Our sense organs 45

strange surroundings, and the affliction of our
daughter with neurodermatitis. I questioned the
meaning of life, and wondered where my own
life was headed. At that time I was speaking on
the phone with my friend Jutta, who I knew was
a Christian. During the conversation I asked her
why the Christian faith was the only real truth,
and what about all the other religions. Are they
all false? Jutta sent me a copy of the book What
About the Other Religions?. I immediately started
to read it. That first night the difference between
the Christian faith and the other religions already
became clear, when I read the illustrative comparison,
of God being on the summit of a mountain.
In all the other religions people try to come
closer to God by their own efforts, by means of
good works, and by performing traditionally prescribed
rites. It is only in the Christian faith that
God comes down to man, in the person of Jesus
Christ, and restores communion with Him when
one accepts, by faith, Jesus’ redemption and forgiveness.
The next evening I read further, and for the first
time I understood what the consequences would
be if I rejected this gift. It would mean that I
stand guilty before God’s judgment, that a second
death will follow the first, involving eternal
separation from God. This really struck me, unsettling
me deeply. I went to bed with this unease,
intending to sleep over it; at the same time I
longed to be secure in God. At 5 o’clock in the
morning I made my decision. For the first time in
my life I really prayed in earnest – only a few
sentences. I prayed that Jesus would take my life
in His hands, and told Him that He died on the
cross for me also. Since then I live in the joy and
certainty that Jesus is the Truth. His Word, the
Bible, has become very important for me, as has
fellowship with other believers who have likewise
experienced conversion. I was baptised on the
20th of March 1994, on the confession of my
faith. Before my conversion I would never have
thought that I would eventually become a mother
of three children. I had been very afraid of
being dependent on a man. I was also afraid of
the closeness and exclusivity of nuclear family
ties. Now God has blessed me with a family
including three children, and, above all, with
130
trust and confidence about our future. My life
now has a purpose and a wonderful goal, to live
for God, and to learn to love Him more and more.
Anja Raum (Rödermark, Germany, aged 36)
Through babywear to faith
In my search for God and the meaning of life,
I didn’t find answers in the church, and I didn’t
understand what such formal religious beliefs
had to do with me. Consequently, I turned to
eastern beliefs and to esoteric teachings, such as
astrology, spiritualism and the like. At the height
of my esoteric blindness, my husband was transferred
to a remote rural town near the Dutch
border, and I found myself completely isolated.
We had very little contact with others, and my
false esoteric beliefs caused me much anxiety
and confusion. During that time of distress I was
looking for clothing for my baby and I was
browsing through a mail-order catalogue of a
firm specialising in natural products. Quite unexpectedly
for such a catalogue, I read a piece written
by the lady who owned the firm. She described
her personal relationship with Jesus Christ and
the inner peace and happiness she had thereby
obtained. I was deeply impressed by her testimony,
and longed for the same peace for myself.
A few books were also listed in the catalogue,
and, amongst other things, I ordered a Bible, the
book Questions I have always wanted to ask, and
a book about Christian child-rearing.
I subsequently obtained a book catalogue, and
for the first time I learned about books which
unambiguously and clearly expounded the Christian
position against esoteric/occult teaching like
astrology, soothsaying, and so on. Because all my
previous involvement with esoteric matters had
only ever dragged me down, I was happy to find
out that God regards these things as abominations
and unequivocally forbids them. I subsequently
destroyed all occult books and objects
and broke off all contact with those people. I
obtained a clear Christ-centred orientation by
reading the books I had ordered. The book Questions
I have always wanted to ask was very helpful,
because it clarified many questions which
troubled me, seeing that I had no Christian