was tempted...my marriage sucked)

Well that was that for about 3 weeks...i lived at my friend's house. They were so accomidating. I smoked back then too ( in case you cared). Anyway, we seemed to have worked things out...Brandon agreed to be nicer to me etc. I agreed to be the best wife I could.

We fought again...and brandon told me to get out. Okay...A lot of this was because I was having trouble having sex because of my sexually abusive past. I didn't know how to tell him and he didn't know how to take it. He would just get angry. now I realize he got angry because he couldn't fix me.

Within the next month i was pregnant (even though we were separated, we still did the deed). I found out 3 days after Christmas and 3 days before our anniversary. And believe it or not, that was the month we were going to find some better form of birth control (we weren't using protection, and I was 2 months off of birth control pills).
Well Brandon was stunned. i had taken a test and showed him but we both thought it was too light to be a Plus my period was about 10 days late...I had taked a hpt a week earlier and it was negative...I was so late for my period that I thought I wasn't pregnant (tested so late and it was negative..do you catch my drift?).

Next day I went to the docs and he said "congratulations!!" All I could say was OH MY GOD!! I couldn't believe it. Right then and there I knew I was having a girl. We were still having marital problems and Brandon decided that it was time for us to seperate again (I was 6 months pregnant). I was so against it. I cried and cried and cried. Oh my goodness, I couldn't for the life of me believe it. It had a lot to do with Brandon being scared, and me being scared that he was going to leave (talk about a curse).

Well I was alone and at my girlfriends (2 were living there.. all Christian) again. One day God spoke to me: you are NOT "depressed Alyssa, stupid Alyssa, silly Alyssa, Crazy Alyssa...etc." All the things I was accused of (mainly the Crazy part...and depressed part) day and night. (Satan is the accuser of the brethren day and night).
I started to stand up to those accusations. I got my drivers liscence (my husband didn't let me drive because he was scared I'd kill myself ), I literally started speaking in tongues and getting drunk in the spirit). i started living again.

Oh I forgot to mention I prayed over my baby so often. I was so upset most of the time (while I was living with Brandon) that I would cry til I threw up.

I must say that after the last time of him rejecting me( and me rejecting myself)...I was so strong. God just let His spirit guide me. I started believing for my marriage. Yes there were my friends that told me to leave him, but there was also his family who thought I was the most horrible person in the world. He led them to believe it was all my fault (which he has since corrected). He believed in his heart it was my fault for the separation and all our problems. It carried through the church too...because his dad is part of the leadership there. No person cared for my soul. So as you can see, I was very alone...I had my single friends who I love to this day, who did their best to understand. As I write this I am so filled with love for them. They stood by me.
God also spoke to me..."I will justify you." And He also told me to stop speaking poorly of my husband..I did. Another thing He spoke was "I see your marriage not as how the world sees it." my father in law told me later about how he gave up on me. Man, this hurts so much to talk about...to see how unjustly I was treated...but at the time, you have to understand, I thought everyone else was right except me. But God is good...I also felt led to cast down every slander against me out loud...and to forgive people who had hurt me out loud. I did. Well Brandon still wasn't talking to me at this time...so I thought I don't want to take any chances, and didn't get an answer right away from God...so I didn't know if Brandon wanted a divorce or what. My friend suggested I go to legal aid.
While I was standing outside the offices, my MIL walks by!!! This is a work day...and she "just went to the store on her lunch break to buy some teeth whitener"...my goodness! She goes "oh, why are you here." i said, "oh I'm just talking to a friend." (I am such a terrible liar...but I didn't want to tell her I'm there because your son isn't talking to me and I want full custody of our child). Brandon called later that day... "I heard that you were at legal aid..why?" i said because I don't know if you're going to divorce me or what's going on...you're not talking to me. He said "no, I"m not going to divorce you.. but you had me scared."

From that point on I felt relief. If his mom didn't see me..who
knows what would've happened! Well we started seeing each other more often and decided even if we weren't together before the baby came, at least we would live in the same house. Every time we saw each other I would try not to be hardened. i would hold his hand, tell him I loved him (things I had not done to get back at him for being in fights for so long). God just gave me so much faith (yes my daughter too!! It was meant to be AMEN) for my marriage. When Brandon asked me to get back together with him it was the beginning of July 2002. I was so scared. i didn't want another separation. Oh I also forgot to mention I was prepared to be a single mom...had my resume ready and such so I could find work after the baby came.

But after Brandon kept saying, we can do it! And he stopped smoking...for the baby's sake (I had stopped smoking about 3 weeks before I found out I was pregnant!! Talk about God )...and I told him how much I was afraid of him and his anger...He was convicted. He said, I am so sorry...that's the last thing I want for you. I don't want you to be scared of me. He said, we can pray every day... my mom even has scriptures about talking it out and not letting anger rule our lives. I thought..okay God. Please let this be it.
After we got back together it was like I was a new person. I prayed and prayed and prayed and was filled with so much joy..and I was drunk in the spirit quite often.
Brandon even stopped hanging out with his unsaved friends (who were into drinking and smoking up etc.) Brandon got involved in ministry and about a month before Faith was born, he started reading the word endlessly. He found tons of scripture about God planning the family (something I had prayed about for a year straight...i was convicted and Brandon didn't even want children until after we were 30yo or so)...and we decided that we would let God have reign not only in our finances, marriage...but also in our family planning! PRAISE GOD!
So 4 weeks later on September 5th..little Faith Destiny came into our lives. The most beautiful, wonderful, amazing little girl that is a testimony forever to our love...for generations to come!
We felt that that was our last separation ever and had it confirmed through prophecy. Not only that, but before brandon was conviced of the "leaving our family planning to God" that we would have lots and lots and lots of children ..that they would be the fruit of my womb...and not all the fruit would be from my womb..so I'm thinking we're going to adopt at some point as well. We will see what that means in the future

Other prophecys for our home include: "the glory of the Lord will fall in our home"
"house of healing"
"mother healer (me)"

My husband is a prophet...even though he's not fully walking that out right now, he's still learning. Even reading this again has given me a wave of Faith. Speaking of which, our children will always be reminders to us of what God has done, through their names. Elijah Justice will be the name of our son (if we have one...which I have a feeling we will. Another testimony! I prayed that the name Elijah would grow on Brandon. We were going to name Faith "Jayden" if she was a boy. I come home one day (Faith was about 4 months old) and Brandon and my FIL were talking..."what do you think about the name Elijah if we have a boy" says Brandon!! HAHAHA God is good! He didn't even remember that I liked the name!!

Oh my goodness...well, there is my story! God is so good, he is still working on me from the inside out. i can't tell you how much I've grown even in the last 2 weeks! I love you guys so much and thanks for helping me in my walk. Thanks for reading my story too!! Hope this has helped someone!! At least helped to get to know me a little better.

Sunny (bingle13)

YAHOOOOOO!!!!!

He Is!!! HE IS ALIVE!!!!! HIS WORD IS TRUE!!!!! HE
DOESN'T LIE....HE DOESN'T FAIL....HE DOESN'T GO BACK
ON HIS WORD. HE WILL NEVER LEAVE OR FORSAKE YOU!!!

okay.....I've got your attention so NOW YOU HAVE TO READ THIS....


I was talking with a woman that was in this marriage class that dh & I took this fall. I was dreading the call in a way because she loves to talk. She is an older woman, who happens to be very wise. She's been married for almost 30 years & has 10 grandkids. (just setting the scene for ya'll).

Anyways, "I thought" our conversation was ending when she goes "You got a minute?" and kept on talking without really letting me answer. I thought...yeah, I've got a minute. but only a minute. (how selfish I am, looking back on it). She told me about a call she received early last week. It was early in the morning (before 6am). She figured it was probably one of her daughters. It was actually her son-in-law. They wanted her to come over to their house right away (30 min drive). Their 2 yr old son had fallen off the barstool at their house onto the kitchen floor. He was unconscious & his eyes were glazed over & off to the side. The police were there & they were having a hard time reviving him. The paramedics were just arriving. She said she would. She proceeded to get the prayer network at her church going to pray for that little boy. They called her again a little bit later & it was her daughter asking her WHERE ARE YOU? She was told to meet them at the hospital. She got there & they were in a waiting area. She prayed with them right then & there that there would be no damage to him whatsoever. She referenced a scripture in Deuteronomy (can't remember which one) but I believe it was talking about the works of the Lord & living a long life...not sure. The nurse came & told them that they were just waiting for the results of the CAT scan. This woman asked what exactly they were looking for & the nurse said they were looking for bleeding & because of the type of fall they were looking to see if he had a broken neck & potential paralysis.
This woman then prayed with her daughter & son-in-law and this other lady from their church that "IN JESUS NAME, they will find that there will be no damage or bleeding, there will be no broken neck/bones & no paralysis in any way." The parents were able to go into his room after the scan. Her soninlaw came out & asked her to go in. The boy was thrashing about so they had him strapped down (convulsions) & they had all kinds of tubes/iv's in him. When she went in there were 4 nurses & 1 doctor in there & then the boy's mom. It was a very grim/grave/somber room. She went over to him & there was just one small spot on his tummy that was not touched by the straps or tubes. She laid her hands on him & started talking to him first, letting her know that she was there and then she prayed over him that he was healed and there will be no damage to his brain or body whatsoever. And after that.......


HIS EYES OPENED.....HE WASN'T THRASHING....IT WAS RECOGNITION. He didn't speak but IT WAS RECOGNITION. His eyes were not glazed over whatsoever. Not long after he was eating a popsicle, and running back & forth between his mom & dad. The doctor & nurses were amazed. This neurologist that they had called in said that he didn't see any reason for them to airlift him to the hospital here (peds icu here). One of the paramedics that had gone to the house came to the hospital to check on him & he was AMAZED. He had a cousin that went to their church & had told that cousin that it was a very grim situation. He was home LATER THAT SAME MORNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I wanted to cry, I wanted to laugh, I wanted to....I don't know. I told her how much she had blessed my soul with that story. She is so in alignment with God's word & faithful to act it.

So....I'm sharing this story with you of HOW AWESOME GOD IS. AWESOME,AWESOME,AWESOME.



dancing before the Lord with joy!!!!!!!

Share this story with anyone & everyone. She has already shared it with anyone & everyone...even the mailman that she has never talked to before who just so happened to ask her how she was doing & then asked her if she "HAD ANY GOOD NEWS????????" Did she ever have good news????

That's the good news!!!!! Jesus. It's all about Jesus. That's why I'm sharing this. That is what everyone needs to see.

GOD!!!


Sunny
Sunny aka Bingle

Aly:



Ok GET READY!! Oh man, I am soooo healed already!!
Well, yesterday was the first day in my entire life that I really felt free from food!! (I can almost fly!!!!)
God is so good!!

I started confessing out loud what Kellie gave me (about God balancing out my eating) and the Holy Spirit just kept encouraging me!!
I ate during the day (because I was hungry), but like I've said before I can't tell when I'm full. I always feel hungry when I'm hungry.
i felt like I ate so much (it really wasn't though now that I think about it), plus I ate a full dinner!! (I feel guilty for eating all the time!!) So with that guilt comes condemnation, and because I think "i've ruined it" all the time by eating, then I just eat and eat and I don't stop, because I think I've failed God anyway.

Yesterday though, God was like "eat what you want, just don't listen to the devil when he says you've failed me by eating. Listen to me and you wont eat too much"

So we went to white spot for dinner, I felt so guilty for ordering a burger, but then I stopped that thought. When I got the burger I ate 3/4 of it, plus about 3/4 of my fries. And I stopped. Second of all I ENJOYED IT!!! YUM!! Another thing I rarely do cuz I'm so worried I'm overdoing it!!

I had a revelation on the way to White Spot but it was only clear for a second. (concerning eating) ...It will come clearer as I go along though.

This morning I don't have that awful full, sick feeling I normally do, or the gloom i usually have hanging over my head (thinking that I failed again). I AM FREEEE!! Just one day is a victory!! I can eat again today and be FREEE!! PRAISE GOD!!

Obviously this is a personal thing, because most people know it's ok to eat

Bless GOD!! Thank you all for your prayers. I am continuing to walk this out with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!!

Alyssa 24, DH Brandon 24
Faith Destiny born sept 5/02

Jen (mcraejl):

Alyssa man you sound like me. I fasted last monday and God reveiled why I eat the way I do now to change it. That is the hard part. I have a TON of weight to lose like 115 to 125lbs. I know God wants me to be healthy but I have learned that I am trying to kill myself by over eating and that food has somewhat become my "god". Pass some of your vision here please

Crystal (BAHCAL MOM):

There are some great testimonies on here! What a blessing...

Following is a copy of my response to a recent thread on "Being filled With the Holy Spirit" ...

Aly, first off, don’t doubt! Sounds to me like you are filled (baptized ) in the Spirit, based on your account. Kellie explained it very well. For sure if you confess Jesus as Lord and magnify Him, it is the Spirit of God that has filled you!

I’m so sorry about your negative experience at church. I know for me also (some years ago) there was no pressure applied to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. It was not necessary for salvation, as I had already received the Holy Spirit, but it was vital to leading a more victorious life and provided that extra unction for doing what God calls us to do as believers. I myself sought the Lord, read up on this and prayed for a few months after my initial exposure to this ‘experience’. Prior to that I had never even heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit before and had pretty much grown up in church. When I got to the point where I hungered and thirsted for more of God, I left a cell group one evening, got home and as soon as I entered my apartment, fell to my knees and began praising him in English (my know language). Almost immediately, I began speaking in tongues. It was constant and flowing and I remember just going on for days. I did not want to stop. From that moment on it was like the breaking of a dam in my soul and spirit that flooded me with a constant stream. The first morning after waking I had a song going on my spirit that I heard in my mind. Awesome! Mind you, hands had been laid on me a few months before and I believe that I actually received at that time, but didn’t step out in faith until that most memorable evening to actually begin to practice my new prayer language.


This infilling even is continual. As we give of ourselves to the Lord daily, in our walk with Him, he continues to fill us up. Forget the scripture right now, but it is perpetual (be, being filled). It’s up to us to cultivate it and build up ourselves in the spirit (one of the benefits) as you may know, praying in the spirit (tongues) also edifies our spirit. As explained by Kellie, the initial evidence of that baptism in the Spirit, is speaking in tongues.

Aly I believe that Holy spirit would like me to share a few of my experiences I had over the years when actually praying in the Spirit literally made the difference between life and death for me and my family. Bear with me for a few minutes.

When I had my initial experience I was still married to and living with my ex. He was working nights at the time. For a few months I had been waking up at night thinking that I saw a light shining through my bedroom window. Then I just dropped back off to sleep sure that I had imagined it. This one night after about a month or so of being spirit filled, I woke up suddenly very alert at about 2:30 a.m. I definitely saw a light flicker at my bedroom window. As I sat up in bed it disappeared. My first inclination was to talk out loud to my ex and pretend that he was there. Instead, I started to praise the Lord and then started to pray in tongues. Immediately the Holy Spirit directed me to Psalm 46. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble”. I had no idea why. I began speaking this out loud. BTW, the phone was out but even then I did not suspect any danger. I began pacing the house and walking throughout just praising the Lord and singing in the spirit. The manifest presence of God was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. It filled my home. I didn’t even realize that an hour or more had passed. As I stood in my kitchen, the door was abruptly opened and I saw the startled face of a man (my next door neighbor). There was a shock of bright light and bolted as he swung my kitchen door open. Even know I am in awe at what happened. It was my first and only encounter to date, of actually seeing an angel. The only way I can explain it is tat as the door opened, and he was about to pounce in on me, an angel of God, about 15 feet tall maybe, separated me from him. He could not enter. His eyes were opened to the spirit realm for that moment in time and what he saw startled and frightened him so much that he took off. My eyes were opened for a brief moment as well. It all happened so quickly. I saw clearly an angelic form, very tall, head through my ceiling, very bright, very light. I was not in awe of the angel, but in awe of God. When this imposter ran off I was able to leave my apartment and run upstairs to a Christian couple who were also neighbors of mine.

Here’s the goodness of God. I had no idea that danger was at hand. HE got me up and had me praying in the Spirit to ward off evil. When I got upstairs to my neighbors house we called the police and the guy was caught the next day. My neighbors were also Christian (I always though so but didn’t know for sure). The Lord also woke them up about an hour before I was awakened. They felt led to pray but didn’t know whom they were praying for, so they prayed in tongues. If that wasn’t enough, I found out at church when I shared my experience a few evenings later that 2 ladies (prayer warriors) had been awakened by the Holy Spirit at the same time that night to pray for me. They didn’t know my name, but remembered me from being in the ministry of helps. They prayed in the spirit as well. God is Awesome!

We later found out that this neighbor of mine was a real pervert with sexual offences. He had actually made a small hole in the screen of my bedroom window and had been a peeping Tom for months. Even occasionally when my ex was at home. His wife told on him. He had lots of porno material and had the worst of intentions towards. The Lord preserved me. God is good and Faithful! The actual filling of the Holy Spirit played an important part here because it took place at a crucial time for me and because I (and other spirit filled believers) opened up to the Lord He was able to flow and move as He needed to.

Another time before my oldest brother came to the Lord, he led a very dangerous life. He was on drugs for a number of years and sometimes got some really close calls. This is the brother who was shot recently. He’s been serving the Lord for about 5 years now. About 10 years ago I was in my kitchen cooking a meal and felt really burdened for him. I didn’t know why but felt led to just pray in the spirit. I stopped in my tracks and just began to pray out loud until I sensed a release. This lasted about 5 minutes. Later that week when I spoke to my brother he told me that he was almost killed. He mentioned the date and approximate time and it was exactly at the time that was ed to pray for him. When we don’t know how or what to pray the Spirit Himself helps our infirmities (weaknesses) and causes us to dig deep within the heart of God and pray His will in a situation. My brother had been shot at and missed by several bullets as I was praying for him. Once again, God’s goodness evident to preserve his life. Even the incident that occurred last month with my family when they were traumatized in their home and my brother shot 7 times (survived and at home recovering today) and a gun held to my sister’s head (and the trigger did not go off) is further confirmation of God’s goodness. A week before it all happened (on Mother’s day) I felt an heavy burden for my family, especially my Mom. I knew I was going to get in touch with her that day by phone (3,000 miles apart) but there was more. I could not explain. I began to cry uncontrollably and just felt led t pray in the spirit. It was only the following week that I realized why I had been praying the way I did. God preserved 7 lives. The gunman has since given his life to the Lord. Praise the Lord!

I can go on Aly, there are so many experiences. Even when Abigail and Liam came 12 weeks early the doctors didn’t know if either of us would make it. My dh and church prayed (in the spirit and in their understanding), laid hands on me and spoke the word. We believed the report of the Lord. I had the best team of doctors and God’s presence was with me and in me the entire time. What peace…

I believe that the Lord wants you to know that being filled is not based on how you feel. Feelings (emotions) fluctuate. He has filled you and has placed His Spirit inside of you for His good pleasure. With salvation you/we received His Spirit (the power source). With the baptism (infilling) you/we received a greater dimension of the release of His Spirit (the power source) in life to do and to be all that He needs us to do and to be. It’s not a badge of honor as believers sometimes make it out to be but was promised to us and intended for everyday use, to enhance our relationship with the Lord and make a difference in our lives and in the lives of those around us and around the world. We received and were baptized in the Spirit by faith, and the more we use our prayer (tongues) language (in praise, worship, warfare, communion, intercession, prayer, etc) the more proficient we become at it. Desire to keep being filled up daily. Don’t listen to the lies and taunting of the enemy to try and cause doubt. God’s word is TRUE!

Here are a few more scriptures that you might find helpful for a start. I’m sure that there are more: John 14:16-17, Luke 11:13, Acts 2:4, Acts 2:32-33,39, 8:12-17, 10:44-46, 19:2, 5-6, 1 Cor. 14:2-15, 18-27, Eph. 6:18, Jude 1:20

There are so many benefits to being filled. As you go through the word and pray I’m sure the Holy Spirit will continue to minister to your heart in this area. Love you!


Crystal, WAHM and William (DH)
Our Twin Blessings !!

Kellie (new_birth):

Hmmm,this thread's getting a lil dusty,just want to keep it going!As for the newbies,I was previously known as ''mom04byst'' and "fruitfullvine5"

Since I post here pretty much daily what I am about to post is nothing new to you(the regulars)but maybe someone who hasn't kept up can be encouraged,even if it's just over something little!The day I found out I was pg(2 days after Spring ) I was riding home after dropping off dc at school and i heard the voice of the Lord say ''this is your Jessica''!Even though God had given me a prohetic dream that I was gonna have a daughter and that she is gonna have a special calling,I still in my flesh had a little doubt that I was carrying a girl!

I immediately began to pray for a healthy child and a healthy uncomplicated pgy,labor, and delievery!My last pgy, labor, and delivery left a bad taste in my mouth and I felt like I had been cheated!I had complete placenta previa which led to an emergency c/s at 32 weeks!I was put under and my dh was not there to see him be born!I wanted this time to be totally different!At my 15wk u/s there was no sign of previa,but a fibroid did appear(no biggie,I had no worries about it they are common but can pose problems) I do remeber praying that it would shrink away!I HAD ANOTHER u/s about a month later only to find that I had a marginal previa,and the dr's were concerned I may have an accreta(scar tissue attaches to other organs requiring a hysterectctomy,excessive blood loss e.t.c.!In my flesh I was scared,but in my spirit I had peace!

I was told I had a 25% chance of accreta/previa,BUT God spoke and said,''You have a 75% chance of not having it,which is greater'?'!He always gave me a word when I was facing ''dr's statistics''!At each u/s there was not another sign of the fibroid!I mentioned to the tech's that it probably shrunk and they said they usually don't shrink,bc during pgy they get bigger(bc of excess estrogen)but they didn't know what I did...that God had answered prayer!Then at my 34wk u/s to make sure the placenta had moved we found out jessica was oblique breech/diagonal!I thought to myself what next as I was determined to have a vaginal,natural delivery!During the next few weeks she'd flip flop keeping me on the edge!The perinatologist suggested the name of another ob in my clinic that had more experience and who had practiced ob longer than the one I was seeing!I changed dr's bc I wanted to have a version(turn baby manually)done and my ob was a doll but didn't have much experience!Looking back I see how God orchestrated everything!I ended up not needing a version,as she was head down,just not centered(altough on the u/s she appeared to be)

Make a long story short,after laboring for nine hr's(w/ virtually NO PAIN!) stalling at 4cm, we made the decision to go w/ a c/s!I broke down and cried,it was the weakest moment in my pgy!I blamed myself for being induced two weeks early(dr's orders to catch baby head down)instead of waiting and trusting God!Thank God I had the most experienced dr do my c/s as my uterus was rotated to the right,which made it impossible for her to come down the birth canal,I also lost a litre of blood which they got under control!I had these complications bc of much scarring from my last c/s,the scarring caused my uterus to shift!

About a week later I had 2-3 dreams in a row that I was still pg and went into labor and had to have an emergency c/s!I feel this was God's way of telling me had I went in on my own that would have been the outcome(similar to #4)I beleive God had me face my worse fear to show me I could overcome!

Even tho she didn't come the way I wanted her,I still have fond memories of the c/s(somethin i never expected)
When she cried for the first time,it was music to my ears,and whEn dh brought her to me and put her face against mine it felt like heaven!God can teach us many things thru ONE experience,and he did just that!!My faith and trust will always remain,even when *my* plans don't!


I was thinking yesterday how God really showed himself to me during this last pgy!My fourth pgy I had complete placenta previa(had to have emergency c/s at 32weeks)

Kellie

Kathryn (Kathryn2inIll )

here is mine since I never got around to doing it before


I grew up in an athiest home. I was told the only logical explaination for us being here was by aliens. : I always felt a longing for soomething more though. I tried astrrology, tarrot card, other worse things. It was never right though. I had a few people in my life show up & try to explain God but I never got it. Then I met my dh 9 years ago. Then I met his family, & more important his Aunt! (she is who I call mil) Anyway I thought she was a bible thumping nut when I met her.er But she was always open to questions I had & was always willing to start talking about Jesus. (I had never heard of him before) after a couple of years she lent me a bible & I started reading it. Then I got my own. When My dd was just a few motnhs old alone with my bible in my hand I ask Jesus to save me. ray I didn't do much growing as a Christian until another 2 years later when we moved to Il. Then I met wonderful people who invited me to church.er2 From there I joined a small group & got more involved & learned more & more. I have changed churches this year but am getting involved there too. A couple of weeks ago I made a public dedication to Jesus by being baptised. anana What an awesome experience. I still want to cry thinking about it!

Jessi (GeoJessi)

Kathryn. What a great testimony. I can't believe I haven't posted mine yet, so here it goes...

I grew up going to the Methodist and Lutheran church (when we actually did go to church), and I was baptized (sprinkled) as an infant. Just before I turned 15 I started going down the wrong path. I dated around a lot. I even did drugs for a short period of time. I fell into a deep depression, I was way too serious with my boyfriend, and everything closed in on me one afternoon after school. I took 80 asprin and was seriously sick all night. I remember sitting in my bathtub thinking that I was going to die. Thanks be to God a friend of mine called and I told her what I did. She made me promise that I would tell my mom, which I didn't do. Thanks be to God again, this friend realized that I wasn't at school the next morning and she called her mom and called the police. I was admitted to the hospital for a couple days and that was the end of it. To this day nobody in my family even talks about it. So, anyway, I stopped doing drugs, but I turned to drinking and partying. I started hanging out with new friends and we were obsessed with finding a party and guys. That was the path my life was going down when I graduated high school.

While my friends stayed home to go to community college or the university in town I left to go to the University of Nebraska in Lincoln (a hour away). I met John the day after I moved to Lincoln, and it was pretty much love at first sight. He had some issues of his own, but we both agreed that we wanted better things for our lives. We both believed in God and believed Jesus was our Savior, we just weren't living our lives for Him. In Oct '99 (2 months after we met) we were engaged. On Christmas day '99 I found out I was pregnant with Christian. While it was unplanned we were both very excited about the pregnancy. We got married a month after Christian was born by the Justice of the Peace. (I still plan on having a big wedding one day ) The first few months were pretty bad. We fought a lot, were strapped financially, lots of things. Things weren't always bad though.

When Christian was 2 months old we moved to Omaha (where I was from in the first place) and John got a new job. At this job he met a guy named Chris who was a Christian. John and I were still wanting to get our lives on the right track at this point so he asked Chris if he wanted to start a bible study. We did a bible study with him and his wife and another couple for a year or so. Soon after we started the study we visited their church and have been there ever since. I LOVE our church and the people there! In May of 2000 John committed his life to the Lord and was baptized. I was still struggeling with the fact that I believed I hade already been baptized when I was a baby. I studied it, prayed about it, was hasseled about it by dh (I love you, hon), but still couldn't decide. I finally prayed "God make it very obvious to me whether you want me to be baptized again or not." and He did. The next Sunday at church a friend of mine came up to me crying. She asked if I had been baptized yet. I told her no and she kept crying. She said she felt like she had failed God, because the week before He started telling her to tell me that He loves me and wants me to commit my life to Him, but she didn't tell me right away. I figured it couldn't get much more obvious than that, so I was baptized, by dh, that Wednesday (a few weeks after he was baptized).
That leads me to now. I am trying to live my life for God, and I am finding it to be easier and easier all the time. At first it was so hard to give certian things up, but now it doesn't seem so hard all the time.

That is my novel, I mean testimony.

Crissi (Crissi2)

I have called myself a Christian all my life. I was baptized into the Catholic religion, and my parents used to drag us to this church where we would sit there and be bored while the priest dragged on about who knows what. I was only a child, and found it hard to listen. I just know there were times to stand, times to sit, times to kneel. The priest would say something, and we would reply something in unison. We all said the same prayer outloud, and sang the same hymns, many of them not making sense to me as they weren't in english. At any rate, they were just words in a book, not words from the heart. I believed that by knowing who Jesus was, and believing he was God, there was a space for me in Heaven. I did not know it was possible to have a personal relationship with God, or actually feel him in my life. God was hardly metioned outside of the house, so I grew up ashamed of religion and believing in God.

When I met my future husband, he was very Christian, and was fortunate enough to have experienced churches outside of the catholic faith. He insisted I should go with him sometime, but I always resisted. I had never known any non-catholic church, and just assumed that all churches were boring and unfeeling, full of people who you would never say hello to in any other setting. I was still going to church at this time because of my parents. But once I moved out, I stopped going altogether. Dh also had been distancing himself from being a practicing Christian. Throughout the years, I spradically prayed to God, though I hardly felt him, and DH explored new religions and becamse multi-religious. He stopped believing Jesus was the son of God. He insisted Jesus was merely a prophet, no more than men like Muhammad or Ghandi. I worried, but not so much since I was barely religious myself. We got married in a very nonreligious ceremony with a non-denominational pastor, with no mention of God in our ceremony.

When my daughter was 2, I started feeling something pulling me to find a church and find God. I did find a great church, but because I knew no one at all, as I was new to the area, I didn't give it a fair chance. It wasn't until my son was born that I returned to church. By now I was living again in my hometown, and an old friend introduced me to her foursquare gospel church. I started going regularly, bawling at each service. I never knew such emotions could evolve. I went every Saturday night with my two children while DH stayed home. He was very negative about the church, and was not shy to say so. Still I pressed on, never voicing my wishes for him, but praying silently to God. I began getting more involved, and learned so much about God, and how to have a personal relationship with him. After our unborn son died last year at 32 weeks, I had God and the church to turn to, while DH had no one. For 6 months he went through hell. I had a hard time too, but he was alone in his pain because he did not have Jesus in his heart. Finally, I talked him into going with me. For weeks he promised, but he kept putting it off. I remained calm, and never pressured him, only prayed. I made it clear to him that his decision to come to church would be his own. I didn't hide that I would be thrilled if he came, but I didn't pressure him at all. He finally promised our daughter, and knew he couldn't break a promise to her. He came, but only after telling me that I shouldn't expect anything, and to never expect him to come again. Well, he cried at that service, especially when the pastor himself told him in the middle of his sermon that he had been praying for him. He began going regularly, and is now commited to the church family. And he is a devoted Christian.

I am hoping this testimony will give hope to those of you who are praying for your husbands, or other family members. The power of prayer does work!

Thank you for reading, and giving me this space to tell my story!