God could speak to me through her? Wow. I had to get some of this. I whipped out my checkbook and purchased my prophecy with the money my mom and dad had deposited for my college books and other necessities. Trying to ignore the slight twinge of guilt that this didn’t exactly qualify as a “necessity” and wanting to hear what awesome thing God was going to say to me, I ran up there with check in hand. My friends weakly grabbed hold of my sleeve as they gently tried to stop me. I was a little baffled why they would want to hinder me. It made no difference. I dashed up there as fast as my little feet would carry me. The tall blond “prophetess” looked at me a little uncertainly as she took my check and steered me near the end of the line. I was one of the last to answer the call so it wasn’t long after this that she started to prophesy over the individuals and one couple. The couple was apparently having financial trouble but deliverance was surely on the way, she assured them. That was about the only prophecy I remember except my own, of course. Coming to me, still looking unsure, she gently placed her hands on my head, “you are going to be a light in a dark place”. This said, she moved on to the next individual. After a quick ponder, I ran off the stage. “Hmm” was my first thought. I was on my way to an evangelism project in Aspen, Colorado that coming summer. I certainly would be a light in a dark place. I supposed that must have been what she was talking about. I decided that I would take it and be blessed.
I was mostly untaught concerning Christianity. Raised in the Catholic Church, I had a strong God awareness but little knowledge concerning the Bible. I received Jesus as my Lord and Savior at a Catholic retreat called T.E.C, Teens Encounter Christ, in 1983. In reality, though, I give little credit to Catholicism for my conversion. Many things contributed to my salvation. In ninth grade I read Joni Eareckson Tada’s first autobiography, before she became a Tada. This book stirred me and lent to a deep curiosity though there was no way I could express it in any meaningful way. A married couple, who were not Catholic, visited the Catholic youth group I attended. Their witness gripped my conscience substantially. I had the very strong visual image of myself in a prison while they spoke though they implied nothing of the sort. I vividly remember picturing them as standing outside the jail cell and myself as being inside. I left that night quite perplexed and honestly feeling rather hopeless that there would be no way I could achieve their position of freedom. A year or so later during my junior year, I shared Free Hour and Physics with a wonderful friend who faithfully shared the gospel with me on many occasions. Though most of the time I had no idea what she was talking about, she sowed some productive seed. Some time during my junior year I attended a Teens Encounter Christ (TEC) retreat that was supported by the Catholic Church. After a stout presentation of the gospel from a protestant speaker at this TEC retreat, I realized my desperate position in sin and my need… for something. I asked Jesus to be my friend. Since I was unable to express the correlation between my sin and Jesus, this was all I was capable of mustering up. My sinful state was undeniable and I knew that in that moment I was “brought near” (Ephesians 2:13) by Jesus. I knew I was different. I felt clean and lighter. Though I did not consciously struggle with guilt, I felt free from my guilt. And there was the joy; the inexpressible joy that became a constant companion from that moment on. Some months later I realized fully what my decision signified in my life. I had broken God's law thus I knew I was guilty. Not only was I guilty but I understood my inability to correct my mistakes. The Bible says that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin (Hebrews 9:22). Thus I knew that what I had done was to receive that gift of salvation that Jesus had purchased with His precious blood.
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