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with Christ at the centre,
reaching out to all

Alpha Course in Walton-on-Thames
Mike Turner - July 2004

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Life beyond Alpha

If someone had told me two years ago that I would be writing an article for Radius about my spiritual journey through Alpha and beyond, I would have laughed very loud and long. The only thing I could be described as in September 2002 was a committed agnostic!

By lucky coincidence at that time, the Alpha course had arrived in Walton and was here at St. Johns. This turned out to be a pivotal moment in my Christian life. I must confess that I spent most of the course determined to out-fox John Muggleton with some issue he couldn't answer. I had some useful accomplices in Sarah and Ed Davey to help me but for all of you that know our beloved Mr. Muggleton, you'll know that we had no chance. By the end of the course Nicky Gumbel and John had convinced me that there was a lot going for this Christianity thing - my head was convinced but not my heart!

Over the last 18 months it is fair to say that my life has changed in many ways. I did 'Life worth Living' and I was involved in a post-Alpha home group but my work life was becoming increasingly difficult - I felt that I was being asked to perform 'mission impossible.' By January my stress levels were through the roof and I'm sure I was not a great person to be around for Lu or the kids. It was then that Lu uttered some very special words: "You don't have to deal with this all yourself; someone else will help you if you let him!" Simple words that had a very big impact. I then decided that Lu may have a point and so I called John and we had some lunch. I would describe John as my Christian coach and he was very helpful. After that lunch I decided to commit to read the bible for Lent and pray - this was a BIG DEAL for me. As soon as I started this things began to change.

At the end of February I had a long chat with my boss at work. The result was that I would be able to leave and get paid enough to protect my family for several months. I knew that God was telling me something - it just made sense. The Holy Spirit was working within me; I just didn't know it at the time.

Everything in my Christian life finally clicked into place when I committed to completing the Alpha Course by going on the Holy Spirit weekend. I hadn't been able to do this when I did the course previously and always felt that I should have done. I had the opportunity, along with my old Alpha companions Ed Davey & John Muggleton, to go on a weekend with 200 people from Holy Trinity Brompton (most of you will know it as HTB.)

Over the course of the weekend I realised the wonderful power of the Holy Spirit. Some of you may be disappointed to hear that I didn't have some lightning bolt experience. I had a wonderful feeling of knowing. I knew that the Holy Spirit had been working with me ever since I picked up the bible and started to pray - it was only then that I realised what a support he had been. The other key moment for me was when the Holy Spirit helped me understand the importance of Barnabas in my life. For those of you that aren't familiar with him, he was the great encourager - a wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit. I had seen a programme on Paul a few days earlier and Barnabas stood out to me. It was only at the weekend that I realised why. The Holy Spirit was guiding me, telling me that this is what I should do - encourage people. I now find myself embarking on a new career as a life and business coach. As a conclusion, the Holy Spirit means everything to me. Until the Alpha weekend my head was convinced that Christianity was right but something was missing. On that weekend my faith moved from my head to my heart. I know it was the Holy Spirit that made this happen.

Mike Turner

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