Encounter Testimony: Laura

I went on my first Encounter Weekend a few weeks ago! I was really anxious before I went but God showed up in ways I never expected.

I guess my experience of Encounter starts this time last year. I was busy deciding where to live after I had graduated from Canterbury Uni and decided on Loughborough. At the time, Lizzie, who I had planned to move in with, was going on Encounter. I remember thinking that there was no way I was going to go the following year. I had no intention of talking about my ‘feelings’ or facing my ‘issues’. I remember God clearly telling me that I would be going ... I responded with a firm “no”.

        Photo © sonicwalker on a Creative Commons Licence

So anyways, I moved to Loughborough this summer and joined Open Heaven. As expected the Encounter Weekend began to be advertised and I remembered what God had said. However, I just hoped I could get away with not going, so I pushed it to the back of my mind. Over the next few weeks Encounter was all that was on my mind, I couldn’t sleep at times ... clearly God really wanted me to go ... eventually I stopped being so stubborn and signed up.

Just before we went to Encounter I kept getting this picture of a wall ... it had lots of holes in and I could see people having loooads of fun (rollerskating etc.) on the other side and although I could chat to them and kinda get glimpses of fun I wasn’t really part of it. So whilst at Encounter I prayed about how this wall had got there and it could be demolished.

On the Saturday evening we were praying that God would reveal memories to us and that we would be able to see Jesus in these memories. All I could see was one night when I was 16. I was seriously ill in hospital and in sooo much pain. It was the first night my parents had left me alone. My memory was of the exact moment that my parents left the hospital room. I remember feeling completely alone, but not only alone - abandoned. When I looked back at the memory I could not see Jesus anywhere... I believed that if he had truly loved me then he would not have left me in that pain. Lots of people were praying for me and asking God to show me where he was in that memory.

Suddenly Jesus came crashing through. I could see angels at the end of my bed, one at my window and two right above me. They were fighting for me. I could see a battle going on above my bed. The angel at the window was saying “She’s his daughter. He has great plans for her. It’s not her time to go home”. It was bizarre, but amazing!! I was worth fighting for. God hadn’t abandoned me, quite the opposite, he had sent angels coz I was worth fighting for. Yay!!!!

I guess ever since that night when I was 16 I had felt like I wasn’t too important to God and that he may well abandon me again! That is not true!!! And just in case I hadn’t got the message, God gave me another picture of a big posh party (with nice dresses and yummy food) and I was his guest. We were walking round together and he was introducing me to everyone: ‘Hi, have you met my daughter Laura?’. He was interrupting people’s conversations just to tell them about me!!! Amazing.

I just wanted to write this down a. To remind myself of what God has done for me – he fought for me, and b. to encourage others – you are totally important to God. He is soooo interested!!! You are a valued and loved member of his family!

Love Laura

Posted by: Laura Christie on Tuesday Jun 3rd, 2008

Comments

Lucy Purves writes:

thats so good to hear laura, thanks for sharing it- really amazing and encouraging

...left on Wednesday Jun 4th, 2008

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