Dear Rangers,
As Camp Cammnder for Cyber Pow-Wow I thought it would be could If posted my
testamony, so you can see who I am.
MY STORY
Dear Rangers
The Lord has laid it on my heart to share how I came to know Him. So here it is,
it�s kinda long so you might want to save it and read later when you are off the Net.
Ever since I was 15 I had been hanging around Christians but never really making a
commitment to the Lord. When I was 19 I became a Hippie and started to smoke
dope and taken L.S.D. In Australia at this time we had National Service for the
Vietnam war. I opposed the war and conscription, so I refused to register, thus
becoming a criminal. In 72 Conscription was abolishished and those who defied the
law were �pardoned�. Two years later I met a young lady by the name of Lindy,
who was training to be a Teacher at Bathurst. A year and half later we were
married. Over the next 4 years our marriage started to fall apart. Lindy was a
Christian and I was not. In 1976 I joined the Army and qualified as a Marksmen.
At 600 metres I could bullet between a mans� eyes. In December of 79 we went,
as usual to Narrabeen (a beachside suburb of Sydney). Lindy�s Mum had a
caravan down there with a group of friends including the Robinsons. On the
29/12/78 Lindy and I went to a friends home for dinner. After dinner They asked if
we wanted to go to a Christian Coffee House called Humpty�s. I reluctantly went.
While I was there I noticed a bookstand with some C.S.Lewis books. I have
always loved his work. As I was reading one the books a young man named
Gordon came up and started to talk to me. I was in the mood for an argument,
poor Gordon cop it. I had a good knowledge of the Bible and I used it against him.
Gordon did not give up but went and got help. The help he got was a young lady
named Lyndell and I started to loose the argument because she kept coming back
to the point of God�s love for me. In desperation I said �If God�s real let him show
himself!�. I thought I had won. Lyndell said if I mean it He will, he did.
The next I went spearfishing by myself, I normally went with Paul Robinson.
Because of Army training I would always come back with a load of fish, not this
time. Each time I would fire the spear at a fish it would swerve away. Every so
often I would hear �Stop, look what I created for you.� After 3 hours I gave up
and went back to the van. When I was asked where were the fish I lied and said
there were no good ones out there today. The same thing the next day. To make
thing �worst� on the way in I saw a large Flathead (a fish) so I line him up and fired.
The spear went through his head and into the sand. I said, �I�ve beaten God�.
Wrong. As I pulled the spear up the fish swam away, I followed it and when it
stopped I line it up again. This time I did not fire, where there should have been a
large hole in the fish�s head there was nothing. I did what any �sane� person would
do, I got out there fast. I decided to go where God could not get me.
After having a shower I got into my car so could cassettes knowing that God could
not get me there. Wrong, again. The player would not work, so put the radio on.
One station was having a tribute to Bob Dylan, my favourite singer. The next song
they played was �Knockin� on Heaven�s Door�. So I changed stations, the next
station was half way through the same song. Five stations played that one song in a
space in 15 minutes. I gave up.
That night I went back to Humpty�s and found Lyndell and Gordon. At 11:45 p.m.
on the 1/1/79 on a park bench in the middle Manly (a busy little suburb) I gave my
heart to the Lord. When we got back to Humpty�s Lyndell introduced me to some
of her friends and I found out that 40 had been praying for me. What chance did I
have?
I did not tell Lindy what had happened I decided to show her instead. While they
were at the beach each day I stayed behind and clean the caravan and make lunch.
A few days later Lindy�s mum said to Lindy �What�s got into Adrian?� Lindy
replied �I don�t know�. It was then I told them what I had done. Lindy was so
pleased.
Over the next few years we hard at putting our marriage back together and on 14th
of December this year we will celebrate 26 years of marriage.
Tomorrow I will tell how the Lord has made a difference in my life and how I
became involved in Royal Rangers. And more about Paul Robinson, it seems that
when there has been a major change in my life Paul has been there, either in the
back-ground or pushing for it. By the way Paul is my Senior Commander at
Hawkesbury Royal Rangers.
Dear Rangers,
Here is the second part of my testimony, this is the important part, How the Lord
made a change in my life. Coming from a back ground like mine I had trouble fitting
into a main-stream Church.
Since I was 17 had a keen interest in motorbikes. Lindy and I were living in a
southern suburb of Sydney, Panania. Lindy had got involved with the local Baptist
Church about a year before I became a Christian. The assistant Pastor Des Daniels
had been in the same scene as me so he know the problems I would face. When he
found out that I had become a Christian he was rapt, others in the Church were not
so thrilled. Three months after I made my decision I ran into an old friend who was
involved with a Christian Motorcycle Club called Brotherhood. I got involved with
them. A year later the Leader, Greg Hirst, decided to form a Home -Church to try
to help the Street kids and bikers who had become Christians but could fit into a
Church. I felt at home (no pun intended).
During this time Lindy and I started to work at putting our marriage back together,
boy was it hard, but it worked. This year, in December we will celebrate 21 years
of marriage. In 1982 our first son was born, Aaron David.
I was finding it hard to be Christian during this time. It was because I had a lot of
head knowledge and not heart knowledge. I relied on myself not on God. In 83 I
received a large payout for a bike accident. It paid off all my debts with enough left
over to but a good Stereo. More importantly, one Lindy�s Aunties gave us $22000
to buy a block of land at Windsor where we build our present home. We move in
March 84 and 6 months later our second son James Douglas was born.
About this time I had an argument with Greg and walked out of Street Level (the
name of the Home Church) and started to go to Hawkesbury Christian Centre.
Guess who was going to this Church as well, Paul Robinson. He and his wife Liz,
got me involved with their home group. On night we were discussing the Baptism of
the Holy Spirit. I stated that I did not believe in it. Next week the study was on the
same subject, guess who got filled with the Holy Spirit? ME. The things I know in
my head started to flow down to my heart. Unfortunly I had a disagreement with
the Leadership of the Church in 86 and left to go back to Street Level.
My Christian growth slowed rapidly from this point. In the same year I had an
accident at work and stuffed my back up. The end result was I lost my job. In 87 I
went back to school to get my Higher School Certificate (you need it to get into
University out here). In 88 I received a pass that got me into Newcastle Uni to
study Teaching, majoring in History. In my first year I had a bad motorcycle
accident. I was left with a badly dislocated Shoulder. I believe the Lord used the
accident to wake me up. It was by Divine intervention that I was not killed (That�s
other story). The end result was I realised I was growing as a Christian at Street
Level. So I had a good long talk to Greg and we both decided that the time had
come to move on. Because I had no transport (I could not drive or ride) I went
back to Hawkesbury Christian Centre. I had to face up to those I had maligned
when I left the first time. After apologising to them I took out Church membership.
Lindy soon followed.
I was growing fast and becoming involved in the Church with Sunday School. In
1990 Paul Robinson started Royal Rangers, Aaron started to go as a Pioneer. A
couple of years later they started Buckaroos and James started to go.
I started to really mature as a Christian. Since 1979/80 I had been involved in
Humpty�s as a team member. Now I was leading a small group, looking after their
spiritual and physical needs during the mission. The more I read the Bible and
prayed the more I grow. Our marriage was going really well (it still is and getting
better all the time). I began to operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, I realised
that I
had been called to be an Evangelist.
Things were looking good for my myself and my family. Three years ago James�
Commander, Bruce, was not doing the book work for Pioneers. This was
frustrating James, so I complained to Paul. During the next week The Lord kept
saying to me �You�ve complained, what are YOU going to do about it.� My reply
was �I�ve done my bit.� but he still kept at me. I had known for a few years that I
would be involved in Rangers. I thought my time was some way off. At the next
Outpost meeting I told Paul what had happened and he put me into Pioneers Boys
(our Outpost has boys and girls) as parent-helper. Four weeks later I was in
uniform as an Assistant Leader. That was in March. In September Paul placed me
in with Trailblazers.
In July I started my L.T.C. and by September I had finished. In October I
successfully made it into F.C.F. I was also promoted to Lt.Cmd. The next year in
completed N.T.C. and was elected State Historian for Cobb & Co Chapter of
F.C.F. (N.S.W.). Our Outpost grew to over 120 and Paul decided that he needed
someone to organise resources and adminstive stuff, I got the job. This year I was
able to attend the U.S. Rendezous where I met some strange people like Daune.
As can see the Lord did not wait until I got myself straighten out, reached down to
where I was and said �My dear son, I love so much I sent my only begotten Son to
die for you. I only want the best for you. Will join me at my table?� If the Lord can
take a person like me how very few people thought would amount to much, What
can he do for you.
So after 17 years of been wondering about what the Lord was going to do with
me. Now I know. He has blessed me with a number of gifts like being able to put
gospel in ways anyone can understand or being able to put Bible truths in ways
kids (and adults) can understand. He has given me a love for kids that normally
would not like. He has given me compassion for those who are hurting. I guess
from all I�ve been through I can understand why people are hurting. He blessed me
with high intelligence and a logical mind. I can see how to solve problems easily.
Yes. The Lord has been good to me in blessings and who he has made me into. I
AM NOT ASHAMED TO SAY I AM A CHRISTIAN. I will take the insults the
world throws at me because I know I am right in my belief that our Lord Reigns.
I know that most people who will read this are already Christians, feel free to share
it with anyone who might benefit from it. We, as Christians have 2 powerful
weapons we can use. The first is the power of the Blood of Jesus. The second is
our testimony. These two things Satan hates the most because he has NO answer
for them. The blood of Jesus spelt his defeat as the Lord made the Sacrifice of his
son for sin once and for all. In the Bible it says that the word of 2 or witnesses are
valid. The word of testimony backs but what God says in his word, therefore,
Satan is bound to acknowledge the fact of God�s love.
There's a storm coming, our Storm.
PROCLAIMING GOD'S LOVE TO A DYING WORLD
Say to the captives, 'come out,' and those in darkness, 'Be free!'
Isaiah 49:9
Love in Jesus
Adrian Bonham aka Morning Light, The Larrikin
I looked to the heavens to where God dwells
I looked into my life to see he lives there as well.
Outpost 49
Hawkesbury Royal Rangers
Windsor, N.S.W.
Australia
F.C.F. 94
Cyber Pow-Wow Camp Commander 2001
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