‘The Kingdom of God is among you’ – that was the answer Jesus gave to Pharisees when they wanted to know when the kingdom of God would come. (Luke 17:21)

Now read the following testimony and see for yourself if what Jesus said is true even today.

During our HOTS session on October 5th a young man asked us to pray for him as his course fees were due at the end of that week and he did not have any money coming into his bank account. We prayed for him and we gave him the ‘Why Jesus’ booklet.

On October 26th after the 2pm Saturday service at St Martins, while I was talking to some of our regular members of that service, a young man approached me and said he would like to talk to me. I recognised him and thought we had prayed for him in church but he said we had prayed for him outside on Edgbaston St. He wanted to tell us that he had received an answer to prayer. These were his words (I have his permission to write):

‘I was in a bad situation as my course fees were due at 11 o’clock at the end of the week end I was prayed for. I was helpless, feeling that I was the cursed one in my family. I got to the end and had no strength to even struggle out of that situation. I sat down on the chair where you invited people to sit and be prayed for. Three of you prayed for me that my course fee would be met. You also spoke to me about Jesus and his love. My fees were paid in on that week an hour before the deadline. It was magic. But the miracle is not only that I had my fees paid but it was the fact that I felt different. Something had changed in my life. I had power – power to struggle. There is still struggle in my life but it is different, I can tackle things. This strength is still with me and I can now continue with my studies.’

Then he said he had a question to ask me. He said: ‘Can you tell me who Jesus is’? We talked a bit more about who Jesus is and what Christians believe. Before we said good bye he asked if he could have a Bible. I didn’t have a Bible with me then but I asked him to come back and I would give him one. I did not see him for the next few weeks but on Wednesday this week Nov 13th he was back in church and I gave him a Bible. His face was radiant. He took the Bible and held it as if caressing it and asked: ‘what shall I read first?’ I briefly explained about the four Gospels and suggested he would start with Mark’s Gospel.

Will you pray for this young man who has experienced God’s kingdom within him and is reading Mark’s Gospel to learn more about Jesus?

The team prayed for many more passers-by who accepted the invitation to sit on the chairs. Here are some of the prayer requests:

  1. Prayer for a stress free life.
  2. A lady had an accident a year ago and injured her knees. She dearly wants to be able to kneel in prayer in church. She said she will return to let us know.
  3. A lady with breast cancer.
  4. A lady with an eye injury who has been for prayer before and doctors have seen great improvement.
  5. A lady wanted prayer for her grandchild who is deaf and she herself is waiting for a heart transplant.
  6. A lady with a spine pain.
  7. A son to be free from drug addiction.
  8. A lady with osteoporosis but also with a broken heart as her husband left her after 56 years of marriage.

Stories, testimonies and prayers like these are signs of God’s kingdom in us. We see God providing for very practical things like money for a course fee but we also see God working in people’s lives to transform them so they can have life in abundance.

‘As you go preach this message: the Kingdom of God is near; heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received – freely give. (Matt 10:8)

Blessings

Revd Elsie Blair-Chappell