Donna Halls - Following "afar off"
Hi, my name is Donna and this is my story. I was brought up in a non- Christian home. I come from a family of 7. My mum sent us all to Sunday School even though she didn’t go to church herself. I joined the Girls Brigade when I was 5 and left to become a Junior Soldier at the Salvation Army. About the age of 14 I started going to my nan’s church (which was a free church) until my Grandad became ill with cancer and she had to stop going to care for him. When he died, my nan went back to church, and I eventually went along again too. I was about 16 at the time and I met Cliff there, and within about 10 months (I’d just turned 17) we were married, and we continued going to church together.
Now, I loved God, I prayed, read my Bible, even listened to ministry tapes whenever I could. I did my best to live a good Christian life. Brought the children up on Bible stories and church and I thought, ‘This is it; this is how a Christian lives! Full stop!’
Then one day a visiting minister came to our church and he read from Luke ch 22: v 54 which says, ‘Then they took Jesus, and led Him, and brought Him into the high priest’s house. And Peter followed afar off.’ Now the minister went on to say that as he travels around, ministering, he has to follow the car that is leading him to the venue where he will be speaking. If he didn’t follow closely, cars could so easily slip in between and he may end up following ‘afar off’. Now the danger of that is, that the car he’s following could turn off and he may not notice and, of course, miss his turning and get lost!
Now I realised that I had been following ‘afar off’. I had this picture in my head that God was this big man, way up in heaven somewhere, sitting in the clouds looking down, maybe with a white wig on. You see, I had a knowledge of Him, I read the Bible, I sang the songs, I went to church, but I didn't have a personal/intimate relationship with Jesus.
Now, if you can imagine, going through life with a cloud above you obscuring something but you didn’t realise it. Just going about your daily business totally oblivious that there was something hid from you. Then all of sudden, the cloud disperses, and you see the sun for the very first time. It radiates down on you and you’re bathed in its warmth and the whole world looks different. Everything is brighter, clearer, the colours more vibrant.
For the next few years I began to seek God more and my life began to change. I began to fall in love with Jesus. I began to read the Bible with new eyes. Scriptures I’d read over and over before, now had clarity and meaning. My prayer life changed. It seemed like Heaven opened up and my prayers, that normally seemed to go no higher than the ceiling, actually seemed to reach up to God. My church life changed. It was no longer just something we did every Sunday but I became excited about going and couldn’t wait to get there.
I’ve had my ups and downs. Life hasn't always been a picnic. I've had my fair share of problems. But Jesus has been with me through it all. He’s been my best Friend when things are going right. He’s been my best Friend when things are going wrong. He’s only been a prayer away. And the best thing of all is that if you find you are following Jesus ‘afar off’, He’s waiting to be your best Friend too!!
Here is a simple prayer that will help you to be sure that your sins are forgiven:
Dear Lord Jesus, I believe you are the Son of God. Thank you that you died on the cross for me. I am really sorry for all the bad things I have done in my life. Please forgive me and clean up my life, help me to live it from now to please you, and be a real Christian.
Be sure that you tell someone if you have said that prayer and really meant it, and find a Bible-believing Church, or an Alpha Course to learn more about Jesus
For more Information
Email: [email protected]
or Tel: 07980 019217
Now, I loved God, I prayed, read my Bible, even listened to ministry tapes whenever I could. I did my best to live a good Christian life. Brought the children up on Bible stories and church and I thought, ‘This is it; this is how a Christian lives! Full stop!’
Then one day a visiting minister came to our church and he read from Luke ch 22: v 54 which says, ‘Then they took Jesus, and led Him, and brought Him into the high priest’s house. And Peter followed afar off.’ Now the minister went on to say that as he travels around, ministering, he has to follow the car that is leading him to the venue where he will be speaking. If he didn’t follow closely, cars could so easily slip in between and he may end up following ‘afar off’. Now the danger of that is, that the car he’s following could turn off and he may not notice and, of course, miss his turning and get lost!
Now I realised that I had been following ‘afar off’. I had this picture in my head that God was this big man, way up in heaven somewhere, sitting in the clouds looking down, maybe with a white wig on. You see, I had a knowledge of Him, I read the Bible, I sang the songs, I went to church, but I didn't have a personal/intimate relationship with Jesus.
Now, if you can imagine, going through life with a cloud above you obscuring something but you didn’t realise it. Just going about your daily business totally oblivious that there was something hid from you. Then all of sudden, the cloud disperses, and you see the sun for the very first time. It radiates down on you and you’re bathed in its warmth and the whole world looks different. Everything is brighter, clearer, the colours more vibrant.
For the next few years I began to seek God more and my life began to change. I began to fall in love with Jesus. I began to read the Bible with new eyes. Scriptures I’d read over and over before, now had clarity and meaning. My prayer life changed. It seemed like Heaven opened up and my prayers, that normally seemed to go no higher than the ceiling, actually seemed to reach up to God. My church life changed. It was no longer just something we did every Sunday but I became excited about going and couldn’t wait to get there.
I’ve had my ups and downs. Life hasn't always been a picnic. I've had my fair share of problems. But Jesus has been with me through it all. He’s been my best Friend when things are going right. He’s been my best Friend when things are going wrong. He’s only been a prayer away. And the best thing of all is that if you find you are following Jesus ‘afar off’, He’s waiting to be your best Friend too!!
Here is a simple prayer that will help you to be sure that your sins are forgiven:
Dear Lord Jesus, I believe you are the Son of God. Thank you that you died on the cross for me. I am really sorry for all the bad things I have done in my life. Please forgive me and clean up my life, help me to live it from now to please you, and be a real Christian.
Be sure that you tell someone if you have said that prayer and really meant it, and find a Bible-believing Church, or an Alpha Course to learn more about Jesus
For more Information
Email: [email protected]
or Tel: 07980 019217