My story, I’m saved

I used to think that my story was a fairly easy one and that my testimony will never be as impressive as someone who got saved after an explosive meeting with Christ. I thought that my story was just an ordinary one, that it might not mean something to anyone.

You see, I grew up in church. My dad was a pastor, my sister a youth leader, my mom was part of various church events and I went to Sunday school every Sunday morning. I thought that, that was what it’s like to be Christian. That was my story, it’s just ordinary.

That was until I realised that although I knew about Jesus, I did not actually personally know him. And it took me a while to realise that. I was 13 years old when I finally met Jesus, without anyone pressuring me.

Since then my position as a child of God has been tested a lot. I went through a rough teenage patch; I experimented with things and totally went off the course. It took sometime before I realised that I need to set things right, I had to repent once again.

I lost friends and the road was lonely, but I do not regret my decision at all. I persevered through all the hard times and that just helped me become more Christ-like. Two years ago I made the choice to go through a believer’s baptism and it was the greatest day of my life.

Since then I have been tempted, I fell, I made stupid unnecessary mistakes, but Jesus stood by me and helped me through it all. After another amazing meeting with Christ during a fasting period I decided to start a group that will just spread love.

The idea came after a men’s camp, which once more made me see things differently. And thanks to Fathers’ guidance Hugs 4 Christ was born. It was supposed to be a onetime short event, but it grew beyond what I expected. Father has been faithful and Hugs 4 Christ has been transformed into a full-blown ministry.

I have a passion for H4C and every day I learn more and more about Jesus through this ministry. It has changed me and it has helped me grow. I hope that H4C will continue inspiring others and that we will continue spreading the Love of Christ one hug at a time.

Barry de Klerk