Roger Carswell Interviews – Andy Cardy
well good evening everyone uh you’re very welcome to our real lives Mission uh this evening our first night of our mission uh going throughout the week uh we’re going to start off with a few pieces of Praise so you can keep your seat as more Gather in um we’re going to sing two pieces what a faithful God and then uh a sovereign what a sovereign God have we so uh stay keep seated As we sing our first two pieces thank you [Music] I come before your thr of Grace I find rest in your presence and fullness of joy in worship and wonder I behold your face [Applause] singing God fful go [Music] [Applause] [Music] Mery [Music] have [Music] the my s in the in the Shel of your My Heart Sing water [Music] oh [Music] for every [Music] way com [Music] I will tell love for as I [Music] [Applause] [Music] sing a what a fful [Music] thanful what thanful God [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] that was a l start we’re going to carry on our singing [Music] uh I saw the Lord and the answer be I [Applause] be from [Music] every let be [Music] this and as my the son [Music] of never [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] with [Music] me GL [Music] [Applause] [Music] his [Music] forever that the Lord is good all meress [Music] is heart in for give the GL all you say we give you everything we give you everything [Music] [Music] together [Music] glor with [Music] me [Music] forever you with me [Music] his for [Music] glor his for [Music] and see that the Lord is good oh blessed is he who in oh fear the lord all all you say give you everything give you [Music] everything thank you to the Prius group for leading us and you’re very welcome to the first night of our real lives Mission we’ve the tent nearly full so it’s great to see you if you’re not from B ker from the surrounding District give you a very warm welcome to the first night of our Gospel Mission here this evening let run through some brief announcements good to have Andy cardi with us this evening uh Andy’s going to be interviewed by Roger shortly and Andy as you know hasn’t been too well lately but we’re just thankful to God that he’s here and he’s going to share his story of God’s grace this evening it’s good to have Roger uh with us I’m sure most of you have heard of Roger Carswell he’s a proud Yorkshire man he is indeed yes and he’s married to Dorothy and they have four children and 10 grandchildren and what else can I say about Roger um he loves golf he he he loves golf so if you’re talking to Roger please try and divert him from talking about golf I know some great golf courses in Northern Ireland so maybe if we have some free time during the week we’ll take Roger to some of those famous golf courses in Northern irand you’re very welcome uh to our tent Mission Roger the meetings continue Monday to Friday at 8:00 p.m. and then next Sunday God willing at 8:30 uh there are daytime events uh arranged in hsbor Scout Hall tomorrow morning 10:30 uh the aroma uh coffee shop at the Old Mill in drore at 10 on Tuesday the connect Hall in drar at 10:30 on Wednesday H the Scout Hall in Hills in anah Hill Village on Thursday at 10:30 and then tea in the tent here on Friday at 10:30 so those will continue during the week and they bels regarding those are on the way out there is a bookstall we’ll uh be opening The Book Stall during the week and Roger may be mention a couple of books just this evening if you’d like to take some this evening just leave a donation for the books that are involved uh the people with lanyards on are those have been involved in the mission so if you need to talk to anybody please speak to them there are toilets uh around to the my behind me here uh on the right hand side of the tent and the far exits are the way you come in and there’s an exit here out to my left as as well this Mission has been organized with the sole intention of reaching this community with the the best news in the world the news of the Gospel that the Lord Jesus Christ left Heaven came to this earth went to the Cross died on the cross finished the work rose again and we’re here to exalt him to Magnify Him in this tent Mission today our strap line verse for the mission was 1 John 5:12 he who has the son has life and those of us are here that or tonight or Christians can testify to that there’s nothing like knowing the Lord Jesus a big thank you to anybody who’s helped in any way H to put this Mission together to the Steering group not going to mention anybody by name uh for fear of leaving somebody out for all who’ve supported the prayer meetings for those who have supported financially for those who built the tent and helped uh guard the tent during the past week we give you thanks for all your help there is tea and coffee available out to my left where the prayer room is at the end of the meeting now if you want to speak to anybody uh about spiritual matters please speak to Roger speak to myself or any of the other people with the lanyard Zone we’re here to help you I think those are all the announcements hope you have a great evening uh this evening as a church we read through the New Testament on Sunday evenings I’m going to continue that tonight we’re going to read from Luke chapter 9 we started this back in August 21 and we’ve reached Luke 9: 37 to 48 so Luke 9 uh beginning at verse 37 and this is the word of God now it happened on the next day when they had come down from the mountain that a great multitude met him that’s Jesus suddenly a man from the multitude cried out saying teacher I am L you look on my son for he is my only child and behold a spirit sees him and he suddenly cries out it convulses him so that he Foams at the mouth and it departs from him with great difficulty bruising him so I implored your disciples to cast it out but they could not then Jesus answered and said oh faithless and perverse generation how long shall I be with you and bear with you bring your son here and as he was still coming the demon threw him down and convulsed him then Jesus rebuked the unclean Spirit healed the child and gave him back to his father and they were all amazed at the Majesty of God but while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did he said to his disciples let these words sink down into your ears for the son of man is about to betrayed into the hands of men but they did not understand the saying and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it and they were afraid to ask him about this saying then it dispute arose among them as to which of them would be the greatest and Jesus pursuing the thought of their heart took a little child and set them by them and said to them whoever receives This Little Child in my name receives me and whoever receives me receives him who sent me for he who is least among you will be great and we thank God for his precious word we’re going to pray now and just commit the evening to God In Prayer so let’s all pray together our heavenly father we thank you for the Bible we thank you that you have revealed yourself to us through the scriptures through creation and through your son the Lord Jesus the one we read about this evening in Luke’s gospel we thank you that we have the Bible in our own language you have we have not left us in the dark we do thank you that the entrance of your word brings light and we thank you for the privilege of gathering in this tent this evening to hear the wonderful lifechanging news of the Gospel thank you for everyone here you know our hearts you know our history you know our sins and our struggles and yet you love us uncond conditionally and we thank you that as we’ve been reminded so many times in recent days we are still in the day of Grace and it is not your will that any should perish but that all should come to repentance to that end we pray for Andy as he shares your story God bless him thank you for saving him thank you for sustaining him even today when he feels so weak physically we pray that you you would just help him spiritually this evening pray you’d fill him a fresh this evening with your Holy Spirit we pray for Roger as he will open the Bible and preach the Bible that he would know help from heaven and we just pray that this would be a great evening for the glory and honor of the Lord Jesus Christ thank you for all who have helped in any way uh to organize this Mission and to share the wonderful news of the Gospel that Christ Jesus came into the world to save Sinners we pray for anyone in the tent anyone watching online still outside of Christ still not a Christian that even tonight they would take on board the teaching of your word that they would realize that they’re cut off from God that they can do nothing to save themselves their only response is to repent and believe this glorious wonderful gospel thank you that the work is finished thank you the Lord Jesus is alive forever more he’s seated at your right hand he’s coming back soon to take us home May everyone in this tent be ready to meet him when he comes back so commit the evening to you thank you for the Prius group thank you for the audio visual team for the people in the door for the those in the welcome desk bless our time together and glorify your wonderful name in Jesus name we pray amen we’re going to sing again as the prayers group join us at the front Cornerstone [Music] my hope is on and Jesus love and rightous I dare not trust the [Music] sweetest trust in Jesus name my hope is on nothing and Jesus and right i d not trust the [Music] weest but TR in Jesus name [Music] Christ be made strong in saor love through the he is Lord [Music] of Darkness to [Music] his I on unchanging in every heart and Stor Myer hold [Music] [Music] we strong saor love through the he is [Music] Lord when he shall come with tret oh may I in rest in [Music] his all bless Christ the for the we strong in saor love he is [Applause] [Music] CH we strong in theor [Music] love he is Lord Lord of [Music] great thank you very much uh let me introduce myself I’m Roger a Yorkshire I’ve always got to get that word in and it’s really good to be here great to see so many of you just before I introduce Andy let me say uh very quickly about the bookstore this is not a Tupperware party you don’t have to buy anything all right and tonight we’re not selling anything either so the book store’s out there but we’re just going to mention two books if you want them tonight because you think you can’t come another night hey come on look if you I don’t know what you’ve got planned for tomorrow cancel it pull a Sicky if you’re at work just say hey look I’ve got more important things than than you if you’re electioneering just say we know what’s going to happen anyway so let’s come along here because you never know what’s going to happen here so uh we’d love to see you Night By Night by night and during the week nights we will have the books St but two books tonight that you might just think hm okay uh they’re very special for tonight the first one is written by Andy’s wife well uh she’s with the Lord now she’s in heaven uh it’s called there came a day and it’s a much Fuller telling of the story we’re going to hear tonight it is very very moving I have to say I I I do enjoy reading but there are not many books where I sit down and I don’t get up till I finish the book but that happened with this this book I read it in the day it’s a great book I think normally it sells for $9.99 I get them for a lot cheaper I get them for3 if if you follow the right lorries along the motorways it’s amazing what falls off and um but anyway we’re doing it on a donation basis tonight so if you want one and you haven’t got the money just take it but if you can cover the cost just put it in the the box there came a day Andy says he’ll sign it if you want for a Fiverr but it’s not worth it because it’ll be a useless book if he signed it so uh but anyway if you want to do go up to him but it is a very very powerful book uh written by by uh Pat um and then we’re calling this week real lives um and we’ got to be honest most of the books we’re going to be selling for a pound each you can’t Ain get anything for a pound these days but you can get books and um real lives it’s a collection of stories of people I’ve interviewed in the past how they became Christians and there are some humdingers here I’d love atheists to look at some of these and explain how these people became Christians how their lives were changed if there’s no God anyway there we are you might like to take a pile of these and give them away and then tomorrow we’ll have the much bigger bookstore um Andy who just introduce things who’s the pastor of the church I just realized half his lies are not true I hate golf it what a total waste of life and time and money I don’t even know which racket you use to hit the what what shape is the ball I have no idea but anyway so forget Golf and uh oh by the way if you got a golf game during the week cancel it we’ve got these things on in the morning and in the evening we’d love to have you along um now Andy a real good friend of mine and I’m absolutely delighted I know he’s not been well even today shall we give him a very warm welcome as I invite him up here great good to see you uh Andy I introduced you yesterday probably many people won’t be able to see but I did say you’d wear some colorful socks there we are look at that it’s amaz when they’re really colored you get them cheap so that’s why we’ve U every every time I work with Roger I’m so ashamed of a socks they’re like something you’d put on a corpse so [Laughter] tonight thank you very I’ll wear them tomorrow okay good man thank you very much yes okay let’s and it’s great to have you I know there’s a real battle going on in your body at the moment with cancer and I think even this coming week you’re going for more therapy aren’t you well start chemotherapy this Thursday this Thursday and you had therapy a few days ago well I had a very big blast of radiotherapy to try and reduce the pain yeah and uh so it really messed my body up so I did but so Thursday starts came with therapy well it’s it’s great to have you thanks he so much being here um and I’m going to go you know cut to the Chase and go to your story which is a very very moving one and every time I think about what you’ve been through it’s horrendous you um you’re brought up in the the locality yes uh and brought up in a Christian home yes uh-huh so you taught the things of God absolutely would you have come to events like this do you think no never I would of course I would of course of course you would but you didn’t become a Christian until you you getting on in years yeah I was 44 4 so quite recently yes quite recently and um uh you married Pat yes how did you meet uh we lived in a cottage out in the country uh and uh I had to walk to school and they built a new Council estate uh about a mile mile and a half from our Cottage and I had to pass that council state and on the way past one morning they had been filling the house up two or three or four or five at a time and it just filled another another batch of houses up and as I walked past this girl walked out of the house a new house and she saw me and she fell in love with me as soon as she yeah yeah yeah you’re like this pastor half your eyes are not true and uh I was 13 and she was 14 and uh I told her I used to tell her nowadays she’d be in trouble and then eventually we got married right have you had how many children uh we’ve had five five children okay with three surviving right now I’m going to focus on Jennifer because um the whole story about Jennifer is it’s it’s it’s the parents worst nightmare but just tell us a little bit about her before that fateful day well we had a wonderful family Pat and I were very blessed that we had a wonderful family and uh each child was equal to us we had Mark was the first child and then we lost our second child and then we had Jennifer and then we had Phillip and uh we were very fortunate to be able to build a new house and we’ moved into a new house and uh Jennifer was just a lovely child and uh she just sparkled and uh even people would have said to me that’s a lovely child you know remember somebody coming to me and saying Jennifer was in our house yesterday and there was a Workman coming and he say who is that who belongs to who who does that lovely child belonged to she was just a lovely child so she was and we enjoyed her so much yeah and at that stage um you weren’t a Christian but she had trusted the Lord she had trusted she she was uh died when she was nine she trusted the Lord when she seven and did that challenge you Andy well you see when partner and I got married and N of the two of us was saved in the first year that uh Pat and I got married she was invited to a mission can’t remember who the the mission who the missionary was and he preached on uh Revelations behold I stand at the door and knock If any man hear my voice and let me in I will up with him and he was me and that verse sa of Pat so Pat then churched the children incidentally when Pat passed away uh the first Sunday back at church a girl got up and read that verse oh really yeah she stood up and read that how long ago is it since Pat died uh February two years ago two years ago all right what did that I don’t know did that bring tension into your marriage that not not you didn’t mind the fact no not at all no I knew I needed to be saved I needed to be born again and if it wasn’t seed or born again and you was going to hell but and but that didn’t move you well it did at times but I was more interested in building my business up and making money and that’s the Trap we fall into yeah interesting and your business just tell us what it is uh well I’m the best kitchen manufacturer in in Ireland right we’ve got the idea all right let’s go back to Jennifer um yeah one day was going to change your whole life your family’s life and everything what what led up to it Andy well uh I had bought we lived out in the country and in 1981 there was the word pedophile wouldn’t even have been in your V cabber so it wouldn’t and little boys and girls all our children cycled houses and the country and farms and they CED us and uh her bike had got too small for I bought a new bike and uh she just literally went out cycling and was taken from the side of the road so how did you hear that she was missing well I come home from work it was a Wednesday night and uh first 12th of August 1981 and I always tried to work with p with per meetings and bible studies so and it gave me a chance to be with the children so I always got home on a Wednesday night so after dinner she could go on out to the Bible study and prayer meeting and when I got home I can’t tell you what was about 6:00 she was standing at the back door and uh I could see as I drove in the yard that she was something wrong then she I said what’s wrong Pat she says Jennifer hasn’t come home what do you mean she say well she CED off uh I set her watch for and she said to be back I think it was 4: half 4 and she hasn’t appeared now this might have been about 6:00 now I wasn’t really terribly worried because children are children you know and I say well is the dinner ready he says yes and uh I says we we’ll get dinner my prob would have went to look for her earlier but her car had had a pump her overnight so she couldn’t take her car out to go looking for her so we had a very quick dinner and then we went to look for her and she never arrived at the house that she go to right okay so immed you know at that moment you realized something was radically wrong what did you go to the police or well again you don’t you know being optimistic you don’t go you know I didn’t go straight away we went around lots of farms in the car and called at different houses we knew that Jennifer and our children would have known but literally nobody had seen her and eventually we went to the part-time police station and the sergeant was just coming off duty they were shut in the station for the night and he told me that he would stay open for another hour uh if we kept on search and by this time because we had been asking so many people there was lots of other people looking for right and he says come back to me either way within an hour so when I went back and told him that we and I are very worried he uh immediately got the Army out and the police and there was all of a sudden there was hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people looking for and how many days did this search continue six days and could you sleep at night it’s very hard to know just what you did at night because uh you’re so confused and mixed up certainly I slept but uh the awfulness of it and you just wanted it to go away you just wanted to look just take this away you know give me my child back and that’s it and uh it’s very hard to say I used to tell people sometimes it’s very hard when you get a shock like that it’s very hard to know what way that your your body will even react and it acts it reacts in a different ways you know and uh how your your personality reacts and whatnot you know it’s just it hits you like a bullet you know it’s not easy so it’s not it wasn’t the nicest well obviously it wasn’t of experiences and with those six days was there still a sense of hope during those six days oh yes oh yes oh yes there was uhhuh even though you know to be honest it was becoming less and less realistic that she yes it was but you we never give up hope so we never never hope at all and then eventually what happened how did you hear the news well uh her bik was found eventually and when the bik was found we knew were in trouble and uh I went down to the police headquarters which was O then for where the search headquarters was brother-in-law called me says Andy you haven’t been out of the house come on down with me we down the senior policeman that was running it I actually knew him quite well and he come and talked to me and he then uh was called away and everybody in the room was called away and then uh a police woman came and asked us to leave so I knew when we left that something had happened and uh when I got home within about half an hour uh an officer called lovely girl ion forb she was then she now ion Anderson and uh she called me tell me that they found her body in the Dam mck’s dam down the road here uh they found it and M D and uh they had recovered her body so that you know and how did you react were you know because of your Christian background were you angry with God at all did you why me was that question there never never ever no never but it must have been I hard to imagine the inward pain you must have felt at that time yes the awfulness of it then I had to go to craigin and identify and that wasn’t nice because you’d been in the water for 6 days and uh you know I had to be held up when I was there you know I couldn’t stand but again you know uh we just had to keep living and keep going on so we did you were still not a Christian still not a Christian and did it move you at all to think about God to pray certainly did you know the Lord spoke to me a lot through that a big lot uh and it did move me but I still didn’t take the plunge to ask the Lord to save me why you know how do you know why you know really Roger it’s very hard to know why not you know like I I witness a lot in churches all over the not only here but in England and Scotland what and I can’t understand you know I’ve walked for over 30 years with a man he’s Yorkshire man no he’s Li PUD and I walk with him and I persuaded I persuaded him to come to the last one I did in England in southp right and I persuaded him to come he just lived down the road from it and he heard pure gospel didn’t move him at all you know you can’t understand that no very troubling um eventually of course they were to arrest a man who was going to be charged with her murder how did that affect you emotionally and how much after her body was found did they arrest him well you see she her body was recovered in 1981 it was there it was the early ’90s when Robert black was arested and Pat and I always knew that who whoever murdered Jennifer would be caught eventually we had absolutely no doubt about that and then the way he was caught you know well tell us cuz I know it’s it’s it’s a very unusual thing well there was a man in the Scottish borders in a place called St or stow and he was working in his garden his garden sloped away down to the road and when he stood at the bottom of his garden uh his head would have been laer with the the the the uh foot path and he was B down working at his lawnmower and he stood up and he noticed a van had stopped across the road and he had been at one stage and Undertaker and uh he saw something that surprised him the man was out as the van cleaning the windows and the wing M with a oily rag and he watched on as he watched on a little girl come down the foot path and he saw her feet go underneath the van and they disappeared and then he run jumped in and drove off so he knew he had seen the child abducted now quite a lot of TV programs don’t tell this properly because I don’t think they can he then ran to the local police station which wasn’t far told the police and there was two police men on duty and they put things into operation they started to stop cars and Lor’s coming the van went uh East and cars coming from the west and eventually stopped the L probably an hour and and said to the lry driver have you seen uh this particular van and the lry driver said funny I have seen that van sitting in a disused quarry up the road and what Drew my attention to that van was that uh the driver got out of the back of the van and he was stripped to the waist he says that so they let the lry driver go and they were discussing what to do next and uh the van come down the road huh and the Police Stopped the van and while one policeman entertained driver the other policeman opened the back and he was about to shut the doors cuz there was only packing and he saw the packing move and he got up and pulled back the packing underneath the packing he found a sleeping bag tied at the top and uh when he opened it there was a little girl and there was a thing over her mouth and her hands and feet were tied now she would have died within the next 15 to 20 minutes of Suffocation but they awful thing about it was that the policeman who rescued the little girl he actually rescued his own daughter he actually was his own daughter it’s remarkable yes and in the time that he had that little girl he sex actually assaulted her in ways that’s beyond your imagination you wouldn’t even think to do what he did so that little girl is now married and has children so she has done very well thank the Lord remarkable and and yeah Robert black arrested and eventually tried but not only for Jennifer’s murder no you see what happened then they had a look at and went to flat and London and found all of the filth that there was there and then they started to follow them around England Scotland Wales and Ireland and uh in them days if you used a credit card it went into a thing and the give you a copy and that was stored on a thing called micro fish and uh went into the microfish files and they eventually were able to follow him around England and then they were able to and each place he had been over a period of time children went missing and then the the uh the trail led to uh the province here so we knew from the early ’90s that Robert black had murdered our child but we would have met the police secretly so we didn’t want the Press involved to ruin it in any way So eventually they and uh he was brought over here Reed and the wonderful stories like that when he come over here to be questioned uh when he was being questioned and he pre syn uh in England on a sliding scale of 1 to 10 he scored three he was very very manipulative and uh quite intelligent actually and I set our church to pray I go to Hills breum and a set of other churches all my friends they prayed when we knew he was coming with re questioned they had trained up a police woman and a police man to interview him they had actually gone over and sat and watched him being interviewed uh through a a oneway glass and when he come over here we prayed and that morning uh Pat rang me in the office says my reading this morning she says was uh Bam’s donkey and if the Lord can make bm’s duny this is where they ass spoke if make a donkey speak he make Robert black speak and in his interviews um he almost it’s described exactly where he had left Jennifer he went almost 99% to the point where he was going to say he did it so out of a slay and scale he scored over nine and that was prayer so it was that was prayer remarkable really in all this tragedy and sadness nevertheless God was at work and by the time of the trial Andy you had come to Faith In Jesus I had come to know the Lord what led up to that well uh we we uh Pat’s Health was very very bad and uh she had to go in for an operation and we had Mark philli and uh uh we had Mark and philli and uh uh what you call can’t remember the name Victoria no we hadn’t Victoria only Mark and Phil so we had and uh well we had Jennifer at that time too so we had and uh so we had three children and when she went in for this operation they advised her never to have any more children because it would be really bad for her health and they asked her would she uh get sterilized so she came home from the hospital and asked me about it and I said look you know Pat I would not ask you to do that it’s up to you so she prayed about and she the Lord spoke to her and the Lord she went in and got sterilized and uh when she got sterl I can’t tell you the exact time maybe a year afterwards she come down the stairs one morning and she says Andrea I’m pregnant again good old nhsa I says how can you be pregnant when uh you’re sterilized you know I’m not that good you know so I’m not yeah this is too much information and uh anyhow uh the result of that was she’s went to the doctor and the doctor told her to catch herself on it was wee bug so the we bug’s for 43 years of age you know and uh that was such a wonderful blessing because uh Victoria was born uh in December 1980 and we lost Jennifer in uh 1981 so you know the Lord give us another child which was such a blessing you know was such a blessing so so she never left me alone she got up a bit Pat had her The Good News Club and Sunday school and what not and all them events all them things have events and I had to go along to some of these events and eventually uh going to these events even you never lose confidence in the word of God because even small parts of the word of God is there to do jobs and that started to work on me and then I decided uh I needed to be saved and it was a terrible battle so when I uh I decided to take a few days off and I went up to Pico took a tent with me and enough food I’ve always been a runner and a walker for 3 or 4 days I up to pedico and I walked up the side of lock dur and then camped that night at loes up and D go and uh the whole walk was a battle you know I wanted to get saved and I didn’t want to get saved the next day I walked through I walked over the blue stack mountains into the Glen V National Park and I walked too far into the night I walked it was September time so walked until it was pitch dark when I put my tent up and during the night I uh storm moved in and the next morning when I got my breakfast and packed my tent I had no visibility couldn’t see and I hadn’t or couldn’t take a triangulated b uh uh bearing I could know what could set my compass to walk North but you could walk off the end of a cliff so you could and you know in honesty it frightened me and I’m you know I’ve never the bank manager is the only thing ever frightened me in my life you know and uh I’ve practically never been frightened in my life and uh I said to the Lord you know I had to meet Pat that night in F Cara right up in the North Coast I said get me to the coast tonight and I’ll start going back to church every Sunday night until you save me I reject you really so I sat a baring I’ll never forget it and I sat a baring walked in that baring as best I could I’ll never forget climbing down a cliff getting into a plateau walking along the plateau and all of a sudden the Mist lifted and I could just see erle is a very shingly mountain and I could just see the bottom of uh erle sticking out of the Mist so I knew that where it was then it was the first time I actually knew what it was so I kept my promise I went back till uh I went back to uh church every Sunday night but was then in the Evangelical Presbyterian church and uh they did a mission I think it was a two weeks Mission Andrew Wy and a man who has just passed away called W Dara great missionary so he was and uh and how I went as many NES as it could and the very last night of that mission I knew that I had to grasp this this is my opportunity I I said you know I near thought that if I miss this tonight it’s like somebody here tonight you miss it you might be dead tomorrow know so so any how uh when we went home children was with us and everybody went to bed I sat up and when I sat up I asked the Lord to come into my life and save my soul and he did it now the strange thing about it is we expect the road to Damascus experience but it’s not always late that no flash in the sky so as I went home up the stairs to bed that night I uh Satan said to me how do you know you’re saved you look at the way you lived your life and what you did know and just like that the Holy Spirit put a story into my mind my sister was a missionary with wack and uh she was told because she joined wack you’d have to go to college and they give her a choice of three colleges and they sent her literature on them she couldn’t choose and uh she prayed about it and then one day as she was reading her scriptures a verse jumped out of the scriptures and uh she said I’ve saw that verse somewhere before today and when she looked at leaflets over the Gate of one of the colleges was the verse so she knew a stinely the Lord spoke to her so uh I says Lord right when I get up in the morning I go downstairs P’s Bible always sat in the worktop when I go downstairs after Shard and shaved I want a ver to tell me I’m saved so the next morning I couldn’t wait to get down the stairs went down the stairs just opened the Bible at random the first verse at top of the top of the Bible was Praise You the Lord sing unto the Lord because he has delivered the soul of the pure from the hands of the evil do now I’ve never lost the joy of my Lord how how many years ago is that I was 44 then I’m 24 now oh no I’m 75 now5 and I’ve never lost that Joy so I’m I’ve always and I’ve never doubt it never doubt and he speaks to me and you’ve never regretted asking Jesus to be your lord never never I wish had done it long time before that very quickly because time’s going but um you know I could ask you about what difference it made in your life but what difference did it make in your life as a Christian when you went for trial and you’re in the courtroom and there’s the man who killed your daughter how did being a Christian change the way you might have looked at all of well you see the basis of our faith is forgiveness and we know that in in heaven there’s murderers Moses is in heaven Paul directly or indirectly is in heaven David with Uriah you know so there’s murderers so the blood of Jesus Christ is powerful and strong enough to forgive any sin there’s nothing that the blood of Jesus Christ can’t put right people forget about the BL blood the blood of Jesus Christ is is the power so I knew and whether we like it or not God so loved the world that he give his only begotten son now Robert black was part of the world yes didn’t like what he did didn’t like a sin didn’t like a man but he would have loved him so he would he actually would have loved him now if you’re if you’re a saved person a Christian and you have no forgiveness you’re not living a Christlike life if you hold bitterness now I know for a fact cuz I see it if you don’t forgive it will embitter your life it will take your life from you it will spiritually kill you so it will and the Lord Jesus tells us that many times so it is you know so I knew that Robert black had to be forgiven by me didn’t have to like him didn’t have to live with him but I had to forgive him so I had to set about over a period of time working on that praying about that and I’ll never forget the first time he walked in the first uh time we saw much Court was in the crry court in Belfast I’ll never forget the first time he walked in and I saw him and I just had pity did you absolutely pity I just felt so sorry for that man that he would hand like somebody here tonight who maybe not saved like I just have pity for them you know and I pity and I pied him so much so did and uh then during the trial you know the first three days of the trial was held in uh the court up in craigan craigan Crown Court and during that time they uh picked a jury and then the the legal teams argued the prosecution argued with the with the uh defense and obviously the prosecution wanted his past crimes to be brought into trial and obviously the defense didn’t and they argued these points so that legally and it lasted for another two days but during that time on the Wednesday just without any warning they pled tips of this man being interviewed in andram cruite and it would have broke your heart and I just sat and wept in that courtroom I never forget going home that night and all I wanted to do was en cerate myself in my house and the Lord spoke to me never forsake Hebrews never forget the king of yourselves together and I got Pat ready two of us got ready went into our prayer Mee went night prayer meeting and love from our brothers and and sisters like here tonight I know dozens and dozens and dozens of people here and a love of people just touches you so much so that was really good and then eventually it moved to our M Crown’s court and we had six weeks there and the Lord never left our side he never left our side it was like he sat in the car took a Mee and Nots long go down Banger and a guy come up to me and he says do you recognize me and I said don’t he says I was one of the drivers of you to court some mornings right he said never forget you and Pat get into the car and he says You Prayed from you get into the car do you get out of the car so so uh you know and I told you before Roger about when it was over uh you know over in Southport recently I heard for the first time my statement after the sentencing and you know I’d never seen that before and the police uh press manom told me not to stand in front of Television cameras without preparing to say something and write it down when I went home that night no I’d have to do this next day the Lord just spoke to me I’ll give you what to say and I for the first time at Easter Easter Sunday night in Southport Baptist Church was the first time I ever heard me saying that and I was amazed that I was able to say that so fluently wasn’t me it was the Lord so it was when it was finished I have to tell you about the girl when it was finished uh after we’d met the press one because we stayed away from the press and when then to say to the clerk of the court lovely girl woman I can’t remember I you called her Grace but I can’t remember that just for sure and uh she says Andy s she said I have to tell you something she says she says I’ve been working here 37 years and she said I’ve never sat through anything that in my life so it’s the first time she says I’ve ever saw all the jury cry say the first time I’ve ever saw all the police cry say the first time I’ve saw all the Press cry says the first time I’ve saw the prosecution and defense cry wow and she says uh it’s the first time that I’ve ever cried it was so touching that God was just he was just present of any and every minute I’m going to interrupt I’ve heard you say on a number of occasions Andy that Robert black took Jennifer’s life but he wasn’t going to take your life youed your right you didn’t no bit absolutely I was no way that Robert black was going to take he took my life or he took my daughter’s life and uh you know and the Lord has another other thing is too that Pat and I both have done our best to glorify God through it now if we had unforgiveness and bitterness we couldn’t have done that so we’ve tried over the years to glorify the Lord Jesus Through the death of Jennifer and help build the kingdom and very last of all sorry to cut you short on this uh but Heaven do you believe Jennifer’s in heaven absolutely and Pat absolutely yeah and one day you absolutely and your confidence of going to heaven because you’re good no I’m never good because of the Lord saved me he did the work my dad once said to me Andy he says uh him and I used to pray on a Saturday night together Pat Pat and my dad used to get down every uh Saturday night and pray in our in my living room and he once said him he says Andy the night you got to see what did you do and I looked at him he says the longer you go on with the Lord the more you realize all you did was say yes yes wonder he did it all amen and that as a fact thank you so much I’d love to talk more time’s short and um don’t exhaust him afterwards but do say hello to Andy won’t you shall we show our appreciation thank you very much bless you that was great thank you wonderful thank you isn’t that powerful uh we’re going to stand we’re going to sing and then we’re just I won’t keep you too long I promise uh we should all be out by midnight and um but before we look together into God’s word we’re going to sing that lovely lovely song he will hold me [Music] fast my Christ will hold me when the temp of would be there he will hold me last I could never keep my hope my spirit will for my love is he me [Music] he will hold me f he will hold me for my Savor loves me he will hold me those these things are his [Music] CH will fous in his holy s he will hold [Music] me let my soul pro my [Applause] [Music] the we [Music] will he will hold me for my savior loves me he will ho for my [Music] might the jce the ho with to he will hold our [Music] he the [Music] ho the for my savior l [Music] will thank you very much thank you so what did he do the day he got saved he said yes to Jesus and really that’s that’s what I’m going to encourage you to do tonight who are those who have trusted Christ they’ve said said yes to Jesus I um when I do weeks like this and uh I enjoy doing them very very much I must say somebody was asking me earlier have you been to Northern Ireland before the answer is yes I first came in 1972 I was minus 10 or something at that stage but um and I did a a a couple of weeks at the picky in banga a sort of beach Mission and I think uh every single year since I’ve been a few times I love Northern Island it’s great to be here and um but when I do things like this I love to interview people find out how they became Christians and then really just challenge us all to make sure that we’re right with God Andy the Pastor said earlier this is the most wonderful message it is but it is also the most Urgent Message we need to make sure we’re right with God God never promises tomorrow it’s always today that he promises to speak um and many of these interviews when covid came uh you know suddenly all these missions stopped so we started interviewing people on zoom and putting the interviews the the the testimonies on um YouTube you can look them up if you want www. real lives it’s one word with a double l in the middle real lives. net and one of the people I interviewed was a man called Jim Fielder from Hull in Yorkshire got to get that word in and um brought up with the Jehovah’s Witnesses and for over 60 years he was a Jehovah’s Witness he was an elder he led people out doing door to door work his wife was a Jehovah’s Witness his children his grandchildren Jehovah’s Witnesses 7 years ago as a Jehovah’s Witness he was just reading the Bible normally they read their own study books about the Bible he was reading the Bible he was reading the book of Romans and it got him thinking and walking on the Main Street in the center of Hull one day he just suddenly said it’s finished it’s finished it’s finished and that very moment he was converted to CH he was saved he was made right with God after years of doing all that religious work suddenly he realized it is finished and I just want us to think about that particular phrase that’s all it’s one of the sentences which Jesus spoke I believe triumphantly when he was on the cross there are seven words that we read that he spoke he he said it is finished and I understand I’m no expert on languages that um in the original it’s just one word finished so he’s crucified he’s carried on himself the sin of the world he’s paid the penalty as a substitute for us and cries out finished now there are loads of things in this world that are not finished there’s a famous unfinished Symphony um yes I I studied years ago a course I supposed to have done four major essays in the three years I was studying I of think sometime I must finish that fourth one there are lots of things which are unfinished unfinished stories and um I became a Christian in the Lebanon one of the most famous sites in the Lebanon are the pillars of barbeck but they’re unfinished they’re polished well half polished columns so many things unfinished at the age of 33 on a cross Jesus could cry out finish not a cry of defeat but one of abs absolute Triumph do you remember very very early on in the life of the Lord Jesus there was that incident where he’d gone with Joseph and Mary down to down to Jerusalem and then they were making their way back to um back to Nazareth and Jesus wasn’t with them and they went back panicked searching for this young lad Jesus and they spoke when they found him and expressed their anxiety do you remember what Jesus said I must be about my father’s business well 25 years later or so it was finished he finished the work by dying on the cross and repeatedly throughout his life he’d said things like my hour has not yet come but now it’s finished culminated by Christ dying and carrying on himself the sin of the world I think most of us If we’re honest we look at ourselves and we’re not the people we ought to be we all know that of course we know that Christians talk about Sin and there is a sense that sometimes conscience gets the better of us even Andy was saying this you know when he wasn’t a Christian nevertheless these things were going on in his mind and he was just wondering and how do you get rid of sin people have tried all sorts of things you know just turning over a new Leaf from now on I’m not going to do this I will do that I’m going to do my best in the Middle Ages of course there were all sorts of strange things there a group of people called the flagel anes in Italy and Germany and they would go around barely clothed singing penitential songs and then beating themselves to try and I don’t know inflict sufficient pain that they felt maybe maybe in God’s sight that pain would somehow do away with sin course it it didn’t work it never can on a few occasions I’ve done a bit of mission work in India though it’s several years ago now but one of the most striking photographs I’ve got of the sites that you see and so many colors and smells it’s a fascinating country but a Hindu priest who had a great spear going through this cheek and coming out of this cheek and he walked around like that inflicting pain to try and get rid of his his guilt 500 years ago Martin Luther that great German lawyer commun was going to transform Europe he was desperate to get rid of sin he studied he read he argued he thought he got so desperate eventually he made his way from Germany to Rome and he craws on his hands and and and and knees up the Santa Scala steps and everyone praying that somehow God would take away his sin but but he found no peace but right at the top flashing into his mind came the words found repeatedly in the Bible the just shall live by faith the those who are declared just those who are declared forgiven receive this not by works of righteousness that we’ve done but by faith well the Lord Jesus Christ had no sin which needed to be forgiven I I don’t know what you think of Jesus I don’t know who’s here tonight what your views and thoughts are read through Matthew Mark Luke and John those sort of biographies of Christ find fault with him if you can but you won’t his thoughts were pure his words were kind and gentle and yet absolutely truthful and honest and all his deeds were such that he could turn to his enemies and say which one of you convinces me of sin and there’s total silence you find friends close to him testifying having lived near to him and watching saying things like well Paul the great thinker said he he knew no sin but Peter who’ been close to Jesus Man of Action said he did know sin the book of Hebrews says he was without sin John who was very close to Jesus said within him was no sin he said well they’re his friends what about his enemies Judas who sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver he didn’t even have 30 days in which to spend it goes out commits suicide crying I have betrayed innocent blood pontious pilate who was going to send him to the Cross cried out to the baing Mob who are all desperately wanting his death saying why what evil has he done I find no fault in him and the Roman executioner professional executioner watches and Witnesses Jesus dying and says surely this man was the son of God he was the sinless son of God God incarnate God coming into our world in the person of Jesus God clothing himself in humanity living this spotless life and eventually going to a cross and and they’re dying and carrying on himself the sin of the world I I’ve i’ I’ve not heard the news today but yesterday tremendous disappointment in the United States because that Boeing spacecraft failed to launch I don’t know whether it’s gone today or not but you know scientists work really carefully don’t they they go through this this long checklist to make sure that everything has been carefully inspected and reviewed and tested before eventually a spaceship is launched well go through the gospels and you find that it’s rather like that with the Lord Jesus in his leading up to the Cross it’s all carefully planned and step by step by step everything’s perfectly in order no fault in Jesus but he’s setting his face steadfastly to go to Jerusalem and there in the most brutal cruel way they take him and crucify him and hanging suffering bleeding on the cross he’s taking on himself the sin of the world from the beginning of time to the end of time from every continent and country from every city and citizen he takes our wrongdoing I look back on my life there are there are moments I deeply regret you sort of wish you could have a an action replay but this time do it very differently but you can’t life moves on and I think oh Roger why did I say that why did I do why did I get involved with them why we’re all like that and there are sins I’ve forgotten many but do you know and I’m sure some of you must agree with me there are some sins I wish I could forget and God knows them all sin is the breaking of God’s Commandments he’s not loving God with all our heart mind soul and strength he’s not loving others as we should he living for self never mind what effect it has on others and sin is serious it cuts us off from God that’s why he seems distant it would keep us out of heaven and you know it would condemn us to Hell which is an awful thought but when the Lord Jesus was on the cross out of love for you and for me and as and he said so powerfully for every individual our sin God looked forward to and took and laid on Jesus so he was made sin for us and when he’ fully paid for it with his own precious blood and suffered carrying it he never contaminated it him but he carried it on the cross and then cries finished apparently it’s the same word that a Shepherd might use when a newborn lamb has been delivered finished or when an artist has completed a masterpiece or a Craftsman finished maybe a work of pottery finished it’s paid in full all that needs to be done to wipe out and wash away our sin has been accomplished in Jesus dying and do you know Not only was he completing the work of paying for sin but he was completing the work of hundreds of years of Prophecy because time and time again throughout the ages God had spoken through prophets to say there is coming one who is going to be the ultimate sacrifice the great Savior and now all those prophecies were completed and there were pictures of it in the Old Testament times as well all of those were suddenly completed the ransom was fully paid Jesus died for us no loose ends and salvation forgiveness New Life comes because Jesus died was buried and wonderfully three days later rose from the dead there’s a hymn that has the lines nothing in my hand I bring simply to thy cross I cling you say well that’s a hym well listen to the Bible but this man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever sat down at the right hand of God it was the end of all those sacrifices it was complete he’d finished the work and do you know here we are all these years later gathered in a you know a lovely evening a tent and that finished work needs to be taken and applied to us to you you need need to know that you are resting on what Jesus accomplished that you’re trusting on what he has done to be honest one day I will stand before God we will all stand before God and if I’m going to stand before allmighty God and say oh I’ve I’ve done many wonderful things in your name i’ I’ve prophesied as it were in your name I’ve I there’s no hope if it’s about me and I’d simply hear the words depart from me I never knew you you worker of iniquity but if I can stand before God and say Jesus has paid for my sin not only has he done that actually the moment I trusted him all that was good about him is credited to my account I will be accepted Because of Him have I mentioned I come from Yorkshire have I said that at all it’s I normally do and uh one of the great heroes in history in Yorkshire is um there’s a man called Hudson Taylor James Hudson Taylor he came from barnesley in Yorkshire where Dicky bird Cricket Umpire and uh oh you probably Michael Parkinson have you heard of him anyway he came from but Hudson Taylor brought up in a Godly home aged 15 about you know 180 years ago or so and uh he normally go to church with his mother and father in the morning and then again in the evening but um he just said to his parents I don’t really want to go to church tonight can can I stay at home but well I said if you want to but hey 1820 or 30 whatever it was I’ve forgotten now in barnesley on a Sunday evening what is it to do and he was very very bored and he thought oh I’ll tell you what I’ll do um I’ll go to one of my dad’s books or a little booklet a track and I’ll read the opening story there’s always a good story to begin with and so he pulled down a little booklet and he went out into the ous and he just sat on some straw and he began to read this little booklet and presumably there was a good story and then he came to five words the finished work of Christ and suddenly James Hudson Taylor age 15 realized he has done it it’s not about what I do he’s done it and I need to trust him and there and then that Sunday evening James Hudson Taylor became a Christian he was going to go on and found a great missionary Society in China and the rest as they say is history but I want to ask you now have you come and do you know you’ve come to a definite deliberate moment in your life when you’ve said yes to the Lord Jesus I’m going to trust what he has done to forgive me I’m going to trust what he has done that I might be made at one with God life I’m going to trust him to take me through life’s journey yes one day through death and then to be with him forever I I know the date when it happened for me and clearly Andy does as well there may not be a date that you can bring to mind but you know you’ve definitely said yes to Jesus do you know that and if not I just want to ask you why not and why not tonight as I said at the beginning God makes no promises about tomorrow but he does say today if you’ll hear my voice don’t Harden your heart now is the accepted time now is the day of salvation and if years ago as a child you made some sort of commitment but you think you you know I’ve not lived it I urge you tonight to come and say yes I’m going to trust in the finished work of Jesus and not just trust in a moment of saying okay but I’m going to follow Jesus and live for him he’s going to be My All In All and whether I go through tough times as Andy and Pat have been through oh good times whatever he has for me I’m saying yes to what Jesus has accomplished for me if you’ve never truly got right with God or you KN know you need to come back I’m going to ask you to pray a prayer with me now of saying Lord Jesus thank you that you finished the work of dying to deal with my sin please forgive me and from this very moment I want to start to follow you with your help your strength I want to be your man your woman for the rest of my life will you pray with me don’t leave this tent without making sure you’re right with God I’m going to pray you can pray with me out loud if you wish just in your heart and if you pray with me I want you to do one other thing at the end and that is come either to uh Andrew the pastor of the church we had at the beginning or come to me we’ll both have a couple of booklets one you I’m sure you’ve got it’s just a gospel it’s actually the the Gospel of Luke but it’s the sort of thing you can put in your bag or your pocket and start to read and let the the Lord Jesus as it were introduce himself to you but this booklet trus in Christ has the prayer I’m about to pray in it and then some tips about how to start living for Jesus but you know it’s good just to as it were confess with your mouth by going up to Andy or me or one of the people with the lanyard and just saying I prayed that prayer tonight and we’ll make sure we give you one of these and help you to start living for Jesus so a closing Prayer Will you pray this prayer with me now make this your prayer personalize it dear God you know everything there is to know about me so I want to say I am sorry for my sin but thank you that Jesus finished the work of dying to deal with it and has risen from the dead I want to say yes to Jesus please forgive me come and live in my life become my Lord and Savior and help me to to follow you for I pray in jesus’ name amen amen we are supposed to finish with a hymn I’m not going to because I’ve gone on longer than I should so I’m just going to cut it if that’s all right but I’m going to just pray one more prayer to commit us all to God and to pray especially for Andy at this time so final prayer and we’ll leave the the hym if that’s all right father we thank you for our time together the beginning of a week we do pray that you’d bless each coming nights as I interview Dr Andrew Collins tomorrow and on the whole issue of mental health Lord I just pray it’ be really helpful to us all but we thank you Lord you know all about each of Our Lives we commit ourselves and our loved ones to you wherever they are draw them near to you and we thank you for Andy and we pray Lord as goes through more therapy more treatment would you sustain him and as he endures such pain please Lord draw near to him strengthen him help him bless him and yes one day take him home not only to be with his family but to be with his savior we pray these prayers in Jesus precious name amen amen well God bless you each one tomorrow night Andy cardi but look if you prayed with me and I urge you not to leave without making sure that things are sorted out between you and God do have a word with a pastor I’ll be around at the front to begin with and then at the back and just say look I prayed that prayer I need those booklets and it’d be our pleasure to to pass them on God bless you each one thank you [Music]
1 Comment
It was great night live story