My Testimony

Dear brothers and sisters, friends and family,

I am forever grateful that you can share this moment with me today. It wasn’t until recently that I realised the significance of this day. In many ways I would liken my baptism to marriage. Baptism of course isn’t necessary for salvation. Baptism is just a public proclamation of my faith in my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, yet it is so much more. The Bible analogises many times in the Old Testament the relationship between God and his people Israel as a marriage, where the people are his bride (Jer. 3, Eze. 16, Hos 1-3). In the New Testament the apostle Paul speaks of the profound mystery: Christ and his church as his bride (Eph. 5). I do not have to marry my girlfriend for her and others to know that I love her. I do not have to be baptised for there to be a loving relationship between myself and God. But just as there are so many reasons to marry, there are so many reasons to become baptised. And so you see, this day could possibly be even more important than my marriage, because today is my marriage to Jesus. And now I would like to share my vows.

For sixteen years, I was oblivious to everything and anything to do with God. All I knew about God was that he was this big supernatural guy who lived in heaven. Heaven was a good place with angels, and hell was a bad place with the devil. Jesus was this important guy to do with Christians. I even remember once at school, when they asked us what B.C. stood for. I had no clue, so I asked Mum. “Bicentenary?” she said.

In high school, I met my best friend Brian. He said he was a Christian, so he was this good, conservative guy, right? In year 7, he said his mission was that by the end of year 12, he would convert his friends. My mission was that by the end of year 12 I would corrupt him. I don’t know how God did it, but that guy is sneaky, crept up on me real good. Brian had been talking about Christian stuff like RICE and other evangelistic events. I went to a few, and started learning a little bit more about who Jesus was and what he did. It was not until RICE Big Day Out in 2007 that the message of the gospel really hit me. For the rest of the week, my thoughts surrounded this decision I was to make. I had turned away from God and I was a broken, absolutely sinful person. Jesus had died on the cross so that I could be forgiven for all of my sins – all I had to do was accept it. But how could I? I didn’t deserve any of this. I am the worst person I could possibly be and now Jesus is just going to give me this thing I don’t deserve? It was the biggest decision of my life, and I actually prayed, not knowing if I was heard. I was once again convicted of Jesus’ love for me at the rally a week later. It was that night that I took the big step – the big leap of faith, and put my life at Jesus’ feet. Shortly after, I joined the youth group REEF at CMC. It was here where I studied Simply Christianity and was first exposed to what church really was. It was here where I grew in my knowledge of who Jesus was and who God was and how I could live my life with Jesus as my Lord. However, I lived far from church, and placed too much of a burden on my parents who would pick me up late every Friday night. Soon after, I had learned a lot of the fundamentals of Christianity, and was quickly accepted into the church family at REEF. But after a while, the late Friday night treks became too much for my parents and I couldn’t go to REEF anymore. It was so unloving of me. I used to wait until it was the afternoon before I told my parents that I was going to youth group, so I forced them to pick me up, instead of asking their permission. In the midst of my new knowledge of Jesus and what it meant for my life, I was becoming a stumbling block for my family.

A year after my turn to Jesus, I was still growing in my faith, I had a great foundation of trustworthy, loving friends at church even though I couldn’t get to see them. Eventually, I decided to start going to the Sunday services at Cabramatta Anglican Church. I also visited the youth group there and even brought a couple of friends along sometimes. But soon after that, the HSC year began. I began to use my study as an excuse for not going to church, and wasted my time on worldly passions. In a matter of months, I had dug a hole so deep that only God could pull me out. In my pain, I remembered God, and realised how broken a person I was and how much I needed him. Through the miraculous turning around of this ordeal, God revealed to me how much I had turned away from him and how little things in this world matter. From that moment on, I re-devoted my life to God and began to put him at the centre of my life. After the HSC finished, I returned to CAC Sunday services and went back to REEF. Ever since then, I have really dedicated my life to live for the glory of God, learning more about him every day and growing in my love for him. This is the story of how Jesus has turned my life right side up. To my church family, I thank God so much for your support: your rebuking, your encouragement and your fellowship. To my parents: I know that I have not been the best son, and I do not live up to God’s standards as a son. I apologise for my selfishness and not having the courage to speak to you about Jesus as often as I should. To my friends and my family: I thank you so much once again for coming to share this special day with me. I really want to challenge you to live the examined life, and to find out more about Jesus. I would love it if you’ll come and talk to me or ask any questions that you might have about anything.