Child loss, bullets didn’t shake her belief

PASTOR Lyn Rudolph gave a very personal and emotion-filled testimony when she addressed the Christian Men’s Association breakfast, held at the Celebration Centre in Port Alfred last Saturday.
“I believe in the omnipresent God and Jesus who gave us life, and the Holy Spirit,” she told her audience. This statement was made all the more remarkable following Rudolph’s story of her life and those of her children. “I have over 65 years of testimony,” she said.
“When I was growing up everyone went to Bible class and Sunday school at 9am on a Sunday morning. I loved the word of God and, eventually, there came a time in my life when I had to make a choice.”
Lyn and her husband, Pastor Eldin Rudolph, had a child together named Paul.
“Paul was born with lots of defects,” said Rudolph. The couple travelled to Cape Town’s Groote Schuur Hospital for a barrage of test to determine what exactly was wrong with the infant.
“Apparently one of my chromosomes is defective and, as Paul inherited half of my genetics, he unfortunately inherited the half of my chromosome that was damaged,” she explained. “This was only the second documented case of its type in South Africa.”
Paul was two years old when his parents were allowed to take him home. “Paulie was just eight years old when he died,” said Rudolph. “But during his short life he taught us to laugh and to trust in the Lord at all times.” Another child died in childbirth before their daughter, Candice, was born. And then a fourth child also died in childbirth, probably affected by the same faulty chromosome. “All glory and honour to God,” she said.
Eventually the couple moved to King William’s Town. “We had been to the town for a church event and I had told Eldin that I wouldn’t want to live there,” Rudolph confessed. “And then we ended up moving and living there for 15 years.”
While her husband began in engineering, after 10 years he changed his business to farming poultry, where he would slaughter 20000 chickens a week. “It was very dangerous on farms at the time, and we held study groups to discuss how to protect ourselves in case of a farm attack,” she said. “In the meantime Eldin was teaching about angels and the job they have here on Earth. Later we studied all about faith.”
Rudolph then told of an incident where she faced death and her faith saved her.
“I had drawn R60000 from the bank for payment of accounts and wages,” she said. “I was aware that this was a lot of cash to be carrying around and I prayed that the Lord would protect me. I realised I am always under God’s plan and knew that, if I got shot then it was just because God was calling me home.”
When she reached the farm a car was parked outside. “There was nothing unusual in that. Cars used to get stuck in the mud regularly, requiring Eldin to tow them out,” she continued.
Then six armed men got out of the car and began to run toward her, firing their weapons. Rudolph sustained two gunshot wounds in the attack. “I called on the name of Jesus to help me,” she said. “Suddenly my wounds stopped bleeding. God was with me, and is with me at all times.” Shortly after this incident Rudolph got into Christian ministry.
“It took me time to forgive my attackers,” she said, and pointed out Matthew 6, immediately after the Lord’s Prayer. “Forgiveness is imperative. “Do not be controlled by fear, but by the promise of the Lord.”