I have many testimonies to share with you but one stands out to me because of the traumatic and emotional impact that it had on me personally. Years ago I owned a small buy here pay here dealership. In that business you have the opportunity to minister to people with a wide variety of circumstances and problems. I financed a station wagon to couple that had just moved down here from Michigan with their five children. The man was covered in signs of hard life from bad tattoos and scars to a very defensive attitude. I witness to them both. Steve (not his real name) seemed to be receptive and told me that he would come to my bible study but would not go to church. Over the next few weeks I had the opportunity and platform to be able to speak to Steve on a more personal level. At the time I was in a constant state of fasting and prayer and was very sensitive to the Holy Spirit. I told Steve specifically that it was time and that God was calling him. He said that he was just not ready yet. The holidays were upon us so on Friday I closed the store around mid day to take my family shopping at the Mall. Steve called my cell phone in a panic. He said that he was lost somewhere in metro area and wanted to make his payment. I told him that it was alright and that we could get tomorrow yet he insisted in and frantic insane manner. I finally had to get stern with him and hang up. On the way home miles away from the dealership we exited the Hwy. Passing a bank I noticed a truck (one that I had never seen before) and the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said “that is him, turn around and go back”. As I was making a u-turn my wife asked me what I was doing and told her that I would tell her later. Keep in mind this is a city with hundreds of thousands of vehicles on the road every day. When I walked in the bank there he was standing at the counter. I call his name and when he turned around to see me the look on his face would have told me that he was now a believer. He asked me how I found him. I told him that God had sent me to tell him that it is time. Once again he told me that he was just not ready. The following Saturday his wife came in to the dealership to make a payment. She was obviously upset about something. She told me that Steve had gambled most of their money away and the living conditions were atrocious for her and her five children. I knew by the Spirit that Steve was not her husband. With no reason I began to testify to her about a man that attempted to commit suicide at the dealership several months earlier (another story that Ill share sometime). She began to go into a hysterical cry. She was crying so hard she could barely breathe. Once she was able to talk she told me that she pulled off on the side of the road this morning and asked God to send her someone to help because she was going to kill herself. I had the opportunity to pray with her. She received Jesus as Lord and savior and immediately her countenance had changed. It was as though she had lost hundreds of pounds instantly. I was honored to be a witness to such a glorious event. The following Monday morning I received a phone call from Steve in a state of absolute rage. He said to me “What the hell did you do? She left me and took the kids back to her husband in Michigan”. I explained to him that she received Christ and was born again and that God was calling him too. I asked him if I could pray for him and he said yes because no one was ever going to hear from him again. I knew that this was extremely serious so I prayed with everything that was in me and with everything that I could think of. When I was done he calmly said goodbye and went into the garage and hung himself. I could hear the devil laughing saying “I got him.” I don’t think that I ever cried so hard in my life. The grief was beyond description. As horrible as that was, a woman and her five children were saved from a potential deadly situation and her eternal state was changed forever for the glory of God. I have had many opportunities to witness to people and see them born again but never anything so dramatic as this.
To God be the glory forever and ever,
Charles
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