Touched by God

by Julie Braun

I was born in Manchester, England, to a father who was a non-practising Catholic and a mother who claimed to be an atheist. I had a sister one year younger than I. On July 1, 1967, when I was seven years old, my parents decided to uproot our family and head to the land of opportunity—Vancouver, B.C.

I remember as a young girl eight years old, lying in my bed at night, seriously afraid of dying. I would close my eyes and pretend that I was dead and wonder, "What now?" It was dark and scary, and I would cry myself to sleep.

I vividly remember asking my mom one day, "Mommy, what happens when you die?"

Mom responded, "What makes you ask a question like that? Well, it is important that you live life to the fullest, because this is all there is. When you die, you are put in the ground, and that is the end."

My heart was very heavy at her answer, and my fear remained.

A year or so later, when I was nine, I was invited by a friend to an after-school Bible club. I was allowed to go only one time because I came home with a pamphlet that said that my heart was black. My mom took one look at the pamphlet and said, "Your heart is red like everyone else's. You are not going there again." I wanted desperately to go back because I felt that the club had answers to my questions, but I did not return.

Two years later, when I was 11, our family moved to Richmond, B.C., and a new friend invited me to go to Sunday school with her. I asked my parents if I could go. They said that it would not hurt to get some religious teaching, so they allowed me to go.

What an eye-opening experience that was! There I learned the truth, and my questions were answered. Yes, my heart was black with sin. I knew that I had done wrong things, so that made sense to me.

But the exciting part was yet to come. I no longer had to fear death because Jesus Christ had died on the cross for my sin and offered me everlasting life. I never had to fear death again! I could live forever if I admitted my sin and asked Jesus into my life. I was so excited and so relieved! I remember very clearly kneeling by my bed and accepting Jesus Christ into my life.

From that moment on, my life totally changed. I couldn't wait for supper to be over so I could go to my room and read my Bible. I would underline verses that were meaningful to me. I think every other verse was underlined. I came across a verse that said that when you pray, you should go into your closet and pray. I took this verse quite literally. I hauled all my stuffed animals out of my closet and prayed there. I recall feeling very close to God in the quiet space of my messy closet.

My mom thought that I had become a religious fanatic. She was sure that one day I would become a nun. But gradually Mom would come and sit on my bed while I was reading my Bible, and ask me question after question. I knew that God was touching her, but she kept refusing to open her heart to Jesus.

Unknown to me, my dad was also being touched by God. He was working for a business run by Christians, and he noticed a real difference in the lifestyles of his co-workers; he saw that they had true peace. After asking them many questions and reading books that they gave him, he quietly accepted Jesus Christ too.

A few years later, our family moved to the Okanagan Valley. My mom was so relieved to be getting away from all these Christians. She had no idea that she was running right into the loving arms of Jesus. As soon as we arrived, I looked for other Christian young people to worship with. My mom was not impressed. I also would leave Christian pamphlets around the house. I had no idea that my mom was actually reading them or that God's Holy Spirit was working in her life.

One day, Mom was walking around the house in so much turmoil that she knew she had to make a decision. She looked for one of the pamphlets that I had left out. She turned to the back page, and there, after years of fighting God, she learned how to surrender her life to Jesus Christ. Peace flooded her, and she was never the same again. I knew that something had happened when I awoke the next morning to hear my mom singing, "This is the day that the Lord has made."

What a wonderful day that was when my dad, my mom and I were baptized with water to demonstrate that we had become followers of Jesus. It was not long after our baptism that my sister also became a Christian. Shortly after this, we returned to England for a trip, and my grandparents also turned their lives over to Jesus.

It does my heart good to type this out and see on paper the miracles that God did in my family. And it all began because He first touched the heart of a child.

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