One Friday afternoon, when I was seventeen years old and in Form Three in Ndola, I was walking home from school as usual. At first, it seemed like an ordinary day.
The streets were busy with people returning from work and school. Children played along the roadside, vendors called out to customers, and bicycles moved steadily through the afternoon traffic.
As I walked, I heard singing in the distance.
The sound immediately caught my attention. There was something joyful and uplifting about it. The voices were filled with enthusiasm, and the music seemed to carry a message of hope.
Curious, I followed the sound until I came upon a large gathering of people in an open field. A gospel crusade was taking place.
A crowd had gathered around a temporary platform where several missionaries from the United Kingdom were leading the people in singing. The atmosphere was unlike anything I had experienced before. The people sang with excitement and conviction. Some clapped their hands while others lifted their voices in praise.
I stood at the edge of the crowd and listened.
After several songs, one of the preachers stepped forward and began to preach. Although I listened carefully, I cannot remember the details of his message today. What has remained clear in my memory is what happened at the end of the meeting.
When he finished preaching, he invited anyone who wanted to be saved to come forward.
My heart began to beat faster.
For years I had been troubled by the reality of my sin. For years I had feared death and judgment. For years I had longed to belong to God and to know that my sins were forgiven.
Without hesitation, I stepped forward.
I was not alone. Several others also responded to the invitation. We gathered in front of the platform, and the preacher led us in a prayer. He asked us to repeat the words after him, and we did.
When the prayer was finished, he told us that we were now saved. He encouraged us to find a church where we could grow in our faith and learn more about God's Word.
Those words filled me with hope.
As I walked home that evening, I felt lighter than I had ever felt before. The burden that had troubled me for so many years seemed to have been lifted. I believed that my sins had been forgiven. I believed that I now belonged to God.
The prayer I had prayed that day convinced me that I was saved, and I walked home rejoicing in what I believed God had done for me.