My life before Christ was one of confusion, no peace, and lacked purpose. I was not raised in a Christian home. Both parents were alcoholics. My family was very poor and we had few clothes to wear. I remember being made fun of by my peers at school . I started working fulltime at the age of 15 to support myself. I moved out with my older sister when I was 16 and was married with a child at 18. I was not prepared to be a wife or mother and wasn’t good at either one. I did alot of things in my late teens and early 20’s that I am very ashamed of. My maternal grandmother was a wonderful Christian woman who lived in Mississippi and visited us every couple of years and I knew she had an inner peace, love, and joy that must have come from the Lord.

In August of 1982, I didn’t feel that I could live another day in the lost and miserable world I was living in. I was sobbing and cried out to the Lord. I confessed my sins and begged for His forgiveness. I asked the Lord to come into my life and he did so immediately. I asked God to show me a sign so I would be certain Satan wasn’t playing a game with me. He revealed a very small bright light for just a couple of seconds and it disappeared. I was overwhelmed with joy and innerpeace. I knew I had just died to an old life and was beginning a new one.

After joining a church and being baptized, I was happy and at peace. I attended worship service, read my Bible and prayed. Then in 1991, I backslid when I was faced with divorce, my dad with terminal cancer and my mother not expected to live but a few months. I became angry with God and turned my back to him. In 2004, I developed an auto-immune disorder that prevented me from working and ended my nursing career. I became more angry. On Sept. 3rd, 2006, 15 years of being away from God, I rededicated my life and joined First North. My life is better than it has ever been even though I have an illness. My life has meaning and direction. I have an inner peace. I have what I saw in my Grandmother! I love the Lord and all my hope and strength comes from Him.