‘I was so full of joy’
The only connection with church I had when growing up was the occasional service as part of my school days.
I didn’t really think about God and assumed there was nothing after death. I guess I believed in evolution like most people, but the subject really didn’t interest me.
It was only after I met Dave back in 2002 that I first heard the gospel. He told me his parents were Christians. I thought that by living in the UK everyone was a Christian. He also told me I was a sinner, to which I replied, ‘What have I done wrong?’
I felt a bit insulted as I thought I was a ‘good’ person. He said his parents attended an evangelical church and I was quite horrified as I instantly thought of TV evangelists. He put my mind at rest and told me it was nothing like that. It’s just a simple service of prayers, hymns and a sermon.
Over the years we discussed Christian things from time to time. I learnt that we are all born separated from God because of sin and that we need to be saved. I understood that there is a God who judges sin and if I didn’t repent I would end up in hell for eternity.
I knew that Jesus died on the cross for my sin by taking my punishment. I realised that a sinner is basically a rebel who doesn’t acknowledge and thank God for their lives and that we can’t possibly meet God’s perfect standards to get into heaven. This was a scary thought, but I still didn’t do anything about it.
Awakened
Dave and I moved to Hull in 2004 with work, with the intention of going to church, but we always found some excuse not to go. We were married in 2005 in my home town in Lincolnshire, in the CofE church I visited occasionally as a child.
It was not until 2007 that I really took my situation as a lost sinner seriously. Whilst on holiday we received some tragic news about my best friend. She was taken into hospital after suddenly collapsing. She died a few days later at the age of 37.
This was shocking news, especially as she was so young, but it did get us to church. We started attending Kingston Evangelical Church in Hull. Dennis Hill’s preaching of the gospel was a big help in leading us to find our faith. I became a Christian on the 24 July 2007. The previous evening I had prayed to God that he would forgive my sins and come into my life.
That day I felt like a different person. I was so full of joy and had a sense of real peace in my heart. I knew then that the gospel was true and that I had been saved.
As a result my life has never been the same since. I have a new outlook and know that I will spend eternity in heaven. I have found that my language is much better and that I am really sensitive to the amount of blasphemy around me.
As a Christian I see the world as it really is. Lots of people are unaware of the danger they are in and I feel a deep sadness for those who are not saved.
Michelle Middleton
