Dan Ekelund

Many years ago I wandered along Sixth Avenue in Portland, Oregon, and saw that beautiful sign on top of the Apostolic Faith headquarters building, “Jesus the Light of the World.” I stopped across the street where I could see the sign, and God spoke a message to my young heart right there.

I went to a meeting held at the campground, and God convicted me of my sins in that first meeting. When the service was over I knelt at the altar of prayer, yielded my heart to the Lord, and asked Him for mercy. I told Him that if He would only make a change in my life and give me what these people were talking about in their testimonies, I would serve Him the rest of my life.

I wasn’t ignorant of the Bible or religion. I was reared in Norway where we had compulsory study of Bible history at school, and I went to Sunday school all my life. I knew what it was to have Mother and Dad read the Word of God to us children, but it takes more than that to make one a Bible Christian and take sin out of the heart. I found that out the night the Lord came into my heart, when these people of God prayed for me.

My good times just started when the Lord save my soul.

The Lord made a real change in my heart and gave me something with which I could go out and face the world, and live the life of a real Christian. It was just through the grace of God, nothing in myself. The old habits were all taken out of my life. I found it took real, honest repentance towards God, yielding all my heart. When I did that, God came in and rolled away the burden of sin. He made it so real I could never doubt it. I thank God for the privilege to be in this Gospel and give Him my life. Thank God for this salvation.

I used to spend every night of the week in the dance hall or around the pool table trying to make myself believe I was having a good time. But my good times just started when the Lord save my soul.

I thank God for healing me so many times. I was nearly blind in one eye, but one night I had these people of God pray for me and the Lord restored my eyesight. I passed the army test when the war came. They could not see anything wrong with my eye. I praise God for the many times He has healed my body even when the doctors gave me no hope. He raised me up through prayer.

Some years ago I could scarcely hear an ordinary conversation. But while sitting in a service it seemed the Lord moved a wall inside my ear. I could hear the music, and thought the musicians were doing better, or something, but I found the Lord was working for me. I thank God I can hear! I used to sit in the back of the church and could hardly hear the testimonies of the people on the platform, but I thank God it is different today. I always enjoy the meetings, but I can enjoy them more than I ever did. I have the greatest thing in the world, the old-time religion, and I love to tell about it.