This is the amazing story of a man named Martin, who was forever changed by the saving power of Jesus Christ in the year 2000.
Martin's Testimony
I grew up in South Sudan (at the time, Sudan). Just after I was born, my father left. Four years later, I lost my mother. When the war in South Sudan broke out, my older brother and sister died, and the government forced me to become a child soldier. I spent two years on the frontlines before I escaped to Egypt. There, a Canadian church (MCC) led me to Christ.
It was just another day, or so I thought. Little did I know my entire life as I knew it was about to change forever. Let me explain…
It was that time of year of 2000 when the Easter Fest came in Cairo Egypt. As I was not yet a born again Christian, it was a time of enjoying music, food, and most of all…beer. I could drink all I wanted, and had a “good” reason for it. My friends had come up for the weekend, so we could go to a disco place together.
Then I had left just before noon on Saturday to go down to the party, and I began drinking as soon as we got there. We returned home hours later to get everyone else to go back down to the disco hall. I never missed a beat – I just kept on drinking. Later that night, I was so drunk that I did something in which I really embarrassed myself. Everyone I was with began to laugh at me. They thought it was funny, but I was overcome. It was at that moment I knew something had to change; I couldn’t continue to live this way.
I HATED what I had become—a drunk. On the following day, which was Easter Sunday, some students from VBI reached out to us in our area of Maadi Arab Cairo. One of them was preaching, and he said, “The Bible tells us in Proverbs 23:29-30, 'Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? Who hath babbling? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine.'"
It was at that moment I knew something had to change; I couldn’t continue to live this way.
That entire week, I prayed that God would show me whether or not I was truly saved.
I was invited by the youths who reach out to our area to their college. During my visit, there was fellowship. However, as the pastor preached, it was as if no one else was in the church except me. It seemed as if the whole message was pointed at me.
God began to show me my sin and to show me that I was not saved. God had answered my prayers! Jeremiah 29:13 says, “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”
When the invitation was given at the end of the service, I wanted to jump over the pews to get to the altar. That was 2000; I surrendered my life to the Lord Jesus Christ. I repented of all my sin and put my faith in Jesus and what He had done for me, taking my place on the cross. It was indeed “the day of salvation” for me and the beginning of a new life.
Everything began to change, from the inside out. It wasn’t a reformation; it was a life-transformation. My drinking—the thing I had struggled with for so many years—stopped. I no longer had a desire for it. In fact, I haven’t touched a drop since that day. Without me even trying, I noticed my foul language changed. I have a love for the Lord and a desire to share Christ with everyone I know. I now have peace and assurance of my salvation.
After the Canadian church in Egypt led me to Christ, they awarded me a scholarship to Victory Bible Institute. I met my wife, Rita, in Cairo. She shared my calling, which is to serve displaced and abused South Sudanese women and children.
When Egypt became unsafe for refugees, we fled to Israel. In 2010, I and my wife Rita returned to South Sudan to begin the Children of Light Mission. But when war broke out again, we moved our work, ministry, and family to Uganda.
Right now we offer spiritual care for women and child refugees in the Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement and in Kampala. Our vision is for people of different tribes to live in peaceful coexistence through the example of Christ.
END OF MARTIN'S TESTIMONY
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Praise the Lord for that amazing testimony!
Perhaps you are bound by alcohol and you would like to be free. Jesus Christ can set you free, if you will give your life to Him. He said, "He whom the Son sets free is free indeed." (Joh 8:36). He can not only set you free, but give you an abundant life that is full of love, joy, and peace, such that it will overflow into other people's lives. Like He did for Martin, He can use your life to touch countless others with His love. I invite you to repent and give your whole heart and life to Him today.
Author's Note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like to read The Truth Set Me Free, My Overflowing Joy in Knowing Jesus, and Lifted Out of a Slimy Pit, which are the testimonies of myself and two of my other children. Also see the Home page of this blog for more testimonies. You are invited to view my collection of blogs at Writing for the Master.
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?
“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and believe.
Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"
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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International. He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
