Testimony Stephanie Rook

I have had an awareness of God since I was a child. I would be convicted of wrongdoing before I had a real understanding of sin. On March 11, 1978, I surrendered my life to God, knowing the condition I was in. Previous to my conversion I lived a life of debauchery and I was sinking deeper and deeper into the pit of destruction and was powerless to do anything about it. I was frightened because I knew that I would be destroyed if something didn't happen to turn things around in my life and I did not know what to do. The ministers of the Gospel from whom I sought help turned out to be immoral men. Even during the first year walking with the Lord, I had encounters with some of God's ministers that were not good.

The good news is, God made Himself so real and tangible during my first months of my infancy that the encounters aided in anchoring me in Him. One encounter with the Spirit of God occurred one morning before I arose from bed. I heard an audible voice in my room, and at that time I lived alone. The words I heard were, "Upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18) I jumped up to see if there was someone in my room but there was no one. I was not familiar with the Bible at that time and I had never heard that scripture verse before. It had to have been the Holy Spirit that led me to search for the verse in the Bible because I would not have thought to do so on my own. This encounter with the Lord, and others as I have continued my walk with the Lord, have been a sustaining force. At times in my life when things are intense and my faith is waning, these experiences have served to quicken my spirit and encourage me to move on.

God's word is life. I have come to treasure His word beyond my ability to express. I am grateful for God's mercy upon me. My desire is to have a life that speaks the message of God's wonderful gift and plan of redemption through Messiah Jesus without using a lot of words. I want to complete what God has created me to accomplish and then go home to be with Him forever. Above all, I want to hear the Lord say to me, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Amen