by Enid Harwood

Enid with her son Russell

I first heard the true word of God in 1979 when my daughter had been going to the Revival Centre. When I found out they were Pentecostal I was afraid she had involved herself with some type of “Moonie” group and I was afraid for her. At the time she had quite a lot of money in the bank and I remember I warned her not to give any to this group.

The day she came home from Church with wet hair I felt a terrible rage for I knew she had been baptised. She came in when I was washing the dishes and I was so angry I threw the dishes in the sink and broke them. I turned around and smacked her face. Never had I ever done anything like this before to her or my son.

When she wanted to get married I had forced her into marrying in the Anglican Church and because she was such an obedient girl she complied with my wishes. How sad she must have been.

I was still very angry when Amanda talked Russell, my son, into going to church with her. Sometime before he had had a vision where he saw Jesus. I was so upset I told him not to tell anyone about this as people would think he was insane. I now know that at this time I was an alcoholic. I had started drinking wine in the mornings, but hadn’t admitted my problem even to myself at that time. My marriage was on the rocks and my husband was seeing another woman which didn’t help the situation.

The turning point came when Russell, who had been dyslexic all his life, came home from church and told my husband and I that we had to get ourselves right with God. To do this we had to bet baptised and filled with the Holy Spirit. God would give us the gift of speaking in tongues. I asked how he knew this and he proceeded to read Mark 16 out of the Bible.

Well… we knew he couldn’t read. We sent Russell out of the room to get some pamphlets and my husband said that the church had made him memorise the passage. So when he came back in my husband asked him how long he had been able to read. Russell replied that when he came out of the baptism waters he found he could read. We then asked him to read the newspaper which he did without fault. I was absolutely stunned.

After that I started reading literature that my son had left lying around on his table. It was after this time I called my daughter to take me to church with her. I went to a meeting where I heard Noeline Munro give her testimony which I could relate to in parts. I got baptised that morning. I did not receive the Holy Spirit until three weeks later when praying with Russell. It has been nothing short of a miracle that I came out of the water knowing that I would never ever have another alcoholic drink or cigarette again. Since that day I have never even desired a drink.

The miracles I have had since have been too numerous to mention. But two in particular come to mind.

Eight years ago I was at a low ebb, living on my own and in a depression, when one morning about 3 am I was praying to the Lord and I asked him to help me when a thought came into my head “use the short- wave on the radio”. So I did and turned the dial until I came to an English voice saying "This is Radio Rhema and we now have Pastor Wormbrand to speak to us." It was wonderful. All uplifting things I needed to hear. Afterwards I cried with joy for hours, knowing that the Lord was still answering prayers.

Another major miracle in my life came about when I fostered Christine McDougall, who had Huntington’s Chorea. She came to me a confused, angry and hurt young woman in need of help. Her medical future looked grim and she was not expected to live beyond 40. Together we have discovered many Bible promises that have changed both our lives.

One day in particular Christine got so angry that she was raging and banging her head on the wall. I simply held her and cried out to Jesus, “Help me Lord” and I prayed in tongues because she was still fighting me. Suddenly she stopped fighting and stood back to look me in the eye. What I saw amazed me. Where her face had been crooked and her mouth had drooped so much that she dribbled, her face was now straight, her back and neck erect. She looked at me and we both started to cry because we knew that something miraculous had taken place. We just held each other and cried.

From that time on she went from strength to strength so that today she is a confident lively woman full of the joy of the Lord who is over the age of 40 and looks like living for a very long time yet.

I thank Jesus every day for my salvation. And I thank the Lord for giving my children patience not to give up praying for me all those years ago.

Enid shares a remarkable testimony. She is step-mother of Christine McDougall as well as mother of Amanda and Russell and grandmother to her four grandchildren. Enid is always an enthusiastic participant in our Church activities, including Martha’s kitchen and the choir. She is a talented amateur painter whose work graces the walls of several North Shore homes.

Russell has a hobby of being a film extra and has recently appeared in such TV films as “Greenstone” and “Journey to the Centre of the Earth”.

NOTE - You can read Russells story in this category and also Christines incredible healing testimony in our 'Healings' category.

Auckland Christian Assembly - 26 Albany Highway Glenfield, Auckland, New Zealand - Phone +64 9 444 550/ + 64 9 444 8634