Testimonies

    OLIVIER

      My name is Olivier Bagnoud and I was born in Switzerland.  I want to share with you a life changing experience I had 20 years ago which transformed my bitterness into joy. 

At the age of 22,  I was a very successful student attending the Swiss Federal Institute for Science in Zurich.  I had everything going for me and I had all I needed to be happy.  But ironically it was the darkest period in my life!  It seemed as though nothing made sense and that my life was absolutely without significance. 

Experimenting with Hinduism,  Buddhism,  and various New Age practices I sought to bring meaning to my life but none of them could fill the emptiness I felt inside.  Without understanding why I plummeted into desperation and could see no way out. 


One day while I was in my parent’s bedroom I saw a book sitting on the table,  the title of which caught my attention: “Power in Praise”.  I picked it up and started reading.  Using examples from realistic yet tragic life situations the author,  through the light of Biblical revelation,  explained how giving praise to God had revolutionized the life of many people. He taught that by acknowledging and accepting difficulties in our lives e.g.illness or a catastrophe and by praising God during such difficulties you permit God to act in your favor and to give you exactly what you most need.  This attitude of praise helps to realize God's purpose for your life. Encouraged by this teaching I began to praise God in my situation of despair.  Day after day I praised him and tried to thank him for all the details of my life. And gradually a change took place in my heart. 


About two weeks later unexplainably,  the discomfort that lived in me for months had been replaced with a sense of joy. 

I remember very vividly one occasion when I realized that something inside me had changed.  I was walking down the university steps and I jumped the last few steps but I landed badly on my right ankle and suddenly I felt such an excruciating pain. Surprisingly,  however,  the first thing that came to my mind was to thank God for this accident and despite the agonizing pain a feeling of peace and of joy invaded my heart so much so that I found myself praising God and thanking him for his love.  I suffered a pulled ligament and was told not to use the foot for 20 days. 


This situation,  however,  pushed me to accept an invitation to participate in a retreat. During this retreat I was struck by the moments of prayer because everyone praised God out loud in a free and easy way and with such a profound expression of faith that it touched me very deeply.  But the crucial moment for me was when they invited those who wanted to receive Jesus into their hearts to come forward. 

I stood up and went to kneel in front of the altar:  I decided to acknowledge Jesus as my Savior and invited him to rule over my life as my only Lord. 


While the asssembly prayed for me,  all of a sudden,  I was touched by the inexpressible presence of the Lord,  and falling to the ground in sobbing cries I found myself unable to control my emotions.  Jesus Christ was so real that I could feel His presence.  As I couldn’t stop crying,  I asked the Lord “What is happening?”  I heard a voice telling me “I love you!  I love you!  I love you!  ” I knew it was Jesus speaking to my heart.

When I got up I was no longer the same.  An uncontainable joy had invaded my heart.  I knew that God loved me and that the purpose of my life was to respond to his love with thanksgiving and to do whatever I could to help others encounter him and experience his amazing love. 


This experience happened on the evening of January 26th,  1991 and it was the beginning of a great adventure of faith characterized mainly by praising God and by giving joyful thanks for every detail of my life. 

The same Jesus is knocking right now at the door of your heart.  Invite Him into your life and ask Him to set you free from all your burdens.  You will never be the same. 

mary

     My name is Mary and I have experienced the joy and friendship of Jesus!  He has forgiven me and given me a new life.

I was born and raised Catholic by a very devout parents.  I went to church and prayed. I remember when I was about three years old I announced to my parents that I wanted to be a priest.  You can imagine my chagrin when they told me a little girl could never be a priest.  As I grew,  though,  I struggled with feeling anything when I went to church or prayed. 


After adulthood,  I became involved with my life and my job and started to move away from Jesus.  In fact,  at one crucial point,  I shoved God out as I took possession of my universe. 

I vividly remember driving to work one bright morning.  I had everything:  a great job, a great house,  a new car and a closet filled with the latest styles.  The thought occurred to me that I was a modern woman and I made my own destiny.  I did not need God for me to be successful.  It felt liberating and freed me from any obligation to God that I might have otherwise had.  So,  I existed in the center of my universe without Jesus. 

Yet,  despite my decision to push God out,  I outwardly remained a caring daughter and wife,  a good employee,  and upright citizen.  I even continued to attend mass!  My struggle between good and evil was strictly in my head. 


My reign lasted a short time when I lost control of my universe through routine problems of everyday life.  I was confused and dreadfully unhappy.  I had bouts of rage and jealousy.  I developed self doubts and oozed negativity.  It undermined my success at work.  It created barriers in relationships.  I was plagued with insomnia and had fleeting thoughts of death. 


My mother suggested I pray to the Holy Spirit, which I finally did and I felt some peace but I still felt a huge emptiness inside.  I was missing Jesus. 

When my mother was dying I recognized she was dying in the friendship with Jesus because of her strong faith.  I wondered if Jesus would call me his friend if I died.  I wanted to be known as his friend and be able to know him better.

Not long after that,  I opened the bulletin and found a flyer that asked “Do you want to know Jesus more?”  Yes!  I signed up for the Philip Course,  taught by the Koinonia John the Baptist. 


It was a life changing experience because I truly experienced the Holy Spirit.  That weekend I had the absolute realization of how much God loves me personally. 

The Philip Course was a weekend of singing and praise that I had never encountered in the Catholic church before.  During the invocation of the Holy Spirit,  we stood in a darkened room with our eyes closed praying. I felt an enormous energy around me,  so much so that I began trembling and crying.  I missed my mother.  I was sorry I had pushed Jesus out of my life during those bad years. 


Immediately a lady approached me and said, “Jesus told me you needed a hug”.  She prayed intensely over me and explained the joy of the Holy Spirit.  As she and I prayed,  I began to feel a strong warmth like a blanket envelop me.  I began to see a round bright light in the upper right of my eye that continued to brighten.  I opened my eye for a moment to see if the lights had come on,  but the room was still dark.  As the light shone brighter,  I felt a tightness in my chest and my heart felt as if it were swelling.  I opened my mouth and heard a rushing wind that entered and rushed throughout my entire body.  I fell to the floor and lay there completely still.

 

When I rose to my feet I was at peace and felt excited to know more about the experience with the Holy Spirit. 

Since that experience,  Jesus has given me the strength to handle upheavals;  grace to accept his will;  ability to give my sadness to him and to trust in his guidance.  Jesus has given me more of an ability to see him in others and I often picture him engaged with me in my daily tasks. 


I am much happier now and often in the morning,  as I come out of sleep,  I realize I’ve been singing praises to him in my subconscious mind.  It is still as amazing to me today as it was that day,  just how much he loves me and how he’d been waiting for me to call for him. 


After having pushed Jesus away for those years,  all I did was open my heart and he was waiting to send his Holy Spirit to me!  Jesus gives these gifts to everyone who asks.  Like me,  we all make mistakes. But Jesus came to forgive our sins and all you need to do is admit your weaknesses,  open your heart completely to him and he will send his Holy Spirit to bathe you in his everlasting love

patty

     My name is Patty Greene and I was raised in a traditional Catholic family with many relatives and ancestors who are priests and nuns (I’m even related to a saint!). But growing up,  I never felt God’s love in my life. He seemed very far away and distant to me – not someone I could talk to or who cared about me in a personal way.  I was afraid of Him and I thought of Him as a merciless judge. 


As a teenager,  I went to a retreat in Mexico. During the retreat,  I really understood Jesus’ love and compassion for the first time. 

At the end of the weekend,  they asked everyone to pick up a Bible and commit to following Jesus.  I decided at that moment to commit my life to Him and when I picked up the Bible,  I was overwhelmed with the love of Jesus – like I was being hugged by Him!  It was so amazing!  I never felt anything like it! 

I began to read His Word every day because I wanted to to know Him more!  That’s when I started to experience the presence of the Holy Spirit. 


My mother was very involved in the charismatic movement back then,  so I was able to talk to her about my new relationship with Jesus,  but there was no one else.  My friends had no personal experience of Jesus and the people around me had little faith.  And even though I attended Sunday mass every week,  I slowly lost the feeling of having Jesus in my life. 

Little by little,  my faith died and I stopped reading the Bible.  For the next 19 years,  I tried to fill this empty hole in my heart with other things – shopping,  partying,  fancy vacations, night clubs... If only I had understood the scripture:  “That is why we must hold on all the more firmly to the truths we have heard, so that we will not be carried away” (Hebrews 2:1). 


Thankfully,  the Lord didn’t give up on me.  I began to ask Him for guidance.  At the end of 2004 – my friends,  Ana and Ruben,  told me about a prayer group that met every Thursday evening led by Fr. Claudio from the Koinonia John the Baptist.  I felt in my heart that it was meant for me,  but I didn’t go right away. 

Very soon after my first invitation however, another friend was diagnosed with severe depression.  She began attending Fr. Claudio’s Thursday night prayer meeting and right before my eyes she was getting better. 


I decided that I needed to meet this priest.  So I went,  and at this prayer meeting,  I heard what I was waiting to hear!  He told me how God loves each of us unconditionally,  no matter what we’ve done.  He’s with you all the time,  and He wants the best for you.  He’s not a merciless judge but a loving Father!  I was filled with joy! 


Then,  in 2005 I was diagnosed with Rheumatic Arthritis,  and after 3 or 4 months, I tested positive for LUPUS.  Lupus is an autoimmune disorder that allows your immune system to attack your organs - it can be very dangerous,  even fatal.  The symptoms are similar to arthritis.  My joints hurt.  I couldn’t do normal things like fold clothes, clap my hands,  brush my daughter’s hair,  etc.  I felt very tired all the time.  The doctor took three more blood test and they all came positive for Lupus. 

Later that year, Fr.  Claudio invited me to one of his retreats called the “Philip Course”. Wow!  What an experience!  My faith grew BIG TIME!  Fr. Claudio prayed over me and I could feel the lupus symptoms starting to ease up. 


Then Fr. Ricardo,  the founder of the Koinonia John the Baptist,  came to visit my city.  He celebrated a Healing Mass with Fr. Claudio and after they prayed over me,  I knew I was healed that day!  I couldn’t feel anything special in my body – no electricity,  no heat, no change at all,  but I knew in my heart the Holy Spirit was repairing my body! 

I went back to the doctor and asked him to take another blood test --- it came back negative!  The Lupus was gone and so were the symptoms!!! 


Now,  I truly believe Jesus died for me and is alive today working miracles so that all may believe in Him! 

I also understand what I was missing after my first encounter with Him – I needed a relationship with other believers.  We can’t keep our faith alive without brothers and sisters in Christ.  We all need community, and this is what the Koinonia has given me - friendship with people who know Jesus as I do. 


Joining with them,  talking with them, praying with them,  I have the confidence and joy to share my faith with others and this is what I was born to do.  In the Gospel of John, our Lord prays to His Father, "May they be one as we are one,  so that the world will believe that you sent me." (John 17:21b). we need to join together so that all will know that Jesus is alive and ready to save each of us.  This is what Jesus asked us to do and it's the only way we will be truly happy

marco

     In the summer of 2006 I was diagnosed with a very rare sickness that attackes the immune system called Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP). 

Before I found myself in this present condition,  I thought I was a happy man!  I never imagined myself being in a wheelchair and having to take so many different medicines just to survive nor could I have imagined being continuously under the supervision of various doctors. 


I was healthy with a beautiful family and a good job and I had all the material things I needed.  But I still didn't have the most important thing in my life:  Jesus Christ. 

With all I had I was still complaining about my life because I was unable to see what the Lord had given me:  I was blind!  I only lived for working day and night and sometimes even weekends.  I had no time for my family nor for the church.  I was so far away from the Lord and I couldn't see it. 


My wife was always telling me “My love you are a good man,  a good husband and a good dad,  but you've got something missing.  You don't have Jesus in your heart”.  But I never paid attention to what she was telling me. 

The truth is He knocks many times in our lives but we don't give Him the chance to come in.  Not until problems come and we can't handle them anymore do we go looking for His help. 


In my case,  from the moment I got sick everything in my life changed.  All became chaotic,  things began to fall apart and all was out of my hands.  And the more time passed the worse things became as my health was deteriorating.  It got to the point that I was almost completely paralyzed and in bed.


After almost 3 months in this condition a few sisters in Christ came to pray over me and my family and that was the first time I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart.  It has been the best thing I have ever felt in my life.  It was an experience I can't explain because it was so marvelous.

Since then I haven't let his hand go because I know that he is the only one who will give me peace in my heart.  Thanks to the Lord I have been taken out of the hospital on 3 different occasions after the doctors had given me no hope of recovery and on each of these occasions I was just flesh and bones.  Each of these times I spent in the ICU unit of the hospital.


I remember during one of these stays in the hospital the nurses placed me in front of the mirror.  I was so shocked.  I didn't recognise myself and I looked awful.  I said to my wife, “Look at me!  I'm only skin and bones!  I'm going to die!  I'm not going to get out of here alive.” Then she told me, “Of course you are. You're going to recover.”


After saying this she left but she knew that I wasn't convinced,  so as soon as she got home she went on her knees and began to pray asking the Lord to give her an answer for me. And in that moment of prayer He did give her an answer when she opened her Bible and the answer came in the word of Job 33.


And these words expressed perfectly the Calvary I was living.  Through these words of the Lord I have come to know that He is going to get me out of this place.  It is just going to be a matter of time!


Knowing Jesus Christ has made my family and me stronger and more united;  now I can see the wonderful things He can do in our lives when we put our problems into his hands.


If He has done this in my life He can do it in your life too!  He's the light that shines in my home and I don't won't that light ever to go away.

Jesus is Love..... Jesus is my savior!!!


Jesus Christ has made me see how rich I am even with this illness.  I have been able to handle my life and I am becoming more and more useful again.


I'm thankful for each day that I wake up and see my kids growing that's all I ask and I know that He hears my prayers just as He hears the prayers of all of you.  Here I am today giving my testimony, this is the product of the prayers.  Thank you Sisters and Brothers!  THANK YOU JESUS!  THANK YOU LORD!

Antonia

     I’m Antonia Orozco,  I want to give witness to something wonderful that our Lord Jesus Christ has done in my life. On June 10,  2010 I underwent surgery to remove a non-cancerous,  but nonetheless aggressive,  tumor removed from my right scapula.  It was growing fast and it had the potential of spreading into other areas of my body.  The doctor told me that my shoulder would be deformed.  After the surgery I couldn't move my arm - I could only move my hands.  The doctor strongly advised me not to move my arm.  In the second month,  however, the doctor recommended I try exercising my arm.  But not even with someone else’s help could I lift up my arm.  It was completely motionless and stiff.  It was just a hanging limb. 

During this whole time,  though,  I never lost faith in our Lord.  


When I was able to get out of bed,  I went back to St Michael's and prayed with the Koinonia John the Baptist.  I had been going to pray with them for two years,  and so I asked Fr. Olivier to pray for God to help me move my arm,  but nothing happened on that day. 

A week later I met with him again and his words were: “Antonia,  this month,  with God's power,  you will be able to lift up your arm”. 


That same month,  on August 20th,  I went back to the doctor and I asked him when I would be able to move my arm.  And his response was: “I’m very sorry,  but since the tumor was already so big,  I had to cut the scapula (the shoulder’s bone) and all the muscle around it.  You will therefore never be able to lift up your arm again.  Only a miracle can help you”.  And he sent me to a therapist next door for an evaluation. 

I left crying,  but I remembered what Fr. Olivier had told me -- that this month,  with God's power,  I was going to be able to lift up my arm.  I decided to place my trust in God and I thought: “The doctor says that I will never be able to lift up my arm,  but nothing is impossible for God”. 


I went to the therapist that same day and when he asked me to move my arm,  I couldn't.  I tried many times but it was useless.  I was sad,  but I decided to cry out to God with all my strength and I asked Him to help me. All of a sudden,  while I was praying,  I felt a heat in my entire arm and I started to move slowly my arm up and down for the first time after the operation.  I knew that the Lord was healing me. 

The therapist gave me an appointment to start the therapy on September 14th,  but within two weeks the Lord healed me completely and I was able to move my arm freely just before the operation.  When I went back to the therapist,  he told me that I didn't need therapy anymore because I had improved on my own much more than they had hoped.  I told him that it wasn't me; it was Jesus who healed me and gave strength to my arm. 


I will be forever grateful for this miracle I received through the power of Jesus.