Emanuel shares his testimony in his own words:
I grew up in a strict Catholic home in Mieders, Austria; we had to go to church every weekend with my parents. Church and all the religious traditions did not mean anything to me, and so I just went because I had to. In fifth grade I transferred to a bigger school, and in my class there was an American missionary kid called Steven Fletchall. Because we both were the best in mathematics in the entire grade, we had an ongoing competition as to who was the better one. Through that, Steven became one of my better friends at school and eventually, after spending a lot of hours together, he became my best friend.
After a time, the Fletchalls went back to the US for furlough and came back a year later. Due to the fact that they moved 35 minutes away from me, I spent a lot of weekends at their house. At their house we had to go to church on Sundays, but Steven and I stayed often up very late, so we were tired during the services. I probably heard the Gospel preached to me numerous times at their house and in the church, but it never meant anything to me until three weeks prior their departure for their return to the States.
It was a Sunday afternoon, and Steven and I were talking on ICQ, a messaging software on the computer, about various things. I do not remember why, but we turned to the subject of religion and Steven involved his mom in the conversation. After some troubles with the connection, Ted, Steven's dad, decided to pick me up, and I spent the afternoon at their house.
We talked in their living room about the Lord, and they showed me in the Bible how I can know for sure that if I would die how I can go to heaven. Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God” clearly showed me that I was lost, because of my lifestyle. I knew that I was not perfect and that I had sinned so many times. Through various passages they showed me that I myself am not capable of saving myself through my deeds, but because “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life!” (John 3:16). That verse really struck me that a sinner like I, someone who has done so many bad things in my life, would be loved by God so much that He decided to give me the gift of eternal life together with Him in heaven. After I realized that I only had to take this gift and receive it, I prayed to God to forgive my sins and thanked him that only through His sacrifice on the cross and the resurrection, I had a chance to spend eternity together with him. On that day I trusted Christ as my personal Savior.
Epilogue to Emanuel’s testimony
Emanuel came to visit the Fletchalls in Iowa the summer after he was saved. He went with Steven to the Iowa Regular Baptist Camp and had a great time. Before returning to Austria, he told Ted that he would love to return to America someday because Christians in America were so friendly and nice to him. So, Ted told him to pray about it and see what God would do.
Emanuel returned to Austria, finished his studies in the field of engineering and got a job with an Austrian company that has a branch office in the US. After orientation, Emanuel was sent to his company’s branch office in Charlotte, North Carolina. There he was baptized and joined an independent Baptist church. He grew in the faith and was discipled. During his time in Charlotte, Emanuel won a green card, which allows him to stay and work in the US indefinitely if he so chooses.
The Fletchalls returned to Iowa in 2009 to attend the 50th anniversary of their sending church, Emmanuel Baptist Church, in Des Moines, Iowa. Emanuel came up from Charlotte to visit the Fletchalls in Iowa that weekend. Ted arranged for him to tour the campus of Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary. That Sunday, as we all were helping our sending church celebrate its anniversary, Emanuel gave his testimony and announced that he was going to attend Faith Baptist Bible College. Emanuel will be receiving an Associate’s degree from Faith in May 2011 and would like to continue his education at Faith.
Emanuel is not yet sure what God wants him to do upon graduation. Pray that God will continue to use and direct Emanuel for His glory.