Steve and Peppy Cobbold

Peppy says: "I had to come to England to study, and when I met God it was the best thing that ever happened. Having been delivered from various aspects of the occult and numerous other things, I eventually found myself working at Cambridge University, where I met Steve who was asked by my boss (a transplant surgeon) to supervise my lab work. Steve found human relationships difficult, and at one time, in desperation, prayed to God for a Christian girlfriend, so he could have a nice, quiet life. That prayer was eventually answered in the form of the nice, quiet Peppy! WHAT A WONDERFUL SENSE OF HUMOUR GOD HAS!"

Steve says: "Peppy was introduced to me by my boss (a Jewish man) who over the next ten years was determined we should marry, and you should have seen the smile on his face when we finally did! Our marriage service included the song “Three Part Harmony”, which impressed on me the importance of God in our marriage. This allowed me to accept Jesus fully as my personal Saviour and loving friend, and I was baptised in water a few months later.

"During those ten years, first at Cambridge and then Oxford Universities, Peppy and I worked together on the development and clinical testing of new drugs for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and to stop transplants being rejected. One of these drugs (called CAMPATH) was approved for treating certain leukemias, but is also frequently used to treat recipients of kidney transplants. Then, about four years ago, I was diagnosed with chronic kidney failure due to an incurable kidney disease, called IgA nephropathy, which is thought to be a sort of autoimmune disease, for which, eventually, the only treatment is a kidney transplant! Despite many medicines to help treat the symptoms (mainly high blood pressure, anaemia and extreme fatigue) my kidney function gradually fell below 20% of normal, and, in November 2005, we went to see the transplant surgeon to start making arrangements for a kidney transplant (the surgeon was a friend from Cambridge days, and is also a Christian).

"Peppy was insistent that God had said he was going to heal me (if we were patient), and she convinced me that I needed baptising in the Holy Spirit and prayer for healing. In the end it was deliverance from a curse put on me as a result of my own arrogance, many years ago, that was the key, and God has performed what I can only describe as a creation miracle. My kidney function has now been stable for at least 18 months at 35-40%, which is enough for a relatively normal life, which has astounded my renal consultant."

Peppy says: "We met Keith and Pauline at a Christian camp two years ago, where we fought over seats. Keith prayed for me, which left a lasting impression. I had just given up a very demanding job under God’s direction and was finding it difficult to adjust. Last year at the same camp I heard that the Horobins needed help with administration, so I offered (one of the reasons for giving up my job the amount of administration!) to my horror they said YES! Well I did say God has a sense of humour! So here I am again doing administration and LOVING it. Steve and I are awestruck at what God is doing with . It is such a humbling experience to work with Keith and Pauline."