Jesus Did It!                                                                                                                                                            (By: Rob Conrad)

What a glorious day it was!

In 1981 ...  I was as ignorant about the Bible or religion as any person could possibly be. Although I had always believed in God, I had not once ever prayed nor had any conversation whatsoever with anyone regarding God, the Bible or religion. Literally, I was clueless. Until I was 27, I had not ever heard the term 'Son of God' or the story of the crucifixion of Christ in my life, until my mother told me about it one week before I was saved. She had accepted the Lord about 30 days before I did and she was excited about her new experience. She said she 'had been saved!' In my ignorance, my respectful response to her was, 'Saved from what?'

After I listened to her in her living room tell me about the 'Son of God', I was immediately all ears and fascinated that I had not ever heard these things. More importantly, I was immediately stirred spiritually and wanted to hear every detail about this new person "Jesus", who I learned for the first time was written about in the Bible. I had never given one thought as to what the Bible was about until my mother told me. Hearing all these things initially from my most wonderful mother who led me to Him has always enhanced the beauty and impact of my own testimony for me.

All this occurred about seven days prior to my powerful experience. My mother had given me just the New Testament Bible and told me to focus only on the four Gospels (which are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). I immediately began diligently studying with more concentration than I had ever had in my life in terms of reading a book.  

For the next seven days, even at work, all I could think about was reading those Gospels and gaining more information about the life, words and self-claims of Jesus. After work, I absorbed myself completely in my search of the truth about Him because of my intense burning desire to want to believe in what I was reading. My business mind also caused me to search with a healthy eye for any discrepancies of which I found none.

THE EXPERIENCE - APRIL 17, 1981 @ 10:30 AM

On the seventh consecutive day of my readings, it was Good Friday, which had no meaning to me whatsoever. I had never  given it a thought. 

At 10:30 AM ... I mentioned to my staff that I would be in my office if anyone needed me. After sitting down in my swivel chair, I leaned back and started to open the scriptures of the Bible to take a quick look for a moment during my break. I leaned all the way back, closed my eyes and slowly closed the Bible, resting it in front of my chest. I remember perfectly what my immediate and sole thought to myself was, thinking: I don't have to read even one more word of this! I believe completely that this is true about Jesus being the Son of God.     

Then, my very next thought to myself - and still without saying any words out loud - I thought with all of my heart and everything within me these exact words:  Jesus, I believe you are the very Son of God as you say, and that you are alive right now, resurrected from the dead like this Bible states. And since I believe this, then I also believe that you can touch me right now in a way that I could never be able to deny it; and so I am asking you to touch me right now and let me know that you are alive and that you are the Son of God.

Immediately, and without ever having spoken one word out loud, God's presence of light blasted my entire being as a person might whip a sheet outside to shake off the dust. Instantly, any trace of sin or guilt in my conscience was gone. The intensity and reality of this incredible blast of God's light locked me into place as I still was leaning back in my seat and with my eyes also locked closed. My immediate awareness of Almighty God was instantly recognizable to me as was His unexplainable nature of peace and comfort which overwhelmingly saturated me in an instant.

At that moment, I felt divinely transparent with the tangible presence of His light. No light like this could ever be anything other than God, which I knew instantly. Christ's virtues of life and truth and purity were also keenly evident to me and within my physical body, all present within His awesome light that had instantaneously purified and filled me.

I also knew perfectly right then that God was a personal God and that Jesus is His divine Son. Just based on this very first moment of this divine encounter with the risen Christ I immediately knew that everything I personally could possibly need to know or to experience to become convinced about the reality of God or Jesus was just accomplished in me. He was alive and He is the Lord and I knew it, exactly like my heart had directly asked Him to show me just moments before.

I remember thinking to myself: I'm clean! - although I never opened my mouth or eyes once for the next 45 minutes, being frozen in awe. Amazingly, no one knocked on my office door nor did my phone ring during these life-changing 45 minutes. I know this because I asked around the office later, still amazed at what I had just experienced.   

FIRST WIND

Next, after what seemed like about 30 seconds from the divine instant cleansing, I suddenly heard a wind coming from my right side at a distance. Still, with eyes locked shut and immobile in my seat, I remember specifically thinking: That coming wind sounds like being in the forest and then hearing the wind swirling through the trees about 30 seconds before it actually arrives. At that time I had never heard about Pentecost as is recorded in the book of Acts in the Bible, and the scriptural nature of wind on that mighty day. Later in my  studies I would be blessed and humbled again, learning of the parallel of Pentecost and my own experience.   

From the moment I first heard the wind coming, it seemed to take 15 seconds to get to me as it came horizontally through me from right to left. As it passed through me, it took about a full 10 seconds to pass through every fiber of my being, as I sat in awe. Being accustomed to breezes and wind speeds, I can say that it seemed like about a 15 mile-an-hour wind. It was not violent but was a strengthening and mighty purifying wind, perfectly tempered and divinely soothing in nature.    

I distinctly remember thinking in astonishment: That was even more purifying than the first blast of divine light and cleansing that hit me just one minute before! I knew at this point by experience that only God could create unmatched spiritual waves like this within a human being, and then be able to top it again.

SECOND AND THIRD WINDS

Then, about 30 seconds after this first wind passed through me, I suddenly heard a second wind coming. Once again, it was coming from the right side and in the exact same manner and pace as the first wind. I remember thinking to myself: I don't  know how this next coming wind could possibly be more purifying than the first  wind!  But, I knew it would be. 

As this coming second wind took about 15 seconds to touch me, I remember contemplating for a moment the awesome fact that God was carrying out a powerful life-changing transformation upon me. I specifically thought to myself: If I receive just one more degree of intensity from all of this, then it seems like I could disintegrate!  

Still, as the second wind rushed through me and was noticeably more purifying than the first, I sat completely paralyzed in my executive chair, having not opened my eyes nor spoken a word.  

Within moments, I heard what I knew was the third wind coming. Then, the third wind came and purified me again. This was now the fourth purifying wave: The initial blast of intensified light plus the three ensuing winds of increasingly purifying  intensities.

It was about the time of the third wind when I thought to myself that this entire divine experience I was having a demonstration of God's greatest intent for my life, my soul and my very being. Namely, to give me eternal life, according to what He had planned for me all along. For me personally, I could never forget that God really does know a person's heart.    

This is my own testimony because of the fact that at the one and only time I had ever thought within myself to believe in Jesus was the exact instant when God responded and hit me like a ton of bricks, saturating me with His divine presence  and changing my life forever.

THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Once again, it seemed like 30 seconds had gone by after the third purifying wind had passed, as I still sat completely silent, totally stuck in my position, relaxed and overwhelmed in my chair. 

Then, at the very top of my head it felt as if an invisible hand made me twist, like twisting the top off of a syrup bottle.  This is the way I've always described it when giving my testimony because of what actually occurred next. 

I suddenly felt a warm syrup liquid-like substance slowly being poured into the very top of my head as it very slowly filtered down through my being and saturating me from head to toe. Although I had never heard the concept of "being filled with the Spirit," I immediately knew by God's presence within me that I was being filled with the Holy Spirit. This actual experience is as clear and real to me as if it happened just two minutes ago. I can say from experience that heaven must be something like this indescribably overwhelming presence of holiness, peace and purity and life which is divinely and continually more filling moment after moment. It is truly called the gift of the Holy Spirit which I received directly from the Lord Jesus Himself.

As I was being filled with the precious divine Spirit of God, it seemed to take about five full minutes, as I now bathed in what seemed like the totality of God's presence being poured into a human vessel. My senses were so illuminated that when the very last pores in the bottom of my feet were filled with warm oil of the Spirit, I actually thought to myself: I've just been filled with the Spirit! I actually had a moment's thought at this point as to how there could possibly be anything left for God to give me since God's Spirit Himself had now filled me to overflowing, literally with a spiritual river of life.  

BAPTIZED IN THE FIRE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Then, it seemed as though about 30 seconds had passed after I had been filled when I felt a sudden flame of fire ignite within the deepest depths of the spiritual core of my very being. This fire I had never experienced or even heard about, although I knew as sure as I was sitting there that it was the fire of God. At first, it was a small fire about the size of a baseball. However, the unmatched mighty power of it was instantly recognizable to me as divine.

Immediately the fire began growing steadily larger within me so that over the next 60 seconds or so, it had completely engulfed my inner being and was now also literally resting on me in an all-consuming fierce flame of fire. It was as real as if I  was literally catching on fire, although this fire's prime nature was one of divine power. I knew this because I could feel its immeasurable explosiveness and incomprehensible capabilities within me.

Without any doubt, at that moment, I knew I received the power of God. For me, the intensity level of the experience of being baptized in the fire of the Holy Spirit and literally feeling it always resting on me is a reality that I have been aware of moment by moment and every day of my life since my initial impacting experience in 1981. Spiritually, I'm on fire.

After all of this took place, it was exactly 11:15 a.m. when I opened my eyes.  Although when adding up the total time of the actual waves of glory themselves would seem to be maybe 10 minutes, somehow 45 minutes had passed. After just  sitting perfectly calm in my chair in silence and in total awe for about five more minutes or so ... I finally stood up and walked back into my department, aglow and a brand new man in Christ Jesus.

GOOD FRIDAY - APRIL 17, 1981

Later that night when I visited my mother to tell her of my unbelievable experience, she wept because of my being born again and filled with the Holy Spirit on Good Friday, and at the very time of day which Jesus Himself had also hung on the cross.     

After asking her to explain the meaning of Good Friday, I myself wept with great humility and gratitude to my Savior and Lord for dying for me and, in fact, for the whole world.

For me, I had very much a 'road to Damascus' experience with God. My mother had given me the instruction [clearly by the Spirit of God upon her] to go study the Gospels and that I was to believe  in order to be saved. Although I knew nothing more than to only believe in Jesus as Savior and Lord on April 17, 1981, God somehow chose to whitewash me with forgiveness, purify me, save me, fill me with His Holy Spirit and then seal me with a consuming fire which never dims, but in fact, is alive within me and upon me every moment of every day, ever since. Also, being water baptized a few weeks later added its own special experience to all of this as God's Word portrays for the believer.

This is my own testimony which is true to the detail as I have written it here and is as fresh to my memory as when it happened. I've also learned through the years that each believer in Christ has a unique and mighty testimony of their own. This is because when a person meets the risen Christ as Savior and Lord and becomes filled with His Holy Spirit, then that person becomes a new creation in Him. That person's sins along with old and past things have passed away. And then, only in Christ Jesus, new things and a new life have come while being made brand new as a person.    

In life, this is God's greatest desire. That is, to reach out and come to each person with the fullness of His divine presence and His life so each of us can be a living witness of God and His most beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God.

PLEASE HELP US HELP YOU SHARE THE BEST NEWS GOD HAS FOR EVERY PERSON BECAUSE...

JESUS DID IT! and...

YOU ARE SO GREATLY NEEDED!

Remember: All that we do in this life comes back to our God-given purpose which is to serve and glorify God. The money and assets we accumulate, the fame and power we've attained or seek to attain - all of the things of this nature will one day pass away, but those lives of others we impact for Jesus Christ will last for eternity, and we will be rewarded for the part we helped play by impacting those lives ... for eternity. (Matthew 6:19-21 is our assurance)