Signs & Wonders in everyday life - October 2021

An angel spoke to me

When I was six years old, an angel sat in the car with me while my mum filled up the car with petrol. The angel told me that we were going to have a surprise baby boy in the family. I told Mum, but she said that three children was enough! Four years later my brother was born. 

Throughout his teenage years my brother struggled with distraction, anger and apathy. Two years ago God told me to get on a train and visit him at uni. When I arrived he was in a bad way, having taken drugs the night before. He was suffering from panic attacks as a result of finding out that our parents were getting divorced. He felt so hopeless but God led me to take him to a local church. He didn’t show much interest in the service and I got the train home feeling frustrated. 

A week later, my brother called me to ask if I could buy him a ticket to the church brunch that weekend. I did and there he met his friend Ellie who shared her testimony. As she was speaking, my brother was filled with the Holy Spirit. He gave his life to Jesus right there and then! Ever since then he has been free from all anxiety and depression, and no longer takes drugs. He now spends his time evangelising to his friends!

Romilly, via email

 

Witnessing to my Uber driver

I was in an Uber the other day, and the driver started crying. Initially I thought he was crying about Afghanistan, but it turned out he was upset because he had to split with his girlfriend – who was being forced into an arranged marriage. I felt led to share about my faith, then told him that I needed to sing over him. He stopped the Uber and I started singing God’s truth over him. It was amazing; I saw the peace of God come upon him, and he was overwhelmed.

Alex, via email

 

Provision of rental home

My husband and I had long prayed about moving to the southwest of England, but selling a home in London during COVID was tricky. Determined not to lose our buyer we agreed to move out, figuring we would rent while we continued to house hunt.

Having discussed a date to move we contacted many estate agents to identify potential places to rent only to discover that many people were doing the same. There was virtually nothing available.

Travelling to the area, we knew we needed to obtain a rental that day as it would take two weeks for all the paperwork to go through and our moving date was less than three weeks away. We had arranged to visit two houses but the night before one was snapped up and the other property turned out to be dirty, drafty and extortionately priced. With no other houses to visit, we walked around the main local town visiting estate agents, only to be told there was nothing available.

After praying, we spotted a letting agency we had not known about previously. Explaining our plight the agent started to tell us she had nothing, then paused and said: “Oh hang on, we had a phone call a few minutes ago regarding a bungalow that will be available soon.” She printed off the particulars, which looked good. When we explained we had to move in within three weeks she replied: “The lady living there isn’t due to move out for four weeks, but I can ring her to see if she could move out sooner.”

We started praying and an hour later the agent told us: “Yes she can move earlier, this could work”, and we were on our way to view the property.

The bungalow was perfect and even had a large workshop and garage, so we had no need to put any furniture into storage.

Alice, via email

 

Overcoming lupus

Six months after the birth of my youngest daughter I began to suffer with unusual rashes, raised lymph nodes, badly swollen joints and fatigue. Initial blood tests and exploratory surgery failed to come up with a diagnosis. After a chance conversation with a colleague, my consultant investigated the possibility of a little-known autoimmune disease and then delivered the devastating findings: I had contracted lupus.

Lupus is a life-threatening disease that attacks the body’s immune system. It targets major organs and can lead to kidney or liver failure. Sadly, it can also be fatal. It manifested itself in me in several ways: I could not tolerate the sun, my kidneys leaked protein and I suffered an irritating, persistent cough. That summer, a horseshoe-shaped rash developed all over my arms. Every day I woke feeling ill and was constantly exhausted. At the age of 30 I would easily have been mistaken for a pensioner.

I found the treatment as brutal as the condition. The consultant initially prescribed a regime of steroids and immune suppressants. When that wasn’t effective, he recommended chemotherapy.

At the time, I wasn’t a Christian but I bargained with the God I didn’t know, promising him I would suffer the chemotherapy as long as I didn’t lose my hair. The NHS provided me with a wig but I hid it at the back of a drawer and promised myself I would never wear it. God met me where I was; although my hair thinned it never led to baldness and I never wore the wig.

I became a Christian in 1994 shortly after my husband Richard. That same year Jean Neil was booked to speak at a meeting in the church we attended. She had been confined to a wheelchair because of severe back problems but had been miraculously healed at a Reinhard Bonnke campaign. Richard was praying hard that God would facilitate an opportunity for Jean to minister to me.

As a new Christian I found the prospect of prayer like this daunting. However, the night before the meeting I dreamed a man in the front row of the church encouraged me not to worry and told me Jesus was coming. Consequently, when Jean Neil asked people to go forward for prayer, I went without fear or hesitation. Jean told me God had already singled me out to her.

I believed I received healing at that meeting, but recognised I might not feel better immediately. I would need to walk out the healing and overcome any challenges that confronted me.

On 2 November 2000, I started a job at a local school as a dinner lady. I was often in the midday sun, which still caused me problems. There were times when I could hardly move so I began to quote Psalm 121:5: “The Lord is your shade at your right hand”, which really helped.

Although the medical profession would never agree that lupus can be cured, I am now well. It is 34 years since I was diagnosed and I am medication-free. I have completely normal kidney function. I am a grandmother of four and regularly babysit for children I could never have hoped to see when lupus first hit.

Sonia Smith, on behalf of Linda Brown, via email