A Testimony of Salvation from Stephen Wall 

A little while back, I asked some of my readers if they would be willing to share their testimony. I had it on my heart to share my story with others and realised that all too often, we who were raised in Christian families, are hesitant to share our testimony of salvation as we feel that it is not 'share-worthy'. 

We often feel like because of the way we were raised and how blessed we were to be sheltered and protected from so many things, we don't have a lot to share about the chains of sin being broken and burdens being lifted. But oh, how we need to hear of God's goodness and his faithfulness to generations. We needn't be ashamed and bashful about sharing what God has done in our lives. 

We need to be reminded and remind others of how blessed it is to have been kept from so much pain and sorrow and how God can change lives. Even from a very young age God can begin the process of sanctification in us. 

I was so encouraged when the son of a friend of mine put his hand up to be the first to share how God has worked in his life. 

I pray that his testimony will be an encouragement to you and spur you on to becoming bolder in proclaiming the good news as you share with others God's goodness. 

God bless. 

Psalm 35:9

And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation.

My name is Stephen Wall, and I would like to share with you how my spiritual life began when I was 7 years old.  After listening to a Sunday evening sermon, I became concerned about where I would spend eternity.  That night I went to my mother and begun questioning her in regards to salvation: to be saved from my sins and expressing my desire to spend eternity with the LORD JESUS.  My mother showed me from the Bible, how to be born again through Jesus Christ. It was at this time that I asked Jesus into my life as Lord and Saviour, and this is how my Christian walk began.

As the years went by, I began to have numerous doubts about my salvation and that if I died, I would go to hell.  This went on for quite a long time; honestly, I did not know if I was saved or not.

 I wasn’t conducting myself in a way that was not pleasing to the Lord, but I was not living the way God wanted me too either.

Then when I was 16 years old, my dad, brothers and myself went to a Christian men’s camp.  At that camp, the pastor who preached for the Sunday morning service offered prayer for anyone, who needed or wanted prayer, for anything in their lives. He said “if there is any man here today wanting prayer please come and stand in the middle of the circle” then he would personally pray for them. I went into that circle and received prayer.

Time continued to pass and I still had doubts about my salvation.  I would often talk to my mother explaining the fear and confusion I was experiencing towards my salvation through Jesus Christ.

2019 came around, it was not until late September early October. That two of my brothers, my eldest sister, and myself had the wonderful privilege to attend a National Baptist Fellowship Conference in Adelaide. The last night of the Conference, a pastor preached on the Sheep on the right hand of God and the Goats on the left hand of God. In the closing of his message, he mentioned that if you weren’t saved you would go to hell when you died, this really got me thinking, it really made me upset because I did not want to go to hell and burn, I wanted to go to Heaven! I desperately wanted to know and understand the truth! I knew I had to find someone to talk with about salvation. I needed and wanted to find someone and sort it out. I rang my Mum and she said go talk to the preacher, I looked for the pastor and could not find him, so I prayed for help and God led me to guy a by the name of Keith Piper.

I asked him if he’d mind talking with me, and I told him what I had been going through (the doubts, the confusion, the fear of not knowing) then I asked him how to get saved through God’s Amazing Grace, I needed and wanted what everyone else had, “the peace of mind and to actually be saved by the grace of God from my sins.

So then and there on the night of the 3/ 10/ 2019 I asked God to forgive me for all my sins and come into my life. I truly believed that Jesus God’s Son came down from heaven and died on the cross to save my soul from eternal destruction.  

This is when my life was truly turned around, through God’s Great Love.

As a born-again Christian I really began to see big changes happen in my life. I felt amazing knowing that I had the peace of mind about my salvation and all my doubts went away. Praise the Lord!

Then in March 2021 under the Pastorship of Dave Cotton I followed the Lord in Baptism, it was a wonderful experience. So thankful that I was able to take this public step of faith for the Lord.

 I had just started an apprentiship as a mechanic which has been a life dream. Two weeks after I commenced my apprentiship my health decline rapidly. I started fainting, having seizures and other complications. This ended my employment and started my journey of going to specialist interstate. Through this journey which has impacted me in four different ways.

·        physically

·        mentally

·        spiritually

·        emotionally

The first year wasn’t too hard then the second year came around and that is when it really hit me hard.  I am to a certain extent confined to home, which I struggled with isolation, and not being able to go out to church, shops, meetings with friends and family, etc. Later that second year I began focusing on my health which was not a wise choice, I started getting depressed about my life.

  In late October 2022, I was so depressed about life I thought that I should try and end my life by overdosing on medication. The only thing that Stopped me from overdosing; was a song by the name “Complete in Thee”. It made me stop and think about how unsaved people cope with their depression without God. Through all of this depression I started blaming God for taking me out of church, which I then established a hate towards God for what He had allowed to happen in my life. I also remember through this time I would ask my Mum how can someone have faith in a God that takes everything away from you?

This was very hard for me to understand how to keep my faith, because all I wanted to do was just quit on God, I figured that if that was what Christianity was all about, then I didn’t want anything to do with God. So, from there I stopped praying and stopped reading the Bible because I didn’t like what God was doing in my life.

Through God’s perfect timing in December 2022, I was at church were the hymn “I have decided to follow Jesus” was chosen.  I was not able to sing this song: this is a challenging hymn. Through this time of depression, on a Friday night I came to the realisation that I needed to get my life right with God.

So, the next day I got my older brother to take me to church so that I could spend time in prayer and get my life right with God. The hate, anger that I had built towards God was instantly changed into a desire to know God, and serve other people. The moment is indescribable, no words can be said to give the smallest insight of what happened that day. It was the guilt of the hatred, anger towards God that I had built up in my life. It made me realise that I needed to surrender the hate, anger over to God, so that he could teach me what he needed me to learn so that I could become the Christian person he wants me to be.

Since then, I have started Bible College and I have also started a YouTube channel called Walking with God in the Outback which has helped my mental health remain stable, and my faith grow in leaps and bounds. Now I look back on my journey of health I am thankful to God for this journey, it has matured my faith in God, it has also given me the desire to study and learn more about the God that I want to serve one day.

Here are three verses that have helped me to stay focused on God.

James 1:3            Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

Romans 8:28      And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

 I also like to wear a wristband with these words inscribed in it, “COURAGE”                                          Joshua 1:6.         Be Strong and Courageous

Thankyou for taking the time to read my testimony, “my journey”. Please remember me in your prayers as I wait on the Lord to direct my paths, with God’s grace as I soldier on for the Lord here in my office, working with the Lord as He walks daily with me in the 4 areas of my life, and the Lords coming.