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This is the transcript of Nicki's testimony at church on Palm Sunday 2006:

OK now let me tell you my story. My name is Nicki; I’m married to a wonderful husband Gary; and I have two boys, James who’s aged six, and Mark who’s four. I actually work for Woolworths, I have done for twenty years actually, currently as an area manager and I have been with them since I was a Saturday Girl. If I do get any spare time I like to watch football and I happen to support a great club called Arsenal. And there’s a big game on at four o’clock today, so we’ll be finished by four. I was born and bred in South Ruislip and I’ve never had any desire to move away whatsoever. So that’s why I’m still here. I’ve actually been coming to this church since I was five years old. My parents don’t actually go to church but they brought me along to Sunday School and also to a midweek club called Sunshine Corner which Granville used to run. There is now a modern version called Razzmatazz and it’s what I like to do with the kids and it’s where we have great fun learning about Jesus and we do games, stories, quizzes and DVDs. When I look back I had a fantastic childhood. I loved going to school, I loved sport, I loved coming to church, and over the years I have learned so much about the stories from the Bible and learnt about Jesus. I was generally quite a good kid; I’d fight with my brother every now and again and I’d play my Mum and Dad up occasionally as I guess all kids do. And also like most children I was actually very selfish, I always wanted to have my own way and I think that has come through from what a few of us have said today. But I do remember being the most horrible teenager: I don’t know quite what happened but, boy, was I awful! I used to upset my Mum, I used to swear a lot, I was always drinking, I’d get out of my head, I’d be sick, it was just a nightmare. So I wasn’t a good teenager I have to admit – I don’t know quite what happened but a bit of a transformation came across me. And I think in summary I was a bit of a rebel I think that’s what happened in my teenage years. And then when I was fifteen I had a day that I will always remember which was the day my life started to change. I was actually out in the back room here and there were ten or twelve girls and we were called Covies, and we had two good leaders, one called Sue and the other one called Wendy. And one morning we were talking about the importance of life. What they did was they gave us a biscuit and the question they asked was what is most important; to eat food i.e. the biscuit, or to read the Bible and have spiritual life and spiritual food? Well, of course as you probably know by now I’m a very sort of quiet and shy type and I immediately spoke up and said, “well of course it’s food, we have to eat the biscuit, this is the most important thing.” Obviously it was the wrong answer. “OK” they said, “let’s read the Bible, and eat the biscuit and then we’ll see.” So, let’s do that now. You know what’s absolutely amazing, the children haven’t found the biscuits.

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If you look down in the chair in front of you, in the back of each chair there is a biscuit and those at the front I have some here. Prepared earlier. OK, has everyone got a biscuit? Excellent. Could you put the words up on the screen please Chris? These are the words that we read that morning, from John chapter six. And it’s up to you: if you’d like to read the Bible and eat you biscuit at the same time, if you want to keep your biscuit to later that’s fine but the idea is obviously a visual aid. John six, starting at verse thirtyfive: “Then Jesus declared ‘I am the bread of life, he who comes to Me will never go hungry and he who believes in Me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen Me and still you do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from Heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall loose none of all that he has given Me but to raise them up on the last day.” And when I read that that morning “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me will never be hungry, he who believes in Me will never be thirsty” it felt that morning like Jesus was speaking directly to me. I knew then, from that moment I needed Jesus in my life. I knew I needed spiritual food. I knew that being alive spiritually was as important, if not more important as being physically alive and being fed with food. I think we finished that morning with a song and I then remember running home at a pace straight to my bedroom and I got straight on my knees and prayed and I said “Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for me, thank you for dying to forgive me of all my wrong doing. Please come into my life, into my heart, and help me to live each day for You.” I knew from that moment that I’d become a Christian, a follower of Jesus. And I’ll always remember my Covie leader saying to me, “If you ever become a Christian, come and tell me.” So on the Wednesday mid-week activity, I remember coming into church “Sue and Wendy, I’ve got something to tell you – I’ve become a Christian.” I think they were quite pleased. I had tremendous boldness at that time and I remember going into school and telling all my friends, telling my family, and I was so excited that Jesus was now my Saviour. And I have to say that since that day I have tried to live differently. I’ve tried not to be so selfish, I’ve tried not to swear, and I’ve tried to help other people. But what I do know with complete assurance, is that Jesus cares for me. I know He loves me and I know He helps me through every day. I have that sort of inner joy and inner peace which can only come from Jesus. I absolutely love coming to church, I love worshipping God, and I love meeting with everyone that meets here. I love sharing with other people too and I do try my best to live the best life I can but that isn’t always easy. The one thing I know in conclusion, is that I’m not perfect, by any stretch of the imagination but I am forgiven. What I’d like to do now is sing ‘King of Kings, Majesty’ and the reason I’ve chosen this song is, it says “King of Kings, Majesty, God of Heaven living in me.” And that God of Heaven lives in me and that God of Heaven can live in you too.

Nicki Lewington

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