I never intended to become a Christian. I met God while enrolled in a public boarding school. Actually, I met a girl whom I wanted to date. I got up the courage to ask her out, then went to her study hall to charm her into dating me. I knew she was a Christian, but that didn’t bother me. When I entered the room, I found her reading a pamphlet. I sat down beside her and asked her what she was reading.

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She offered me one of the pamphlets, and I pretended to read it just to impress her. When I asked her for a date, she gently declined, but asked me to keep the pamphlet. Later that evening I sat down and read it. It was a Voice of Prophecy lesson about hell, and it worried me. I hardly slept that night.

I was often in trouble because I frequently broke school rules. On Saturday morning, the day after I had asked this girl for a date, I went to the administration building to see if I had been caught breaking any rules that week and had been assigned campus duties.

As I was reading the list a boy came up beside me and invited me to come to a worship service with him that day in the auditorium. I hadn’t been to church in 10 years and wasn’t interested in religion. But for some reason, I accepted this boy’s invitation. I think even he was surprised when I accepted! We walked across campus together and entered the auditorium. It didn’t dawn on me that the girl I had asked out the day before was an Adventist.

Something else really strange happened. I had two dollars in my pocket that I had planned to spend drinking on Saturday night. But when the offering basket was passed, I surprised myself by giving the $2. Later I realized that this action saved me from drinking that weekend.

I discovered that this group of high school students on campus did more than just pray and sing. They had a strong Pathfinder program. I was interested in what Pathfinders do, so I stayed the afternoon and watched. The next week I joined the Pathfinder Club. Everyone was surprised.

While I hadn’t accepted the invitation to attend church because of the girl I wanted to date, I was glad when I saw her at church. She befriended me and helped me feel welcome at the church meetings. But she still wouldn’t go out with me.

From the first day I attended church I decided to stop smoking and drinking. Thank God, I never smoked or drank again. When I broke away from old friends, they gave me trouble about my new religious interest. They begged me to go drinking with them, and did everything they could to get me back. But I refused. I made new friends in church. Several months later I gave my life to Christ and followed Him in baptism. I was 17 years old at the time.

-To be continued-

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.
Find more mission stories at www.adventistmission.org

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