Personal Testimony by Sunil Poonen
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Summary
The speaker recounts his personal journey from taking the church for granted to experiencing profound spiritual awakening. After a shattering experience with a visa rejection, he was broken down by God's providence, leading him to surrender his life unconditionally to Jesus. This experience proved far more meaningful than his initial dreams, leading him to embrace baptism and a deeper relationship with Christ.
Outline
The message in plain words, in the order it unfolds. Select a time to jump the video to that moment.
Growing up inside the protection of the churchGrowing up as a pastor's kid in CFC, Sunil took the church's protection for granted, much like grandchildren living safely inside Noah's ark without seeing the perversion of the world outside.
Living a selfish life and facing a shattering visa rejectionWhen he went to college, he lived selfishly and rebelled against expectations, but God broke his self-confidence by causing his visa application to study abroad to be rejected.
Experiencing God's love through Godly parentsHis parents showed unconditional love and encouragement instead of judgment, giving him his first taste of the love of Jesus as a father and guiding him to read the Bible.
Surrendering unconditionally and getting baptizedHe gave his life to the Lord unconditionally, realizing baptism is simply enrolling in the school of Jesus with a desire to follow Him and stop sinning despite having many faults.
Kept strong to the endBrother Yen gave him a verse from 1 Corinthians assuring him that God would keep him free from blame until Christ returns, which protected him from condemnation during college.1 Corinthians 1:8
Finding greater pleasure in the CreatorWhen praying for victory over lust, he realized that God, as the creator of all pleasure, offers a million times more joy in His presence than any cheap pleasure of sin.
Turning on the light instead of fighting darknessInstead of focusing merely on fighting sin, he learned to pursue undistracted fellowship with his heavenly father, which automatically extinguishes darkness just like turning on a light.
Saved from spiritual death in career choicesGod guided him to take a lower-paying job closer to family instead of a demanding 7-day-a-week banking job, saving him from the spiritual death of pursuing the love of money.
Discovering God through daily scripture readingOver the last decade, his reading of the word shifted from a ritual to seeking God's face daily to be corrected and transformed more into the likeness of Jesus.
Passing on the exciting life of following JesusLife with God is truly exciting, and just as others invested in him, he wants to pay it forward by encouraging his children and the next generation to experience this abundant life.Proverbs 14:14
