Penny's Life Changed Through Receiving the Holy Spirit

In my early teens I first became aware that perhaps I wasn’t right with God as I had previously believed myself to be. I became confused when a teacher at school told me I had to accept Christ as my saviour to be saved and, on the other hand, a girlfriend from the Melbourne Revival Fellowship told me how she had just received the Holy Spirit and spoken in tongues. Having been brought up in the Church of England, I began attending confirmation classes, thinking that was the right thing to do, but I knew in my heart that I wasn’t getting any closer to God. I went to a Revival meeting at the time and came away not being able to deny anything I had seen or heard, but not wanting to be involved myself. I had a very full and largely happy life and wasn’t ready to completely turn to God.

I left school and continued to university to study a course I loved and filled my life with the normal things young people do. I had no desire to return to the Church of England, but I still had a nagging in the back of my mind that I wasn’t right with God. I tried to push aside these thoughts and threw myself into life. However, I found it increasingly difficult to uphold the morals by which I had always wanted to live, and slowly realised I didn’t have the strength within myself to do it.

In January 1979 I came to a point when I realised that God wasn’t just offering me a short- term answer to my problems, but he was also willing to give me eternal life if I obeyed Him. I decided I would ask Him for the answers and when I finally repented, it was the biggest relief of my life. In the prayer line after a meeting, I spoke in tongues almost immediately, confirming the wonderful feeling that was inside me. At last, I knew God. I thank Him for taking all my burdens and fears away and filling the hole in my heart. The Lord has mightily blessed my life since that time, taught me trust Him for my needs and given me the purpose and direction I previously lacked.

Penny is a member of The Revival Fellowship - Melbourne, Victoria