Great is thy Faithfulness

God is soooo good. The hymn "Great is Thy Faithfulness" really applies to this testimony that I am about to give, so pay attention...

             AUC (Atlantic Union College) closed down due to financial issues and as a matriculated student of the institution, I wasn't sure what to do. Literally, at the beginning of August, AUC told their students to go to WAU (Washington Adventist University) for the following semester and the cost of tuition would be brought down to just about the same tuition rate we paid at AUC. So in my mind, I’m like “that's great.” My independence from my parents had just kicked in for my FAFSA, so I was getting enough money from the government to cover my school fees, but then, something happened...

When I applied to the BS program in Nursing at WAU, they told me that because I received a grade of a D in a course three years prior at another institution, they weren’t sure if they would be able to put me into their Nursing program. I kindly reminded WAU that they had already promised to transition AUC students into their program and I also added that I retook the course in which I received a D grade and obtained an A in it the second time around.  I explained to them that I was an outstanding student within the Nursing program at AUC and I was very capable of doing the coursework. After speaking with them, WAU agreed to place me into the program for the Fall 2011 semester on the condition that I take a standard reading exam and receive good grades my classes this semester. Everything was going smoothly until the middle of October when I was asked to meet with the secretary from the Nursing department.

The secretary informed me that the Nursing program was now denying me from the program for the same issues that they had expressed when I initially applied to the program.  I broke down in tears because everything was already going so wrong in my life. I had no job, I was getting into fights with close friends and the only thing I was really looking forward too at that point was now crumbling before my eyes. I asked the secretary "Why did the department make me waste my money and take these classes if I wasn’t going to receive a fair shot in the first place?" The secretary expressed her apologies and then kindly dismissed me. I was sad and began to doubt that God wanted me to even do nursing anymore. I spent so many years with this dream and still I hadn’t gotten anywhere.

Eventually, I started looking to change my major. I had a few friends that told me to stick with my dream and not to give up but I didn't want to listen to them. I was just going to go my own way. Finally someone got through to me and recommended that I fight for an appeal, so I did just that. Last week, the Nursing department informed me that I could start the program again this January! God HAS given me one last chance. He’s so faithful, when I am not!                                -ZW

God's Got A Plan

(forgive me in advance for grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.  focus on the message)

As some of you may now know, I am moving to Maryland this weekend.  I know it seems fast and abrupt but when God says move you move.

At the beginning of July, I volunteered to help my mother by bringing my nephews back home to Maryland. Every time I visit Maryland and the Restoration Praise Center SDA Church I have an amazing time.  While sitting in church, I was having a full blown conversation with God.  I told Him how I really didn't want to be in NY anymore but i didn't want to make any decisions without His full permission and instruction.  After church a friend from MA was speaking to me and telling me i should move and be apart of this church.  He introduced me to His girlfriend and we exchanged information and she said she would be in contact for my resume if she hears of anything.

When i got back to NY, I created an online profile for 3 different county school websites where you have to upload your resume.  The only way to get a job is to actually apply to the specific job opening.  I said, "God, I'm not going to apply to any of these jobs.  If it's for me to be in MD then You need to have a principal contact me."  That's next to impossible but I know the God I serve.

Weeks have gone by and I have been traveling back and forth to MD.  In the midst of the traveling Pastor Graham asked me to join the praise and worship team once a month. On my last visit to MD, it rained like crazy in NY and my street flooded.  I didn't know until I got back to NY and went to get in my car and water poured out of it.  I had to get the car towed to the dealership, and the tow truck company dropped my car off of the tow truck and crashed it.  The insurance company threatened to deny the water damage claim, and the tow truck company has been trying to weasel their way out of paying for the damage they have done.  At this point I'm convinced they are going to deny my claim and drop my coverage.

Here's where it gets good...

On Monday morning at 11:00am I got an email from a charter school saying they got my resume from a referral source and would love to speak to me regarding a career opportunity.  90 minutes after the email, I had a phone interview.  2 hours after the interview, they called to say they wanted to meet me in person.  2 hours later, I was on a bus to DC.  The next day at 1:00pm, I had an interview with a panel from the school.  10 minutes after I left the interview, they called to offer me the position.  In the midst of that phone call, the earthquake happened. ( I honestly believe the atmosphere couldn't handle all the blessings and favor God was throwing my way and the earthquake was the result.)  The very next day, I had to go downtown to get a background check and fill out paperwork at the HR office.  On the drive to downtown, I get a phone call from the insurance company about my car.  They said the check is in the mail and my car will be ready on Friday.  So now I'm shouting in the car...seriously.

So now I'm at the HR office and I still don't know how much they are going to pay me.  I had a number in mind that I asked God for.  They offered me more than what I was thinking and gave me a signing bonus.  LOOK at GOD!!!!

Since school was already in session, they need me to start on Monday.  I didn't have a place to live up until 6:00pm yesterday.  I was chatting with a friend from RPC and I was telling her my story and she said hold on.  I have a friend who just bought a house and is looking for a housemate.  I spoke with the young lady and she is allowing me and my little dog to stay at her house until I can find a place permanently. (I have goosebumps just typing this)  Then I started thinking about my landlord.  Even though I don't have a lease I felt bad leaving on such short notice.  But then I remembered that God is orchestrating this whole thing.  She will be fine.  This morning I got a message from an old friend of the family who is a traveling nurse and she is  looking for an apt in NY.  (come on somebody!!!)  The prayers of the righteous availeth much...

I know God is not even close to being done with blessing me. I'm starting to believe this hurricane is a result of more blessings and favor coming my way and once again, the atmosphere can't handle it.

Thank you to those that have been praying for me and playing small roles in this great blessing!

God's got a plan,

He's workin it out,

no matter what it looks like,

there is no doubt

For my God, He can do anything!!!

-DB

God Kept Me... So I Wouldn't Let Go (Parental Discretion Advised)

Well, writing this and sharing it umm.... is a little hard but If I can say something that may help anyone else then it is worth it and I just want to say that I didn't go through this on my own. The Lord was with me every step of the way. I know its hard for ppl to understand why a child would have to deal with something like this but I remember reading these words in the bible "And the child will lead us" so now that I'm growing and understanding more, I can help more. The Lord doesn't put more on us then we can handle and he knew that I would be able to handle this. He knew that I was strong enough, and I'm blessed to have gone through this because now I have my chance to help many other people. So 


At the age of 7 my grandfather molested me. He made me perform sexual acts on him and then, he also did the same to me. Even though I was only 7, I still think it's my fault, however, if you were to ask me the same about to another 7 year old, I would tell you that it's not his or her fault. I guess that's just something that goes along with being molested/raped. It's hard for you to think that the ones who love you will hurt you on purpose... 


When I was a little older, about 13 years of age, I was raped. He was a known pedophile and at the time, I was really afraid to tell anyone because of the issue with my grandfather. People didn't believe me when I told what my grandfather did to me. They said I was lying. Teachers, some family members, folks that I didn't even know accused me of lying. I was yelled at and questioned over and over. I knew that if I told someone about this rape, I would have to deal with the same thing, so I didn't just come out and say it, but people did find out, and yes, once again, I was accused of lying. Shortly after though, when people started to find out who he was, then it became "maybe she isnt lying". I guess for some folks, it's easier to tell the person you love that they're lying about something bad happening to them than to believe that something bad happened to the person you love. 

During my preteen years, after trying to deal with being molested and raped, I just couldn't cope. I didn't do well in school, I acted up, lied, mistreated people and just about anything else. I didn't want to live and had attempted suicide twice. As you can see that didn't work out for me, because God has a plan for me and I intend on living out His plan. I went to counseling and honestly, I can't tell you how many counselors I've seen from the age of 7 until I was 19 years old. Going to counseling really didn't help me at all though. I know that for some people it does, but it didn't for me. I ended up doing things my way. I talked to friends, read about sexual abuse and began to understand what abuse victims experience. I also began talking to God and really tried to work things out. Eventually, I started doing better and even though I was only taking baby steps, any step toward making a change is GREAT.

Then at the age of 19, I was raped by a friend of a friend. The guy was drunk and he didnt seem to care that I was telling him no. Things got out of hand so fast that I didn't even know what was happening. Before, when I was 13, I told the other guy "no" but he didn't listen and did what he did to me and when I was 7, my grandfather threatened to kill me and my grandma if I told anyone, so by this time, with all the negatives still affecting me, I didn't say "no" right away. That was just my way of dealing with it. I believed that "If I wanted it, then it's not RAPE" even though I knew I didn't want it. Within this situation however, I was able to say "NO!" I yelled it, I hit him, I tried to leave and he wouldn't stop. I don't think I'll ever forget his words to me: "Just let me get my nut off".

Everyone always says if they were in that situation, they would scream, yell, fight and do anything to get out of the situation, but you just don't know unless your in it. I knew that if I did everything I could and still couldn't get away that I would want to kill myself so that I wouldn't have to play that situation over and over in my head, however, I also knew that I had to try. I was sick of letting guys HURT me. I had to stand up for myself because no one else would and to this day not many people know about it (I guess not anymore). My brother knows because he went with me to the hospital and I love him to death. A couple of other people know too but my family doesn't even really know. I felt that if less people knew then I would forget faster, but it's not true. It is still a constant thought. I've just grown to deal with it...

This is just one of my ways of dealing and working things out. It's ok if you've been raped or molested and you're afraid. You're not the only one and honestly if you asked some of the people you knew if they've ever been touched, molested or sexually abused in any way, you might be surprised at some of the answer you receive. The one thing that helps is being able to talk to someone who understands you. Someone who has been through it. Talking can take you a long way. Talking to God is the most important thing though. He's listening and He's ready to heal all of your wounds if you let him.  If you're struggling and you need someone to talk to, I'm here. There are plenty of numbers and websites for support as well. DON'T FORGET ABOUT  JESUS CHRIST....HE CAN AND WILL HELP YOU THROUGH IT ALL.

As for me right now, I'm 21 years old and I'm working on putting my life together. It's taken some years and I'm sure it will be some time until I'm fully together but with the Lord's help, I know it will become much better. 


GT

Trust Me: Applying FAITH in Faithfulness

I've always heard the Advent message on tithing and I have always wondered if it could ever apply to me. I always tithed, but my problem throughout the years had been my inconsistency. For some reason, I thought the rules never really applied to me. If anything, I thought perhaps it would apply more to my parents, or people that were older and made an income "worthy" of tithes and offering.

A friend of mine always spoke to me about the value of tithing and how God always provided for her and her family. Again, I never thought anything of it. "I will give what I can", I thought, "because God will understand. My job does not pay enough, so how can God possibly expect me to give 10% of what little earnings I make? I mean c'mon! God knows my job!"

Well I thought that way for many years. Some weeks, I would pay my tithes and offering diligently, and some weeks I would give whatever I could. Then there were the weeks I would give nothing at all. I didn't think anything of it. I knew it was wrong, and that I was robbing the Lord, but I didn't allow these thoughts to make me feel guilty enough to start doing it. I realize now that God did not want me to pay my tithes out of a guilty conscience or because I was scared of what He could do to me if I didn't. No. God was merciful and He wanted to show me how loving and gracious He is.

One week, the Lord spoke to me. I had just gotten my check and I deposited it in the bank. I withdrew all I needed to pay some essential bills and then I went ahead and paid all the bills I needed to pay online. My bank account was empty and the cash I had left was for bills. I knew I wouldn't eat that week and I quickly came to the realization that if I paid my tithe that Sabbath, I would not be able to pay my bill due on the upcoming Monday. I wanted so badly to take the money for tithe out of the envelope and place it with my bill, but everytime I tried, the Lord spoke. In a still small voice I heard "trust me".

The next day, I paid my tithe, and for the first time, I applied faith to my faithfulness. "Lord, You have spoken, and I am listening. Let Your will be done, and please provide for me. Well, as I dropped the envelope in the plate, I decided not to be remorseful or worried. I surrendered totally to God. I didn't know how I would get the money for my bill, but I was sure that my faith would see me through.

I had totally forgotten about the money.

That night, my Pastor called and asked me if I would be able to sing for a wedding the next day. It was very short notice, but as a wedding singer and singing evangelist, I knew that I was up for the challenge. I told him that I would do it. He explained to me that I would be volunteering and I went into it with the understanding that the church was not paying me. I didn't mind. I had never been paid to sing in my life, and I had become accustomed to singing for the Lord, and not money, my payment had always been blessings, and the joy I would receive for ministering to the hearts of others. I sang for the wedding, and it was such a wonderful experience. I sat and watched this beautiful couple become a union and I was blessed by the service. After the wedding, during the reception, my Pastor and his wife called me to their office. It seemed as though something went wrong. I was unsure of what happened, but I went in and waited. "You're in trouble," my Pastor said. I was alarmed. My eyes opened wide and my palms became clammy instantly. Then he let out a smile and began to chuckle. He told me to open my hands and planted two bills in my them. I looked down and saw that I had been given a double portion of my tithe money. I began crying, as everything clicked.

"Trust me."

The tears of joy overpowered my Pastor's words and I had only gathered bits of what he said. The family was so pleased with my singing, they wanted to say thank you in a monetary form. I was baffled at how great God was to me.

Funny enough, I had always been the person to hear the "miraculous" stories of people who didn't have a morsel of food to eat, but paid their tithe, and just say "yeah, yeah, that would never apply to me". I've learned many lessons. God wants us to have faith in Him. It isn't enough to be faithful and pay your tithe every week. You have to apply the faith in faithfulness. I've learned that God wants us to be grateful for what we do have. Even if our job may not be bring in a lot, we can still give back a portion to Him, which is rightfully His anyway.  Now, even if it's my last, I'm going to pay my tithe consistently. I have been diligent since and God is with me every step of the way. God is speaking. Can you hear Him? It's a still small voice...

"Trust me."


S.G

Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God

It all started when I was 17 years old, attending my last year of high school. I was in the process of applying to……actually no, it all started when I was 9 years old and sitting in the back seat of my mom’s car, and I drove by COLUMBIA UNIVERISTY. Ever since then, this utmost desire to attend this university grew in me. Every day, from the age on, I prayed to God, begging Him to allow the admission officers of that school to accept me. Having no idea what the school was about, as I started my Junior High School, I decided to attend their fall and summer programs. I knew that starting ties with the School early on would look good on my resume, so I proceeded in doing that for six years. I did all that I needed to do to get in that Ivy League School, such as performing well academically, undertaking extracurricular activities, travelling all over the world, increasing my proficiency in many languages and so on. As I reached my last year of High school, I applied at Columbia University as an Early Decision candidate; which meant that it was illegal to apply to any other schools and I would be forced to go to that school if I were accepted. Being that Columbia was my dream school, those conditions were not a problem for me. I knew that’s where I wanted to go. So as time went by, low and behold, I got accepted. Celebrations were made every two days, whether it be with my immediate family, my extended family, in church, in school, everywhere. 
However, the nightmare began suddenly. Two months later, I got involved in a little issue in my school that caused me to get suspended for one day. The suspension later on fell in the ears of the admission officers of Columbia University. And, just like that, my admission was revoked. My life literally stopped right at that moment. The one thing that I had asked from God was finally in my hand, and I just let it slip out of it. I was distraught, hopeless and done. Being that I hadn’t applied to any school, thanks to their legal rule, not only was I out of Columbia but I had no chance to get anywhere. All schools had finished with regular admissions and I was left out. I cried myself to sleep EVERYDAY!!! I wanted to run so far away and never come back. Nevertheless, I knew of a God, the mighty and omnipotent God named Jehovah. I prayed daily that He took me out of this misery. I fasted non-stop. 

Results: Two weeks before the semester was starting for almost every college in NY, after their admission office had been closed for the upcoming semester, out of nowhere, Fordham University Lincoln Center was desperate for me to be a part of their school. I started right away and graduated right on time. Praise God!

But it doesn’t end there. 

Even before wanting to be a student at Columbia University, I wanted to be a lawyer. I worked in law firms for 5 years, building knowledge on the field of law. I went from receptionist in one firm to being a paralegal and office manager at another firm, while enrolled in college. Things were looking great. However, after my incident with Columbia, I grew a lot spiritually and I started getting more connected to God. I got intensively involved with ministry as well. However the things that I had to do in the law firms that I was working in were not fitting with what I was preaching about in ministry. How can I speak of the commandments of God, but for work, defend murderers, thieves, liars, drug dealers? It didn’t make sense. And it was bothering my spirit for quite some time. Furthermore, the CEO’s of those firms, although they were millionaires, were involved in some real illegal stuff. I was baffled. However I knew that if I went to law school, this would be the life I had to pretty much adopt forever. So I prayed to God and said “God before I make this decision, reveal to me if this is the will you have for me.” For weeks, I prayed that prayer and I felt like He was not answering me. So I proceeded in filling out these applications. However, two seconds before I was ready to hit the “send” buttons to all 14 schools, something told me WAIT. I was nervous and I did not want to trace my life a certain way that God didn’t want for me. So I saved the applications and logged out. After much praying, I came back with a decision that I would apply to only one school out of all 14, and if God wanted me to go to law school, that I would get accepted; and if not, that would be the end of the road. I applied to Fordham Law School and I didn’t get accepted. Although I had prepared for both, an admission and a rejection, my heart was crushed in million pieces because I did not know what to do next with my career life. What was I going to tell my mother? What was I going to tell my family? I was lost. 
But three days later, after crying as much as I breathed, my faith built right back up and I said God, “you shut this door to open a new one. Everything will be alright.”

Results: One year later, I am now pursuing an MBA and an international Management degree in Barcelona, Spain. I can honestly say I love it here. I love the school, I love the country, I love the people and I love the fact that I can have a profession and not feel like it’s incompatible to my ministry, nor to the Word.
During my trials, I did not focus on them as much as I thought I would. But instead I focused on God and what He wanted me to do: ministry, building a spiritual mind and character. Being that, I believed and I did not lean on my own understanding of things but rather, I trusted Him with all my heart, He directed my path. (Prov 3:5-7) 

PRAISE GOD!!! I am sure there are more testimonies to come.

The verse I leave with you is the following: Matthew 6:33 “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, And all these things shall be added unto you”. Be blessed!


L.J

Transform Your Mind

        "I WANT MORE OF THE LORD!"  We hear that a lot don't we? Recently, I have pondered over the following: How can you want more of something that's already within you? Answer: You just have to tear away from the flesh because the spirit of God is in you! Your job is to concentrate on what ISN'T of God in your life! 
         Start by changing the mind! The way you think is important in order to truly repent! (Check out Romans 12:2) True repentance means to turn away from doing wrong to do what is right. You can't turn away if you continue to still think in the same manner that you did before you repented. With the help of the holy spirit it is possible to repent and transform your mind to focus on what God wants from you. 


SWM

Straight to the point!

      For every success I've had, there's been 4 to 5 failures in my life, some of which are my fault. I am fully aware of the grace, mercy, and favor that God has placed upon me. I  know that God placed me where I am today. I also understand that I have a purpose in life and it may not be what I want, but it's what needs to be done and I embrace that. Anything in life that is worth it, is hard work. I am to break generational curses of broken marriages and broken homes. I am focused on being a great father. In a world where wrong is right and right is wrong, its easy to try to fit in. I do not like to fit in (Romans 12:2). In the end who are we really trying to impress? The only person we need to impress is Jesus.
K.K

So Thankful!

I thank God every day for all my blessings because when I listen to the stories of others, I can almost NEVER relate. I've had very few and not so serious traumatic experiences, but most of my life has been fun!

I have a wonderful family that I adore and recently God blessed me with the man that would make me the happiest for the rest of my life.

God blessed me with the independence to make a way for myself at a very young age.

God blessed me with the determination to make goals and achieve them.

God blessed me with the organizational skills to be successful in my endeavors.

God blessed me with the "gift of gab" to develop long lasting relationships.

And God blessed me with LOVE. It's all around me and it protects me from the perils of the world.

Amen!

J.S

Living for the Lord

About two years ago, I came to a point in my life where I just did not know what I was living for. I was unhappy, stressed out and full of worry. My brother began to spiral out of control and getting into trouble. He had people wanting to kill him and he was fighting all the time. Everyday was a waiting game; I always expected something to happen. I would be so scared and literally sick to my stomach with worry. I had no one I could turn to or tell my problems to. One day, I was watching a preacher on television and this preacher looked directly into the camera and asked, " How are you living?" It was within that moment that I looked at my life and cried. I cried out to God and asked for His help. I did not want to be depressed, live in fear or be worried anymore. From that moment on, I decided I would give my life back to Christ. I always believed in God but not like I do now. I believe and trust in Him for everything in my life. I no longer live in fear or worry because I have Christ and He fights my battles for me. Each day, I plea the blood over my brother’s life and leave him in God's hands. It is now that I know God has my back and He will never leave or forsake me. I love God. I want to obey and live for Him each and everyday. He holds my today and my tomorrow. When people see me, I want them to see His light shining. I want to live and serve Him in everything that I do and give Him all the glory and the praise.

IAJ

God's Love

Some years ago, I met an individual. When we started out, we were just friends, strictly platonic. As time moved on, we became close and eventually expressed our feelings for each other. We spent time together, knew each other’s families, and although we were young, we seemed to genuinely love each other. Sounds perfect right? Well not exactly...

After months into our “situation”, I started seeing a side of him that I didn’t like. He neglected me often, spent a lot of his time with other females, and began abusing me psychologically and emotionally. Some people seem to think that physical abuse is the worst kind of abuse because you can see physical scars, however, internal damage, damage that one cannot see with the naked eye, can be just as detrimental.

During the abuse, I prayed to God that he would change the guy’s heart and allow him to see that I was a good woman. I asked God to make him love and respect me in the ways that I truly loved and respected him. I tried to give the “situation” some time, hoping that things would change. I sought out advice from close friends and talked to God about it often, because I really believed in us and I thought he did too.

 I often blamed myself and continued to sacrifice and compromise during this time, even though the other individual refused to do the same for me. After a while, I started to believe that God was punishing me and that this was my fate. I couldn’t stop loving someone who couldn’t care less about me and it was pure torture. As the years went on, I continued accepting the hurt, pain and sorrow.  One day, when I was finally made aware of his infidelities, I was ready to end my life. I did not want to suffer anymore. I began feeling like I wasn’t good enough and that I didn’t deserve to live. I truly wanted to die because I felt as though death would free me and that I wouldn’t have to hurt anymore. I also began to feel as though everyone else around me thought of me in the same ways in which he did. I distrusted everyone, believing that they would hurt me just like he did. Finally, I had an emotional breakdown. I did, spoke, felt and thought in ways that I should not have. I was a shell of the woman that I used to be. I didn’t even know who I was anymore, but maybe that was a good thing...

God has a way of allowing certain situations to occur in our lives to bring us closer to Him (this is called the Permissible Will of God). Before this whole ordeal, I had a love for God but I did not have a relationship with Him. I believed that He existed, but my faith wavered.  I said I was a Christian, but did many things that were hypocritical to that notion. It took this “situation” and almost losing my life to make me realize that God is real. He wants the best for me, but He is not going to force me to follow Him. Until I allowed Him to take complete control of my life, I was Satan’s puppet.

He is also a wise God. He never gave me what I prayed for: to be in a relationship with that guy. Why? Because, God doesn’t make mistakes and He knew that this guy was no good for me and would never really love me. Why would God intentionally give me something that would cause me so much harm? I’m glad that He didn’t answer my prayers. I’m glad that those days are over. I may not be perfect now, but I have definitely come a long way from those dark, lonely and depressing nights.            

I now have a new vision on life. I am focused on strengthening my relationship with God and serving him wholeheartedly in any way that He wants me to.  The bible says that you cannot serve two masters (Matt 6:24 and Luke 16:13) and from experience, I have learned that I cannot and will not serve man and God, so I made up my mind to serve God only. I am thankful to God for deliverance and I am also thankful that He has forgiven me. I was so caught up in one thing that I neglected God and it took for me to hit rock bottom to realize that I needed to change my life and give it all to God.                             

                  

“Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old.  Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”  Isaiah 43:18 and 19.

Leave the past in the past. Don’t focus on where you came from; Concentrate on where you’re going. God will provide if you trust Him.                                                                                                      SC
         

Finding My Way

I want to first start by saying I grew up in the church. My life took an awful turn when my grandmother (the one who introduced me to God) passed. I didn't understand why God had taken her from me knowing the extent of my love for her. I suffered many years cursing God for everything that had taken place after that. At the age of 17 I met my first "real" boyfriend and felt God had blessed me despite my blasphemous attitude. Needless to say, I was in an abusive relationship, on the verge of death 3 times. I suffered deep depression at the hands of my family and boyfriend. All the while, I felt a pulling on my spirit a yearning for a familiar sense of peace. God had never left my side. He was the one carrying me all along. I am crying as I write this because His mercy is just so incomprehensible. I didn't understand why he continued to love me despite my unloving character. I wound up having a baby with that boyfriend which caused a drastic change in my attitude and life. I was so appreciative for the tribulations because God was molding me for my now husband. He is a God fearing man and a wonderful father. I can't explain the joy that I have now. I have a wonderful family who loves to serve God and prays together. I know there will be trials to come but God has grounded me in such a way that I know we will be able to endure the storms. That is why every chance that I get I lift God's name and proclaim his glory because it is He and He alone that is worthy to be praised. He knows all and sees all and He pruned me into a wonderful person to carry out His will and I trust Him wholeheartedly.
ERB

I Surrender All

My testimony is about how I decided to give my all to Christ.  

      A few years ago, I decided to live on my own because I thought I had all the answers to life's questions. I turned my back on my God and followed my own desires. For four years, I indulged in every earthly pleasure imaginable. While doing this, God kept begging me to turn my life around and come back to Him. He tried to show me that even though Satan was making things look like fun, I was really just hurting myself. I closed my ears to everything  God was trying to reveal to me and decided to continue with following the path that Satan had made so attractive to me. After a while, things didn't seem so great anymore and I started moving on a downward spiral. The things that Satan makes so attractive to you are really things that he has set to be your down fall.  And boy did I fall!!! You may not know this but sometimes, God lets us experience the pain that comes with falling flat on our face because after all His attempts to talk to us with our refusal to listen, pain is the only way that we will learn.  He does not want us to go through this and it hurts Him to see us in pain more than it hurts us, however, it is the only way that we will turn around and call on His name and started to depend on and serve HIM. 

    When I fell, and lost everything that I had (My girlfriend, car, apartment, job, bank account, etc), I thought that it would be better for me to die than to continue living. I felt that without those material things, my life had no purpose. I asked myself, "why am I on this earth?" I even thought of suicide, but thankfully, before I came to that conclusion, I decided to seek God first.  I prayed to God and said "If you give purpose to my life, I will do whatever it is that you want me to do and go wherever it is that you send me." Literally the next day, God gave me to tools to begin building the ministry that I now have (which gives great purpose to my life) and it is solely dedicated  to serving him. Now, here I am, two years later, still  honoring my commitment by going all over the country and talking to all who want to hear about whatever message it is that God has given to me.  I thank God for being faithful and merciful to me.

A.R

What If?

Whether it is the popular televangelist or the average church experience, God is commonly presented as the "Cosmic Santa Claus" Apparently if I need a bigger house, more money, even more money, or better health, God can solve it. While this is very true and there are those who have experienced this, there are also those that do not gain any of these things. 

Because these things are promoted so much, the danger is that one can become so discouraged and even lose faith in God's existence because their 'needs' are apparently not being met.

Does God want to give me good things? I believe that answer is yes. But there is something that He wants us to have far more than the other things. That thing is his own presence living in us.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. -John15:4-5

When we accept the merits of Christ, believing that his work of dying for our wrongs has granted us access to eternal life with God, He personally lives within us and guides us just as He did with his disciples on earth(John14:16-19) 

Yes God desires our good health and as a loving creator, it's logical that he wants us to be satisfied financially...

but what if these things do not happen?

What if your health does not get better though you pray constantly?

What if you seem to be persecuted more and more each day?

What if you never get the new house on the hill?

What if the dream husband/wife does not come?

Though God CAN do all these things and he does take care of the needs.(not always the wants) the question is "Will I forget God if these things are not met in my life"

Here is an example from one of my favorite Christian theologians, Paul.

 ...in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine owncountrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not? If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities. - 2Corinthians11:23-30

Why did Paul glory in his weaknesses? The answer can be found in the next chapter.

And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2Corinthians12:7-9

He realized that though God can give him things, he would rather have his abiding presence and live in the "power of Christ"
On your journey in life, seek out who God is first rather than material things which you cannot even take with you out of this life. For Heaven is not just things, Heaven is the experience with a person.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." - Matthew6:25,33
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. - John14:1-3

Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. - Psalm73:25-26


M.O

Right On Time

God seems to answer your prayers just as you feel like you're down to your last piece of deciding a move to make. I left a job of 3 years to seek other means of employment elsewhere where I could feel as if I belonged or there was opportunity for advancement. The following job I took only lasted me a month before I decided to move on to continue searching elsewhere. In the middle of searching I also considered moving back to NJ in my dads home to sorta start over fresh and work on starting over, and the job I wanted and applied for contacted me to provide me with an orientation but it ended up being phone tag which became discouraging.I decided to pray to God to assist me with deciding on whether to move to NJ or have one of the jobs I applied for contact me or even have my PT job contact me with available hours. Sure enough the job I wanted and currently holding contacted me the next day AND my PT job at the time contacted me to request I help out with hours. Soooo, in a nutshell, God may not always do the things that you may want of Him, but He surely is an on time God because He was just on time for me!

C.P

So When they Had Dined...

“So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, [son] of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.” John 21:15

When I read this verse, I feel as if Jesus is speaking directly to me. I can hear His voice in my heart, “Monique, do you love me more than these?” As Jesus was speaking with Peter, “these” referred to the surrounding disciples. But for me, it means a multitude of things. The most important- my plans. My life was laid out perfectly….or so I thought. Words of wisdom: “Perfect” plans are imperfect if not planned by the perfect God. Everything I desired so dearly began to dim as I drew closer to God. Plans like vacationing every six months, having my junk food night every Friday, getting a better car, “just because” shopping sprees and the ultimate- “living up” the single life until God sent me my husband (who was sure to be here by age 25). All these things began to disappear as God began to reveal things to me about my character and showed me that I wasn’t as ready for heaven as I claimed to be. Just like Peter, I had been denying Christ. No, it was not verbal like Peter, but it was even more dangerous-it was by the choices that I made. I almost wish that it was verbal. You see, when you deny Christ verbally, at least you can hear yourself and you might just realize your sin. Look at Peter, “And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to mind the word that Jesus said unto him, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he wept.” Mark 14:72. But when making lifestyle choices, the days go by, the weeks go by, the months go by and if those decisions are not chastened, they quickly become habits and it seems “right.” But there is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death (Proverbs 14:12).

And so just like Peter, Christ reinstated me as one of His disciples, and He commissions me “Feed my lambs.” My life is no longer my own. It is in the hands of Christ and where He bids me I will follow. One way to test the sincerity of your relationship with Christ is identifying yourself with His plans. Christ’s purpose in coming to earth was to seek and save the lost. Are you united with Christ on this plan? Life is much more than yourself. If you truly have the love of Christ in your hearts, it will be a priority to seek and save the lost. This is my purpose now. To go out and seek the ones who have not experienced Christ or to bring back those who have fallen away. What good is my life if I have not led even one person to Christ? And on the other end, what good is it in leading “x” amount of people to Christ knowing that I could have led more? At times it gets weary, at times I feel like giving up, but it is in those times that Christ gives me His strength and encourages me to go on-for the race is not given to the swift, but to those who endure until the end. So, if I am asked to speak, if someone needs a prayer, if someone needs a sounding board, if someone needs s pounding board, if someone needs anything that will in turn lead them to the love of Christ, and I am able to give it….I give it.

So my commission to readers. If you have fallen away or never experienced Jesus, hearken to the voice of Christ that beckons you, “Lovest thou me more than these?” And if you are sure in your salvation, congratulations! I look forward to seeing you in heaven. But more importantly, I look forward to seeing who you brought with you…..hearken to the voice of Christ that bids, “Feed my lambs.”

M.S

Test Drive

I would like to start by thanking God for his many blessings and unconditional love. Almost two months ago, I was involved in a bad car accident in which my car was totaled, and although I walked away with injuries, I thank God that I walked away with my life. 
Since then, God has blessed me with a new car and I was still able to receive financial support from my place of work! All in all, it was a clear reminder that nothing should be taken for granted and everything can change in an instant!

E.S

Blessed and Highly Favored

“AAAH CHOO! God Bless You” is the typical response that one will get when they sneeze right? Well people tell me all the time “you are so blessed” (even when I didn’t sneeze). I believe that everyone is blessed – If you are alive to complain or praise then you are blessed! Am I just so happened to me MORE blessed than most? So it got me thinking from the outside looking in, what makes me so blessed?

A little over ten years ago I thought my life was over! I kept thinking how could this happen to me? Im a good person! I was 16 and pregnant - a junior in high school, part time cashier at McDonalds and most importantly the daughter that could do no wrong. But at least I was in love. I chose to use my heart instead of my head and made a decision that would change my life forever. I was a mom at 17, senior in high school, crew trainer and daughter that better-not-disappoint-anymore. It was definitely no walk in the park either. I was still in love but unfortunately the love was not in return. I was constantly proving myself to everyone – my parents, teachers and friends. My parents expected me to graduate high school on time, so I did with honors. My teachers expected me not to slack in my schoolwork, so I stayed afterschool, took two college courses and joined the yearbook committee. My friends expected me to continue to be the same fun-going and cheerful peer that they grew to love so I continued to do so with a more mature attitude and with the most beautiful baby on my hip to motivate my through this very altering point in my life.

Five years after high school I graduated from college with my undergraduate degree in biology. (Yes I said 5, NOT 4 – Hey, Pre-Med is a difficult major and I took my time to get decent grades!) Contrary to popular belief it was hard to find a job WITH my college degree. I went back to school to get my Masters and began teaching. My beautiful baby evolved to a precocious kid and I was seeing who at the time I thought was Mr. Right. Unfortunately he turned out to be Mr. oh so wrong. I loved Love but Love did not love me back. Just when I was ready to send Love a Dear John letter, Love walked into my life and has not left since. My Love is genuine, open-minded, spiritual, loyal, honest and has an awesome heart. My Love and I are getting married later this year. Ok… Ok so I guess you can say that I’m pretty blessed. Love found me and decided to stick around long after death does us part. So whom might you ask is responsible for my blessing -God? Me? Well God is inside of me so…

Sincerely,

Ms. B

In the beginning...

Life is filled with ups and downs. Sometimes things may be going so well for us and then we hit rock bottom. There are other times though when we may already feel as if we are at rock bottom and then all of a sudden, things get better. That's what this blog is about. It is dedicated to your experiences and how God has seen you through them. You have experiences to share--experiences of hope, love, faith, and dedication. We all may come from different walks of life however we share one main commonality: we all have something wonderful to share. So please, don't be shy or afraid. You never know, you may just inspire someone...
Embark on this journey with me. It may be a bit bumpy but I guarantee that you'll enjoy the ride.
If you're interested in contributing or have any questions, comments or concerns, please send them to tstaylor101@aol.com

God Bless,
Queena