Sarah Mann’s Story
Finally Filling the Void that Kundalini Yoga, the New Age, Crystals, and Peruvian Shamanism Could Not Fill

I believed in God from a young age and searched for Him most of my life. I wanted to know who He is and the truth of our existence. As a child I was taught about Jesus, but as a teenager, I lacked a good understanding and had unanswered questions. Consequently, I began exploring other worldviews. I tried Buddhism and meditation, adopted all kinds of new age beliefs, and practiced kundalini yoga and Peruvian shamanism. I thought I possessed the truth and was growing in my understanding, but there was a lonely void inside and I knew only God could fill it. I could never find what I really wanted – an intimate relationship with the Lord. I believed it was possible, but how? Finally, at the age of 46, by the grace of God, I encountered the reality of Jesus, and that void was filled.

My dad was raised Catholic and my mom, Anglican. We weren’t a church-going family, but my parents had a love for Jesus and taught my brother and me to have faith in Him.  I didn’t yet know that I could have a close, personal relationship with Jesus —which makes all the difference – but I was comforted by this scripture that my parents often read to us:

     Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Searching for the truth

As a teenager, I wanted to know more about God. I wondered what He was like, and I wanted to know the truth about Him. My parents had given me a Bible, so I read passages from the Old and New Testaments. I read stories about God’s wrath and judgment, and I was confronted with the disturbing idea that we would go to hell unless we accepted Jesus as our Savior. I was also exposed to the idea that, as the perfect Son of God, He bore our sins on the cross so that we could be saved and go to heaven. My best friend was Sikh, and I wondered what would happen to her. I was shocked and appalled that God would send good people to hell. In my heart, I wanted to believe that God was good, because how else could I trust Him?   The biblical God seemed unjust to me. Unfortunately, I didn’t seek a deeper understanding, so I began to look elsewhere for answers.

In my twenties, I read books about Tibetan Buddhism and tried meditation. I learned about mindfulness, compassion, and the ego or self, which is a block or hindrance to spiritual growth and compassion for others. I began to see myself not just as an individual, but part of a cosmic whole. Karma and reincarnation made sense to me on the basis of cause and effect, that my behaviors and choices in this life would affect – for better or worse – my next incarnation. I started to see God as more of an impersonal force, and because I didn’t know God’s nature anyway, that was easy.

My interests quickly expanded into all things new age. I was particularly curious about channeled information from the spirit world through mediums. I wanted to learn more about the supernatural realm. Edgar Cayce was a popular medium and author, whose teachings were influential to many. He lived from 1877 to 1945. He was known as the “sleeping prophet” because he prophesied while under hypnosis. He diagnosed medical issues in people and gave advice for treatments and healing. He was raised a Christian but departed from biblical teachings when, in a trance-like state, he channeled information related to astrology and reincarnation. It reportedly disturbed him to hear what he had said once he awakened from his trance, since the information was opposite to Scripture. But the voice he was channeling persuaded him to continue with these spiritualist readings, and he did.

When Edgar Cayce spoke about Jesus, he claimed His life was one of many incarnations of the Christ spirit. He adopted the view that the Christ spirit was one of ‘universal consciousness’ that descended on many people throughout history, going back to the mythical Atlantis. Claims were made that Cayce remained a Christian, but how can anyone be a true follower of Jesus if he believes Him to be someone other than who the Bible says He is? Is that person actually a follower of a false Jesus? I didn’t ask myself these questions at the time, because I had not read the Bible. I was wide open to believe anything about Jesus that anyone claimed, because I didn’t know Him. Consider what Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23:

     “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”

The idea of Christ-consciousness does not originate in the Bible. This concept appears to have begun with the Gnostics, a sect of early Christians whose beliefs were condemned as heretical. Theosophy, which has roots in Gnosticism, was an esoteric cult started by Helena Blavatsky in the late 19th century. Theosophy promoted Christ as a consciousness rather than being specific to the person of Jesus. The new age is full of teachings about Jesus that differ from what the Bible says about Him. Eastern religions, from which the new age borrows many beliefs, portray Him as a prophet, a guru, a world teacher, but not God. The new age culture portrays him as an enlightened being, or a man who was married to Mary Magdalene, and/or a yogi who trained in India under gurus during the unrecorded years before He started His ministry. But they don’t acknowledge Him as the only begotten Son of God. In Matthew 24:24, Jesus specifically told us to beware of false Christs:

     “For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”

Deception mixed with truth

I read books on a variety of supernatural topics. I was interested in basic quantum physics because it explained the interconnectedness of all things and the effect of consciousness on everything around us; advanced astrology and numerology for the purpose of understanding myself better; sound healing; energy healing and chakra clearing with crystals for the purpose of physical health and spiritual evolution, because I believed that there was a coming global ascension in which those with a more developed spiritual consciousness and higher ‘frequency’ would be transformed into a kind of glorified ‘light’ body – much like what will actually happen to born-again Christians when believers are caught up to meet the Lord Jesus at His return.

I had all of Doreen Virtue’s angel and ascended master books and cards that she produced before she became a born-again Christian. I used the cards regularly for personal readings. I also received many readings from a local clairvoyant woman whom I trusted to be sincere and gifted. She sometimes saw or knew things that she could not have known without a spiritual revelation. Since there was truth in her messages, and they were always positive and loving, I believed the spirits were benevolent beings such as spirit guides or guardian angels. I believed that evil existed, but I didn’t think it was around me. I wasn’t concerned about whether the spirits speaking through this kind and loving woman might be what the Bible calls “deceiving spirits” (1 Timothy 4:1). Although there was nothing in these channeled readings that seemed obviously demonic, consider another verse from the Bible:

     For Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.(2 Corinthians 11:14)

Christians know that the devil’s main agenda is to deceive people, to keep them from believing the truth about Jesus. In John 8:44, Jesus speaks to the Pharisees and tells them that their “father” is the devil. He says that Satan does not stand in truth because “there is no truth in him.” He goes on to say, “he is a liar and the father of it.” It wasn’t until I became a Christian that I realized just because there is some truth in a particular worldview, that doesn’t mean it’s from God. Ungodly spirits at times mix truth with deception to make it all the more acceptable to the unwary.. In Acts 16:16-18, the apostle Paul cast out a spirit of divination from a woman who actually prophesied the truth about them:

Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour.

Enamored with crystals and stones

Crystals and stones were a great love of mine. I had what I considered a ‘master’ book on stones: The Book of Stones: Who They Are and What They Teach written by Robert Simmons and Naisha Ahsian. It’s a comprehensive guide to most crystals and stones, providing their energetic properties and spiritual applications. The book gives information about the spiritual, emotional, and physical healing qualities of each stone, along with historical beliefs and use by various cultures.

If everything in the universe is energy, vibrating at different frequencies, crystals are thought to have an energy frequency that will have a stabilizing effect if they come into contact with a frequency that is out of balance. It is also believed that they hold and transmit energy, and are therefore able to affect us in beneficial and harmonizing ways. I collected numerous stones and crystals, displayed them throughout my home, and wore them as jewelry. They were valuable to me because I believed they had a positive impact on me and my environment.

The Church of Shambhala and the Buddha Maitreya

In northern California, there is a Buddhist ’Church of Shambhala’ that makes crystal geometric forms and jewelry for the purpose of “personal and planetary healing.” I first discovered them at a health and wellness tradeshow in Toronto, Ontario. I bought a large quartz crystal octahedron called a “solar cross” from them. It was about two feet square and made of many crystals wired together. I hung it from my ceiling. The Church of Shambhala claimed that these crystals applied sacred geometry to transmute negative energies and correct energetic imbalances.

These meditation tools were designed and blessed by the founder of the church, who is called the Buddha Maitreya. This man was born in Oregon in 1951. He was first recognized as the reincarnation of Buddha in 1955 by a Tibetan Lama (teacher of Tibetan Buddhism) by the name of HH the Panchen Lama. Since then, all lineages of Tibetan Buddhism have recognized him as the reincarnation of Gautama Buddha, as well as many other religious historical figures, including Jesus Christ.

At the time, I felt that this recognition lent credibility to him, so it didn’t seem far-fetched that he could be the reincarnation of Jesus. After all, I had already accepted the concept of reincarnation as well as the idea of “the Christ” being a divine consciousness not exclusive to Jesus. However, there can be no reincarnation of Jesus because it is not a truth according to the Bible. Jesus specifically warned us against false Christs, as I mentioned earlier, and the angel told John in Revelation 1:7 exactly what His spectacular second coming would look like:

     “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.”

This following is the description of the crystal meditation ‘tools’ from shambhalahealingtools.com as of July 2024:

“The Shambhala Buddha Maitreya the Christ Solar Cross receives Buddha Maitreya the Christ’s blessing of the Holy Spirit and transforms the Evil Spirit back into God’s Forgiveness. This increases Human evolution to become blessed by the Lord and further the Lord’s Plan for Humanity and the working out of the plan of God. This is the same way all of the tools work.”

These things sound good if you don’t have a proper understanding of God and His Son, Jesus, through the Bible. But the Bible doesn’t teach that the “Evil Spirit” can be transformed into God’s forgiveness. It also doesn’t say that crystals blessed by Jesus will transform evil. The Bible says that Satan and his demons are destined for the lake of fire, and they will not receive forgiveness. Forgiveness is for humans who with genuine repentance, confess Jesus as their Lord. God’s plan for humanity is salvation through Jesus.

This ‘Buddha Maitreya’ teaches that all the world’s religions believe in the same God—a popular concept in the new age culture today. He said that all the religions of the world have messiahs and they are all incarnations of the same Christ spirit and that the Buddha Maitreya himself is this Christ spirit. He acknowledges that there is only one Lord Jesus Christ, and that “He is the Way, the Truth and the Light” (buddhamaitreya.org). Note that he uses the word “light” and not “life.” In John 14:6, Jesus referred to himself as “the way, the truth, and the life.” Satan is usually very subtle in his methods, but always distorts the Word of God. This teaching implies that followers of all religions receive inherent salvation because they all believe in the same God, the same Christ spirit. As a Christian now, I believe this is highly deceptive because it takes truth and twists it. The poet Alfred Tennyson wrote:

“A lie that is half-truth is the darkest of all lies.”

(If you want to pursue the deception of this “Christ-consciousness” message, go to this article by Mike Shreve, the manager of this website: “What is the True Meaning of this Celebrated Title: the Christ?”)

Kundalini yoga: a fast-track to enlightenment

In my thirties, I discovered kundalini yoga, which seemed to be an elite yogic path, with the promise of a “fast-track” to enlightenment for the yogi who exhibits commitment and discipline.  The teachings were brought to North America by Yogi Bhajan in 1968 when he left India and first arrived in Toronto before settling in Los Angeles. Breaking the centuries old tradition of secrecy, he publicly taught what he described as the ‘science’ of kundalini yoga. This included yogic philosophy and practice. The practice includes a wide array of yoga and meditation sets, mantra, and specific breathing techniques. It is said to raise the kundalini, serpent-like energy at the base of the spine – and as it rises up through the chakras, the practitioner is supposed to eventually experience enlightenment.

I found I experienced benefits to the practice. It could quickly lift depression and produce feelings of well-being. That may have been the result of endorphins released in my blood from the physical exercises (asanas) and the increased intake of oxygen through the breathing disciplines (pranayama). Yet, it also seemed to increase intuition and psychic awareness. There were physical benefits to each kriya as well. However, the foundational belief in yoga, Hinduism, and the New Age, is that there is a spark of divinity within each of us that can be awakened from within, then nurtured and developed until we become fully God-conscious. This is opposite to the Christian, biblical belief that God exists outside of human beings and apart from the physical universe, but when those who thirst for God’s reality invite Jesus to be Lord of their lives, His Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us, to comfort and to teach. So is God external or internal prior to a true spiritual awakening? Certainly, both these views cannot be true simultaneously.

The doctrine that is a part of kundalini yoga is Sikh at its core. Many yogis in this group convert to Sikhism, but it’s not a requirement, and I did not. I was interested in the benefits of the practice, but I didn’t want to adhere to a specific religion. At best, I believed that religion was man’s attempt to know God, and at worst, his attempt to control and subvert others. I had a daily practice called sadhana, attended classes regularly, went to weekend-long intensive “immersions” where we practiced yoga and meditation all day long and into the evening, and participated in white tantric group yoga.

At the white tantric day-long event, it was said that the spirit of Yogi Bhajan (then deceased), would work through and in all of us. This was welcomed by everyone because we held him in esteem as our guru and believed that his energy and spiritual assistance would be beneficial. Practicing kundalini yoga was often gruelling, especially at these day long events when we committed to many hours of practice. But we loved the spiritual ‘high’, and we were committed because we hoped to strengthen our neutral minds to overcome the ego or, in kundalini yoga terms, the conflict between the positive and negative minds. The neutral mind is the meditative mind that brings balance between the positive and negative aspects.

Teacher training and certification

After many years of practice, I took first level training and received certification as a teacher. My goal in all of this was to become a better person, strengthen my neutral mind, and ultimately experience and know God. All the kundalini yogis I knew were kind and mature people, with a genuine spiritual interest and desire to know God.  I formed close bonds and friendships, especially with my teacher, who became one of my dearest friends.

There were clear physical, emotional and mental benefits to the practice. But there was a dark side, too. Some people I knew experienced demonic attacks of the mind and body such as evil thoughts, evil promptings, sickness and serious disease. Anger and pride still raised their ugly heads. Why wasn’t it easier to be “spiritual”? I had no idea that the answer was Jesus and that He literally supernaturally changes you, by grace and through faith. I commonly experienced random visions in my imagination, such as seeing something terrible happening to someone I loved. I recognized this as a type of evil occurrence, but I didn’t know that my beliefs and practices had made me vulnerable to demonic attacks. The only way I knew how to deal with it was to speak against it, so I would say aloud, “I cancel that thought” and I prayed protection over that person instead. Years later, Jesus delivered me from these frequent fearful visions at salvation. Now I rarely see these things, but if it occurs I use the authority Jesus gave me against the powers of darkness and command them to go in Jesus’ name.

Kundalini yoga was also known among us for ripping apart romantic relationships. This occurred to me and several others I knew. The explanation that was given is that it produces great spiritual change quickly, and if your partner isn’t practicing as well, it can create a spiritual imbalance between the two individuals. We were cautioned about this risk and were advised not to make any drastic life decisions quickly. But what kind of good spiritual practice rips apart and destroys? Love builds up, it does not tear down. In John 10:10, Jesus said:

     “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

Exploring Peruvian shamanism

During these ten years of yogic practice, I was introduced to the spiritual tradition of Peruvian shamanism. This was popular in Peru prior to Spanish Catholic colonization, at which time shamanism was suppressed. The indigenous people believed in reciprocity with nature, and shamans were highly revered as intermediaries to the spirit world. Shamans were consulted for their healing abilities and guidance in their communities. In post-colonial times, Peruvian shamanism experienced a revival and its tradition and appeal spread around the world.

I was attracted to the idea of earth as our ‘mother,’ a popular concept among spiritual seekers today. In my quest to know God, believing at the time that all paths lead to Him, I thought that perhaps shamanism would be complementary to my yogic practice. Both traditions seek to achieve a unity with the divine, healing, and transformation. The shamans refer to earth as Pachamama, and regularly give gift offerings to her for protection and guidance. Communication with spirits is key, through rituals and chanting, drumming, and in some cases, ingestion of plant ‘medicine’ such as ayahuasca, a plant containing potent hallucinogenic properties. Ayahuasca is reported among some users as transformative, inducing profound insight and emotional healing. I wasn’t ever interested in taking ayahuasca though, or any hallucinogenic drug, because I had heard of many testimonials describing terrifying experiences with demonic entities while under the influence. I didn’t trust ayahuasca to be safe, and I sure didn’t want any experience with the demonic realm. I was looking for spiritual practices that embodied something pure and holy.

I took an introductory course to learn the basics from a Canadian-Peruvian shaman, then flew to Lima, Peru, to take part in a two-week guided tour of sacred sites and ruins in the Andean mountains. The sight-seeing was certainly interesting, the highlight being a tour of Macchu Picchu. It was remarkable to walk through the ancient ruins of an Incan civilization in what seemed like such a remote place.

But the purpose of the trip was to perform shamanic ceremonies at each sacred location. Every site represented a chakra. These ceremonies were done with intention to offer gifts to Pachamama (a mother-earth goddess), and connect with various spirits (ancestral, nature, and celestial) to assist with clearing, balancing and purifying our spiritual bodies. There were offerings made to the spirits – bundles of items representing earth’s bounty – thought to be gifts she had given us, that we in turn gave back to her. These were burned in fire and the ceremonies were accompanied with prayer, chanting, blowing smoke, spraying liquor, and sometimes even dancing. The shamans wore brightly woven clothing, ponchos and hats, which many of them made themselves. When we reached Lake Titicaca, a shaman of a small village did a reading for our group with coca leaves. He saw something he didn’t like pertaining to someone’s health in the group, so he ate the leaf. I think this symbolized him taking that negative thing on himself. He was in his nineties, and he wasn’t worried about consequences or death.

Consulting with the spirit realm is referred to as divination in the Bible. Strong’s Concordance describes divination as a “pagan parallel to prophesying.” It is also defined as “one of man’s attempts to know and control the world and future, apart from the true God. It is the opposite of true prophecy, which is the submission to God’s sovereignty.” From this, we can extrapolate both channeling and shamanistic practices to be a form of divination.

In Ezekiel 13:23, we are told not to practice divination. And in Deuteronomy 18:10-12, we are told that the Lord even considers such occult practices “an abomination.” The occult practices mentioned include the sacrifice of children in fire, the practice of witchcraft or a soothsayer, one who interprets omens or a sorcerer, one who conjures spells or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. The Word of God even declares that those who indulge in such practices are “an abomination.” Why would God say such a thing? He certainly does not want to deprive people of legitimate spiritual experiences. Quite the opposite, He is lovingly trying to protect them from false spiritual practices that do not lead to a genuine encounter with Him.

I took this trip because I thought it was a spiritual calling, but I never felt connected to God. In retrospect that makes sense, since God is not the focus of shamanism. I also felt anxious and isolated because I had never traveled alone and there was no one I could talk with.  The other members of our group were all friends and spoke only French. Only one of them knew English and acted as their translator, but she didn’t speak English well so we were not able to connect and enjoy conversation.  Our shaman leader and his girlfriend spoke English, but they showed little interest or kindness. I observed that he was prideful and boastful, and a heavy drinker. I was disappointed because I felt that a spiritual teacher should be humble and kind and pursuing a holy, godly lifestyle. I didn’t see spiritual fruit in him, and it made me question the whole tradition. Galatians 5:22-23 says that the fruit of the Holy Spirit is “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

Finally discovering the treasure of truth

After the trip, I abandoned my pursuit of this practice and re-focused on kundalini yoga. But after ten years, my commitment began to wane, and I eventually stopped. I wasn’t fulfilled. I was desperately lonely with a void that I knew only God could fill (I know I am repeating myself—but it was an all-consuming thing). I was no closer to God after many years of dedicated practice. I wondered what was wrong. I wanted relationship with Him – not a connection with an impersonal force, but with a personal God! Then, much to my surprise, my brother and sister-in-law became Christians! I couldn’t believe it! They had practiced yoga for years like I had. I was certain they would realize their mistake and give up this newfound belief. But they explained their choice and how Jesus was changing their lives. My brother began sharing the Gospel with me. I heard the truth about Jesus for the first time as an adult, which often brings tears to my eyes when I think about it. I was interested, but not convinced. At the same time, I was all too aware of my own emptiness. I prayed to God and said that if I have been deceived all these years, and if Jesus really is the one and only way, please give me a sign – because I want to know the truth, whatever it is.

Shortly after that, when my brother was sharing something personal about his experience with Jesus, I felt a blooming in my heart. It was a subtle, soft love that opened like a flower and filled my chest. It was a feeling that didn’t come from within me but was given to me as a sign. The Bible says that we do not come to God except by an invitation from the Holy Spirit. This is because we are so deceived and corrupted, we would never find the truth of God without His help. In John 6:44, Jesus said:

     “No man can come to Me, except the Father which has sent Me draw him.”

This was a clear sign from God. The next day I accepted Jesus as my Savior, with the help of Mike Shreve, who was a teacher of kundalini yoga in 1970 before becoming a follower of Jesus. I was introduced to him by my brother. He led me through a prayer of repentance for my past beliefs and actions, and a confession of faith that Jesus died on the cross, bearing my sins so that I could be free, and I accepted Jesus’ gift of salvation and declared Him my Lord! I was “born again,” something Jesus said was necessary to enter the kingdom of God. (John 3:1-7)

Breaking away from the past

Soon afterward, I gathered up all my crystals, as well as new age books and other related items. I was told that after salvation, the demonic realm can maintain access to harass me through these items. I wasn’t convinced of this at first – after all, they are only stones and books. But they represented my past beliefs of which I had repented, and they did not represent the truth of God. There’s nothing inherently wrong with stones and crystals since God did create them. The problem lies in putting our faith in objects instead of God. That‘s idolatry. The Bible tells us not to engage in any idolatry, lest we become cursed (Joshua 6:18):

“And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things . . . .”

Romans 1:25 also warns those who participate in these kinds of practices:

     They have exchanged the truth of God for falsehood, by worshipping and serving created things, rather than the Creator—praised be He forever. Amen.

Knowing these things, it was important to demonstrate my new faith in Jesus, just as some of the early Christians did. When they turned from their pagan ways and gave up their occult practices, they burned their false religious books (see Acts 19:17-19). So I boxed everything up to take it to the garbage dump. The hardest thing I’ve ever done is throw away my crystals. I was overcome with such terrible grief during the process of boxing them up. I almost didn’t go through with it, but thankfully the Lord’s voice came into my mind to tell me that something was wrong that I was so attached to them. I suddenly realized that it was a demonic force that was making this so difficult for me. So, I soldiered through it, resisting my emotion, knowing that the Lord would be happy with me for doing this. It was still a difficult thing to do, but I was resolved to go through with it for Jesus. Revelation 22:14-15 gives us a stern warning that idolaters and those who practice magic arts will not enter into the gates of the Lord:

“Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.”

An important part of salvation is repentance, but it took a bit of time for me to develop a deep repentance. This came afterwards as I began to read Scripture. As God revealed His holiness to me through the Word, I began to understand just how unholy I was. I had a revelation of all the mistakes I had made and how many of them had hurt my son. This caused a deep sadness within me, but this revelation was not full of condemnation. God mercifully revealed it to me with compassion, love, and forgiveness. The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13). He corrects and chastens, but always with love.

Sin is an offensive subject in the culture of the new age – nobody wants to believe it exists. Everything is acceptable and “inclusive.” No one wants to believe that God judges – yet we think it’s perfectly ok to go about judging everyone ourselves. It takes a revelation from God, and only God, to know how horrible sin is, and how much He hates it. He loves the sinner, but He hates the sin. He is so holy, our minds cannot even conceive of it. Through reading the Bible, I learned about God’s perfect standard, and that we aren’t as good as we think. And that God doesn’t grade sin on a scale.

     For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. (James 2:10)

     For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23)

The Bible teaches that sin carries a penalty – eternal death. But hell wasn’t created for us; it was made for Satan and his demons (see Matthew 25:41). So, God, in His great mercy and love, sent His only begotten Son, who was perfect and holy in all points, to literally take all our sins upon Himself on the cross, and bear the judgment that we deserve. He made it so easy to receive life from Him.  All we need to do is believe that Jesus is the one and only way to God the Father, repent of our past beliefs and deeds (which means to feel sorrow over, then turn away from our past), accept Jesus’ gift of salvation and begin a new life with Him. He is waiting for you. He has given the promise:

    “Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will certainly not turn away.”
                                                                                                                                                                   (John 6:37 CJB)

Growing in my relationship with God

After my salvation and having received a brand-new spirit, sealed and protected forevermore, I began to read the Gospel immediately. I was so inspired by Jesus’ teachings about faith and prayer. I took to heart the words that Jesus spoke in Mark 11:23-24:

    “For assuredly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”

I began to pray for all the things I needed help with, and I did it in faith that He would provide for what I asked. When I had doubt, I asked Jesus to help me with my unbelief (see Mark 9:24). The most remarkable thing happened – every prayer has been answered. I called upon God for everything – small problems and big problems. Not for selfish things but for real issues. I believe that He wants us to call on Him for all our needs. Never in my life had all my prayers been answered! I am still in awe, four years later, as He continues to provide for everything. He accomplishes this in different ways, and often not in the way I think He will. It does require patience and faith to wait upon God. But this gets easier when you know His goodness and love toward you. I am nobody special, and we know that God shows no partiality. He is no respecter of persons according to Romans 2:11 and Acts 10:34. I simply have access to a relationship with God now, through His Son Jesus. It’s amazing and so special to realize how much God loves you and cares about every detail of your life!

As I studied the Word, I learned more about what Jesus had provided for us when He died on the cross. The word “salvation” is derived from the Greek word sozo, meaning to save, to deliver, to heal, and to make whole – so He doesn’t just “save” us from the darkness of our past, He delivers us, heals us, and begins a process aimed at making us whole. By grace, we receive these things through faith. When Jesus literally took the entire world’s sins upon Himself, this was so that we would not die in sin and remain separated from God. He took on every sin and illness, which disfigured his appearance (Isaiah 52:14). This is why it is said He was unrecognizable on the cross.

The moment the Savior breathed His last breath, the veil (a heavy curtain) that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies in the Jerusalem temple, was torn in two from the top to the bottom. The Holy of Holies was where, in prior times, God Himself had come to dwell, with entry only permitted to the high priest once a year. This divine act symbolized that all people are now able to be reunited with God the Father through Jesus. We all can enjoy access into His presence. More than anything, He wants our love and an intimate relationship with us. He is a good, good Father. When I fully understood this, I was overcome with both grief and gratitude for what Jesus suffered for us. Who could refuse Jesus if they only knew?

I’ve heard it said, “An intimate relationship with God and Jesus is what salvation is all about. Forgiveness of sin was not the point. Sin was a block, an obstacle between God and us. Salvation was intended to be presented as the way to come back into harmony with God … relationship with God.” (Andrew Wommack)

This was what I was truly looking for all along! Over the past four years, this relationship has continued to grow and deepen, as I renew my mind in the Word. I admit that I was skeptical of the Bible in the beginning because I assumed it was corrupted or changed to some degree. But it had been shared with me, and now I believe it, that the Bible is not just a book; it’s the supernatural, inspired Word of God. I also learned that a vast number of handwritten copies of scripture have been found – over 5,800 handwritten copies of parts of the New Testament in Greek, its original language. The number jumps to around 24,000 manuscripts if you count other languages. That’s more than any other historical text, proving its accuracy to be near perfect. There are also many incidences of archaeological evidence, along with extra-biblical texts, to support the existence of many people and places written about in the Bible, including the life of Jesus Himself.

So, I knew that I had to take a step out in faith and read it. I asked God to guide me and to show me His truth. I embarked on a commitment to read the whole Bible in a year. I spent a couple of hours each day studying both Old and New Testaments. It was truly a miracle how God revealed truth to me as I read it. The Word changes you; it literally does ‘renew your mind.’ I continue to read every day. The wonderful thing is that He changes you so that you want to become more like Jesus – and He helps you do it. You aren’t left on your own. He gives you the Holy Spirit to be your comforter and your guide. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell inside of you and He talks to you. Christianity is ALIVE! Yes, it really is true: Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life.” No one comes to the Father except through Him. (John 14:6)

In Revelation 21:7 it says, “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be His God and he shall be My son.” Believers become sons and daughters, reunited with God our Father and their inheritance will one day be the entirety of a perfect and glorious New Creation.

I thank the Lord every day that He has filled the void and shown me His salvation (see Psalm 91). I pray that God blesses you by showing you His truth and His great love for you, in Jesus’ name. I also welcome you to contact me if you want to know more. I am happy to share this treasure with you.

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If you would like to get in touch with Sarah, use this email address: maranatha1@use.startmail.com