“I heard God’s name mentioned when I was growing up,” Claire remembers, “but not appropriately.”
Not raised a Christian, her days were unhappy, except when she could escape to school and get away from the quarreling at home. When she later pursued a career in art, she reached many of her life goals, but her joy was short-lived. “Something was missing. Education, art, and even love from other people did not fill the empty space inside,” she explains.
Claire tried to read the Bible and attended many different churches through the years, but they all taught different things. “I finally concluded that God hated me,” she says. “Pastors spoke about hell and how the wicked would burn there forever. I thought this would happen to me because I didn’t know God or understand the Bible.”
After losing her husband, Claire often kept the television on for “noise.” One day, a program came on from Amazing Facts. She decided to listen and discovered Pastor Doug Batchelor was not like other pastors. After that she tuned in each week to hear what he had to say about the Bible.
“Things were moving along just fine,” she recalls, “until he started talking about the Sabbath. I decided Pastor Batchelor must surely be wrong about worshiping God on Saturday rather than Sunday, so I decided to go online and find evidence to prove he was wrong. But instead I found the truth! All the historical data proved I was wrong and he was correct.”
Life-Changing Truth!
Discovering the true Sabbath was life-changing for Claire. “It was the beginning of something too wonderful for words!” she says. Seeing this truth for the first time unlocked many more doors of Scripture for her. “To think that Jesus had such a great love for each of us that He set aside one day each week to fellowship with us touched me deeply. I could hardly wait for the next Amazing Facts program to come on so I could discover more about Jesus!”
As she continued listening to Pastor Doug, he encouraged viewers to find a local Sabbathkeeping church to attend, explaining that there are no “Lone Ranger” Christians. “He used an illustration of a red-hot coal being taken out of the fire,” she remembers, “and if left to itself, it would eventually die out. Christians need to come together.” Claire also recalls him asking people if they could stay healthy eating one meal a week. In the same way, she was reminded, Christians need to be well-fed spiritually. “I knew that was the truth as soon as he spoke those words!”
Soon after Claire went online and found a church in her area and began attending regularly. “I have a wonderful pastor in this Bible-believing church,” she says. “This is now my home and I’m thankful for the sweet gatherings each Sabbath and mid-week prayer meetings.”
Still Growing in His Grace
Claire continues to listen to Pastor Batchelor online at www.amazingfacts.org. “God knew what it would take to reach my heart and used Doug Batchelor to reach it,” she explains. “I’ve shared my testimony with others at my church, including my pastor, and many appreciate Pastor Doug as well.”
There are many Amazing Facts resources that have helped Claire in her walk with God. She finds The Bible Timeline (timeline.biblehistory.com) very helpful, along with the web pages SabbathTruth.com and BibleProphecyTruth.com. She also loves the The Ten Commandments: Laws of Love and Liberty DVD and study guides and enjoys her Amazing Facts Prophecy Study Bible so much that she has purchased several to give to other church members who do not have one, including an acquaintance who lives in another state.
As a result of watching programs on www.AmazingFacts.tv, Claire says her lifestyle has changed. “For years I used to eat pork barbecue, but now believe these foods are foods God doesn’t want me to eat.” She also has quit drinking coffee. “It was my heavy duty ‘daily drug use.’ I would drink five to eight cups of strong coffee each workday. Not anymore.”
Claire testifies, “I believe God raised up Pastor Doug for the purpose of teaching and preaching the Bible truth to people hungering and thirsting for God’s word in these last days. I am a senior citizen and have unspeakable joy in my life and heart today because I know Jesus and His Sabbath truth, thanks to the tireless efforts of Amazing Facts, which shares the good news and love of Jesus with whoever will watch or listen.”
She concludes, “Pastor Batchelor is faithfully sending God’s Bible truth around the world! How blessed we are to be living in these days when the truth can be found and Bibles are available. We know Jesus is coming soon!”