In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I testify.
Before I came to believe in Christ, I was a believer of another religion, and I never had the interest or desire to seek after other beliefs. Though my children attended Christian schools, I never paid attention to what Christianity had to offer, until I met up with a dressmaker. Sis. Tanty Kristien is a dressmaker. We came to know each other and our families because I had a dress made by her. After the first dress, she continued to be my regular dressmaker. I couldn’t have known then that befriending her would bring me a string of dreams and extraordinary events-all of which have been woven into the story of my salvation. A CASTLE ON CLOUDS After I met Sis. Tanty I had the first of many dreams to follow. In that dream, I saw a castle atop a sheet of clouds in the northeast direction. The castle was breathtaking and majestic. I woke up in bewilderment, amazed at what I saw.
A few days later, I dreamt of the same castle. Except this time, the castle was not gated, and a very bright light burst through the open doors. Once again, I woke up feeling astonished.
The next day, I recounted these dreams to Sis. Tanty. She just smiled and brushed my stories aside, thinking they were the result of too much sleep. I still thought the dreams meant something because I always slept around midnight and my sleeping patterns were not out of the ordinary when the dreams took place.
A few days later, I dreamt of the castle again. This time, from the open doors emerged a human figure amidst the bright light. Though I could not see the face of this figure, I had the feeling that He was a great person.
Again, I told Sis. Tanty about my dreams, and I was very anxious because I thought they were signs of my impending death because I kept dreaming of the same things. Sis. Tanty began to take my dreams seriously after this. She speculated that something might happen to me. A FENCE ON FIRE A couple of days later, I dreamt that the bamboo fence around my house was on fire. The only way to get out of the house and outside the fence was a small opening about one meter in width. My three young children and I stood helplessly on the porch of our house because it seemed impossible that we could escape the fire if we tried to pass through that small breach. Suddenly, the same castle I had been dreaming about appeared beyond the fence. Its doors opened and the great figure appeared from the inside. A stunning bright light surrounded Him as He waved His hands to us saying, “If you want to be saved, come follow Me.†Still, I did not have the courage to pass through that narrow opening and be consumed by the blazing fire. But He kept waving His hands and smiling to us. At that moment I woke up from my sleep.
I told Sis. Tanty about this dream, too. She said, “Maybe God wants you and your family to follow Him. Why don’t I contact a pastor in Tasikmalaya to come to town and share God’s word with us?†I asked, “What is God’s word?†She only told me that I would know when the pastor came. PASTORAL VISITS When the pastor arrived, Sis. Tanty invited my children and I to her house. She also invited a few other brothers and sisters to come and listen to God’s word. Since my children were attending Christian schools, they were familiar with the pastor’s message. But it was not so for me. God’s words sounded very peculiar to me. After several pastoral visits, I dreamt about the castle again. This time, however, three figures emerged from the bright light instead of one. The middle person held a container in His hands. He came towards me and led me to a river. I still remember how clear the river’s water appeared. He invited me to go down into the river, but I was afraid and refused His invitation. Despite my refusal, He never stopped smiling at me. That was when I woke up. The next pastoral visit was made by a pastor from Jakarta, and he brought along another church member to visit me. I told them about this most recent dream, and they were convinced that God had a plan for my family. They encouraged me to attend church service regularly. At the time, services were held twice a month where I lived. A BEAUTIFUL CHOIR The last of the series of dreams that I had was of a very beautiful choir. All the choir singers wore white shirts and black pants, with the women forming a row in the front and the men forming a row behind them. I was introduced to two women-one with straight hair and one who was pregnant. When I told Sis. Tanty about the dream, she was really amazed because she felt as if my dreams were a continuous series, and they were all parts of a complete narrative. She invited me to the True Jesus Church in Jakarta because they were holding an evangelical service. I told her that I would think about the invitation. The day before we left for Jakarta, Sis. Tanty came to my house to confirm if I would accept the invitation. I made a determination and told her that I would go. And if my dreams became a reality-if I saw the two women in the choir when I went to Jakarta-I would become a True Jesus Church member and believe in the Lord Jesus. We finally arrived in Jakarta in the morning. Right in front of the chapel, I was greeted by one of the two women in my dream. But I told Sis. Tanty that the woman in my dream had straight hair, and the woman standing in front of me had curly hair. It turned out that this woman had a twin, and her twin was the one with straight hair! But I still had not met the pregnant woman in my dream. So Sis. Tanty took me to meet a pregnant sister, and, sure enough, she was the other woman in my dream. Then, I saw the entire choir wearing the clothes I envisioned, and I knew without a doubt that this was the calling of God. Through these dreams, Jesus called me into His fold. I have believed in Him ever since. I received baptism on March 2, 1988. I am still a member of the True Jesus Church today, and I try to serve God as much as I can.
Even though twenty years have come and gone, the mystery of His ways continue to amaze me. May all the glory be unto God! Amen.
| 
