My New Life

Jen Wallis

Jen, two of her boys with HazelI was brought up in a Christian home and attended a traditional Anglican church and a Catholic school.  The long sermons and masses left me with the impression that Christianity was boring and filled with tradition and routine, I don't remember any sort of relationship with God or understanding the significance of Jesus. As a result religion wasn’t something I gave any thought to for many years of my adult life.

 

However, as a staff nurse, thoughts of life, death and what lies beyond were never too far from my thoughts.  When patients died I thought a bit more about what happens after we die.  But I thought everyone just went to heaven.  I didn’t think that it was important what you believed.

 

Then, in my early 30’s, I began my search for God.  I became involved in New Age type spiritualism, learning mediumship, tarot readings and often attended spiritual churches.  I felt I was helping people and didn't recognise at the time how dangerous the implications of this were.

 

In 2008 I began working in pharmacy and my manager advised me not to speak of my beliefs to the new locum, Hazel, as she was a Christian – one of those modern types I was told.  But I discovered I immediately clicked with Hazel and my questions slowly began.

 

My curiosity piqued, I bought and started to read the Bible.  When I heard about The Alpha Course I thought this would be a great place to find out more about what a Christian really was.  A short while into the course I prayed for a specific scenario and my prayer was answered!  Combined with everything else I’d learnt so far, I realised I wanted to become a Christian.

 

Since then I’ve had to make a number of sacrifices to prioritise my new relationship with God, including giving up my job as a dispenser which I'd just begun.  Yet I can honestly say it’s been worth it.  And in the summer of 2009 I was baptised in water to openly express my love and acknowledgement for what Jesus has done for me and to demonstrate my new commitment to my life with God.