A FRESH NEW START

(An Excerpt From The Christian Chronicle, January 2019 - - “From Prison To Salvation")

          After I failed in all my ways to proceed with education, I lost all hope and I became a drug dealer.  Worse still, I didn’t know anything much about being a drug dealer.  So I threw myself in that deep dark pit of the drug world and ended up in prison cells.  It was in prison that a preacher, Mr. Johnson, delivered a sermon on “repentance”.  That message struck me at the depth of my heart, and I accepted Jesus as my personal Savior within those prison walls.  After that, David, a friend of mine, introduced me to his congregation, the Church of Christ.  Being part of the community

of believers helped me grow in my new faith.  I started spending much time prayer and fasting.  Surprisingly, God's mercy and favor penetrated my life like the drugs I was dealing.  God was suddenly in control of my life with new likes, new passions and new dreams.

          It was in the year 2017 when Timothy Rinopisa encouraged me to apply to study at African Christian College, and incredibly I was accepted.  I am grateful to be here and looking forward with eagerness and hope for a fruitful three years of study and growth.  Looking back on my time in the blast furnace, I see that God used those circumstances to shape me to become a vessel to evangelize and bring a message of hope to the world.

Note:  African Christian College, in the southern African kingdom of eSwatini (formerly Swaziland) is a 51-year-old college associated with churches of Christ.

Additional Note:  The above account shares a brief slice from the inspiring story of the young man, Lazarus Libongo.  How fitting that his name should be “Lazarus".