Sci-fi well sown
How a garden and a novel brought a woman to Christ
Janet Mabie
Special to Spur Ottawa
It all began with a bag of ripe tomatoes and a quote from a science fiction novel. That was the day that Elizabeth Napethe met Pastor Terry Orchard and her life changed for all of eternity.
“Four years ago, I was picking tomatoes in the community garden plot,” says Orchard, who pastors Britannia Baptist Church.
After gathering some produce from the church’s plot, Orchard noticed ripe tomatoes in a nearby plot. It was a garden worked by two South Sudanese women from his church. So he picked the tomatoes and delivered them to the home of one of the women—a widow living with her adult children.
While he spoke with the woman, her daughter, Elizabeth, joined them.
“I knew she seldom left the unit and fought paranoia, negative thoughts, and depression.”
“I had tried everything, yet still there was no peace. My life was a sad, meaningless mess.”
So Orchard reached out to her by first quoting a line from Dune, a well-known novel.
“My heart was closed, but then he quoted a verse from a science fiction novel he didn’t know I was reading. The quote was, ‘Fear is a mind killer.’ And that grabbed my attention,” recalls Elizabeth. “It is clear that it was the work of God because that quote was pretty much all that stood out for me from that book.”
The connection broke the ice and opened the door for Orchard to share the message of salvation with Elizabeth, inviting her to accept Jesus into her life.
“What other options did I have?” she asks. “I had tried everything, yet still there was no peace. My life was a sad, meaningless mess. I was without God and without hope. I didn’t have a solid foundation to stand on, but built my life on sinking sand.”
She describes how she lived only to please herself and had fallen into a life of sin.
“Spiritually I lacked peace with God and emotionally I lacked peace within myself.”
Elizabeth became a Christian, but felt that her heart was still a mess and she still had fear.
“As time went by, Christ began to draw me in deeper, exposing my heart and offering Himself as the solution to all my problems,” she says. “He began to show me more of Himself, that He is trustworthy, faithful, and so very loving. He is good and has my eternal best at heart.”
Elizabeth became a member of Britannia Baptist Church, was recently baptized, and serves on the worship team. She prays for her church and community, wears a smile on her face, and is happy to share her testimony.
“I try to speak of Jesus and what He has done in my life and share the Good News, the love of Christ to anyone I feel God draws me to.” Last year, a woman who had been an atheist came to faith in Christ, through hearing Elizabeth’s testimony.
“What I have come to learn as I mature in the Faith is that our walk with God was never meant to be easy. As we struggle to be faithful to God while we face temptations by the world, flesh, and devil, we can take heart. The war has already been won. Christ is forever victorious.”
This article is a follow up to one of the first articles Spur published. We followed up to share the lasting and contagious difference that came about through that providential encounter.
Similar Articles
The Urban Monastery brings reflective rhythms to a digital world
“Urban” and “monastery” are words few would consider compatible. The quiet, reflective rhythms of monastic life is a stark contrast to the noise and energy of an ever-moving city. Yet uniting these two ideas is exactly the solution Doug Ward proposed to address the growing problem of social disconnect […]
CityKidz banquet seeks to keep building big dreams
CityKidz Ottawa is hosting their annual Big Dream Banquet at the RA Centre on November 17. This year’s banquet comes amid a transition for CityKidz, as a three-year $40,000 grant from World Vision concluded this past September. However, CityKidz Ottawa manager Wendy Turpin is hopeful their […]
Common Table helps youth with autism overcome life’s barriers
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church is providing youth with autism a place to make friends and be themselves. Common Table brings them together with young adult volunteers to have fun, in an atmosphere of God’s […]
Conference seeks to help churches reach marginalized communities
When we belong, we feel cared for, accepted, and respected. Belonging is a universal desire, but sadly many people feel isolated and marginalized, even from the Church. “We are working with […]
Finishing strong
Christians rightly put great emphasis on Christmas, but a growing community of Ottawa churches join together to praise God as the new year begins. Far more than another New Year’s Eve party, they see the Cross-over Prayer Vigil as an important witness to the city. “This is […]
East Gate Alliance offers free Christmas concert
East Gate Alliance Church is hosting a free concert featuring local worship artist Colin Bernard. The concert is taking place this Friday, December 18, starting at 7 p.m. “We’re taking all the chairs out of the sanctuary and putting in some tables with candles, so it will […]