Liz Kauffman

February 13, 2014

I'm so glad you have a mission outreach to the Amish. I used to be Amish, so I know how hard it is to realize how freeing it is to leave and find Christ. I was saved March 11, 1972. Below, I have written out my testimony:

As a small child, I always prayed before I went to bed and asked God to take my brothers and sister and I to Heaven to be with my Mom and Dad, who were both killed in a car accident on October 17, 1946. I had simple the faith of a child and believed with all my heart that they went to Heaven. I also believed without a doubt that God would answer my prayers and take all of my eight brothers and sisters to Heaven someday to be with Mom and Dad too.

When I was 18 years old, I went to instruction class in the Amish church. The preacher would read to us out of the New Testament in German, which I couldn't understand. Then, they would give us a long list of ordinances outlining things we were supposed to do and not supposed to do.

I tried to do what was required, and the day finally came to be baptized. Before they baptized us, they asked us if we believe that Jesus Christ is God's Son. To which we were instructed to respond, “Yes, I believe that Jesus Christ is God's Son.” Of course, we said this on our knees in front of the whole church. Next, one preacher would put his hands on top of our heads to hold the water as the Bishop would pour a cup of water on our heads and say, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost.”

As soon as I finished being baptized, I was convinced I would go to Heaven. It wasn't long after my baptism, however, that that I sinned again, and I began to find myself hoping that I still had enough good works to get myself to Heaven.

About one and a half years later, I met a man and was planning to get married. Before you can get married, though, you have to tell the preacher about all of your sins, so he can tell them to the church. After he told the church about my sins, he asked me to go outside while the church counseled among one another.

If the sins you confessed are considered too bad by the church, they excommunicate you, and you have to go to instruction class again. Once again, you would have to go through the process of making sure your hair is combed right, your dress is the right length, and you behave correctly before the church will take you back. This testing period is usually from two to four weeks. During that time period, the church members are not allowed to fellowship with you; you cannot eat with them, drive with them, or let them take anything from you.

Praise the Lord the church did not consider my sins to be that bad, and I was able to avoid all of that hardship! After I confessed my sins to the church, and they didn’t consider my wrong doings to be too bad, I thought surely I would go to Heaven. I had a good feeling, but that feeling soon went away.

My husband and I got married on April 9, 1964. I was soon very busy, and on Feb 3, 1965, my son Duane was born. Then, my other three children, Karen, Irvin Dean, and Elvin, were born.

Since I was so busy with my family, I forgot how I used to pray as a child. In fact, instead of focusing on things above, I started to remember how my adopted mother used to tell others that my parents didn't get along and had fights often. I finally came to the place in my life where the devil made me to believe that I might as well give up trying to be good enough; I knew I'd never be good enough to get to Heaven. Also, thinking about how my Mom and Dad used to fight made me think that they didn’t make it to heaven either, so none of their children (including me) would be able to either.

I found out after I was saved that my parents had made a confession in church two weeks before the accident, and that they had prayer and Bible reading on a consistent bases. There was peace in my heart where before there was turmoil. I believe the Lord answered my prayers as a child after all.

Praise the Lord, as time passed, Brother Andy got saved and came to our home with his Bible. Although it made me feel very uneasy, Andy tried to show me how to be saved. At first, the devil blinded my eyes, and I could not see the truth he talked about. I did notice, though, that Brother Andy was a different Brother Andy than before. His face had a glow, a peace, and a joy that was never there before. I started to see he had something I did not have, and gradually, the seed he planted started to grow.

On Saturday morning, March 11, 1972, I was talking to a friend named Gertie and was depressed, so she asked if I'd like to talk with her Pastor, who was Gary Bryan of Grace Baptist church in Decatur. I said yes, but I really did not know why I'd want to talk with him.

When I walked into the pastor’s office, he asked what he could do for me. The Lord immediately put words into my mouth. I told him that some people had told me that I could know that I am saved, and I wanted to know! He took the Bible out and tried to show me, but I still did not understand. Then, he asked if I'd like to pray and ask Jesus to forgive my sins and come into my heart to save me, and I surely wanted to! So right then, we kneeled down in his office, and Pastor Bryan prayed first. Then, I prayed and asked Jesus to forgive my sins and come into my heart, save me, and take me to Heaven when I died.

By simple faith I believed the Bible was true, even though I didn't understand it. I believed that Jesus would do whatever He said he would do, and praise the Lord, when I stood up, I was a new person. Pastor Bryan told me to tell others what I had done. Every time I'd tell someone about how I got saved, I was filled up with joy again.

Brother Andy was working at the church, so Pastor Bryan told me to tell him what happened. I told Brother Andy that I'll be meeting him in Heaven someday since I just got saved. Andy thought that I had gotten saved earlier when he talked with me, so he was shocked! I did not realize I had convinced him that he had led me to the Lord, but I sure knew in my heart at the time that I was NOT. After March 11, 1972, however, I knew I was saved, and I was on cloud nine. What a relief to have all those sins washed away!

After my salvation experience, the Bible was like a light and was so much easier to understand. I could not read enough of it! I loved to read the Bible now, whereas before, the Bible was dark, and I could not understand it; it used to make me very uncomfortable to try to read it.

The next day, my adopted mother came to my house and was upset because she heard my family and I were joining a Beachy Amish church. When I heard this news, I laughed and said I didn’t know anything about it seeing as we never were inside the Beachey church and had never planned to join another church. It was on this same day, though, that God burdened me to tell my adopted mom how I got saved.

As I went out to the porch to do my washing, I prayed and asked God to give me the words to tell her, and He did. I told her how I got saved, and I used the New Testament the Pastor gave me with the plan of salvation mapped in it, to show her how I got saved. She just made fun of me.

My own mother was very upset with me that I read my Bible so much and would talk about salvation. She really mocked me and said I was going back to where I was seven years ago when I had a nervous breakdown and needed four shock treatments. If only she could have felt one day of how I did seven years ago and then feel like I did after I was saved.

My uncle agreed with my mother and said I was going back to the nut house where I was seven years ago. So one day, I confronted my uncle and asked him what he thought. I told him how I got saved, and he responded by telling me to go back to the psychiatrist I had seven years ago to see what he would say about my experience. He told me that the psychiatrist would tell me if I was okay or if I was not.

I also received a great blessing after I searched the Bible for scriptures about eternal security. I looked up all the verses I could about eternal life and also all of the verses that made it seem like you could lose your salvation. I finally came to the conclusion that after I read so many verses like 1 John 5:13, Titus 3:5-7, Romans 4:5-6, Hebrews 9:14; 10:10-14, Galatians 2:16, 21; 3:1-3, 10-12, 21,24-26, Romans 10:3-4, Isaiah 64:6, and 1 Corinthians 15:19 that if a person could lose their salvation, God would be a liar; and God cannot lie according to Numbers 23:9.

I'm very glad to also add that my adopted Mom and Dad both asked Jesus to save them December 9, 1983.

If there is anyone who reads my testimony and has never asked Jesus to save them, I would hope that they would do so today. Romans 3:1 & 23; 5:12; 6:23; 5:8; 10:13 all clearly lay out the steps how to do so. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved.

This testimony has been published with permission from the owner.

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