Matt Racher

Hi, I’m Matt and I’m a draughtsman within Structural Engineering. I enjoy films, reading, history, music, walking and sport.

Back in August 2011 I had started to ask myself some of the big questions in life and that’s when I met Lindsay who was a Christian. I found myself intrigued as to what being a Christian meant, and what it meant to her. She encouraged my curiosity and invited me to an Easter service at her church. The church wasn't what I was expecting; rather than feel isolated and out of place as I felt I would, I felt at ease. Following this, I went on an Alpha course to learn more about the Christian faith; nobody was trying to force anything down my throat and I found myself wanting answers to certain questions. I knew the basic story of Jesus but didn't know why any of this was relevant for me personally. I enjoyed finding out about the life of Jesus and his resurrection. I didn’t know we live in a fallen world, and that God sent his only son who, although perfect, suffered and died on the cross so that our sins could be washed away, leaving us free to pursue a one-to-one relationship with God through belief in Jesus.

I then spent a good deal of time wrestling with things and trying to prove the truth one way or the other. One weekend I felt very uneasy and found myself alone in the park talking aloud to God, asking him that if he existed to please speak to me and reveal himself to me. At that moment a weight just seemed to lift from me and my previous hang-ups and uncertainties seemed to evaporate. I sensed something say trust in me here and now and you won’t look back. I immediately felt at peace and everything seemed to slot into place. I just knew that by building my life on God the creator of the universe, who loves me unconditionally, then how could I fail?

MY QUESTION TO YOU: If you have never been on an Alpha or Christianity Explored course, why not give it a try?