My Personal Testimony

            My life seemed normal until a week prior to October 20, 2008.  For a about a week, I had been praying for God to use my life to bring others to Him. My husband of five years and I had grown apart. Many years of his unbelief, as well as, an addiction to prescription medication had severed my desire to bring him to Christ any longer.

            I honestly thought that God would answer my prayer by sending me on another mission trip. The last trip I had taken was to New York in 2003. I missed being a servant to Him. But instead, on this date, my husband overdosed on prescription medication and physically hurt me. Prior to this night, my husband had never raised a hand to me. When I called the Sheriff’s department to report the incident, my husband put on his Navy uniform, greeted the deputies and lied about what happened. Consequently, I was charged with a felony and restrained from my home, belongings and more importantly, my children. My life was changed from that moment on. I finally acknowledged that Jesus is with me through my trials and that I can trust Him.

            While hunched over in jail holding cell, Jesus spoke to me through another inmate. When she came in, she looked right at me and said in a slang drawl, “Girl, why you cryin,’ God’s with you,” and then started to sing old church hymns. I stopped crying and asked her for her name. She simply replied, “Its t.”

            God was also in the Jail Supervisor, who put her hand on my shoulder and very softly said, “You are going to get through this.”  Further, I was offered blankets and told to call my mother by the tower watchman, as though I was a guest. I was released from jail only after a few hours. The Jail Supervisor and I noticed during my release, that she had neglected to take my cross necklace from me.

            The compassion of strangers that I received while at my mother’s house for the duration of my restraining order, continued to remind me that I was not alone. The criminal attorney that I hired was well known by the judge and prosecuting attorney. He cut me a large break in his normal fees and got the charges dropped as quickly as possible. The doctor who examined my injuries treated me with compassion. Childhood friends from my home town went out of their way to show God’s mercy and even the grocery store clerk said something personal and encouraging that only God would have known to say.

            I discovered hope and help in Jesus during this incident. I also notice huge changes in me. I could no longer boast about how I didn’t even have parking tickets on record. Many years of arrogance and self-righteousness erased quickly. I no longer had to be the center of attention. I learned to surrender to God’s will and I became humble.

            Because of the violence, I did move out of our home to provide protection to my youngest child, but when I met with a divorce attorney, I had the overwhelming sense to not proceed. Consequently, I did not divorce my husband. Instead, I enrolled in school. As the Lord would have it, the program I entered was Seminary and the degree was a Masters Degree in Him.

            I started to pray for my husband again. Amazingly, my husband sought the help of a counselor and after six years of never wanting anything to do with God; he began to go to church.

            My husband has since, accepted Jesus into his life and has encouraged my recent baptism and graduation from seminary. He professes his faith daily to others and I have learned what it means to trust in God and to truly surrender. I also know that when we offer to bring others to Christ, God may answer in a way we never expected.

             I have walked hand in hand with Jesus for over 3 years now. And, because I have found such hope and peace,  I continually share my story with everyone I meet. I watch in amazement each time a neighbor, friend and family member accepts Jesus into their heart.
             I know that God can work miracles, through us, if we let Him!!!  Today, I thank God for that trial. He changed my heart, my marriage and my life!

To read the complete Story, please go to:

http://www.xulonpress.com/bookstore/bookdetail.php?PB_ISBN=9781613791936

Please share your thoughts in the comments section below! To read this author's personal testimony please go to: http://dlouyoung.blogspot.com/p/store.html

Where will God be this Christmas?

Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the
believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
   1 Timothy 4:12

It was a new book with crisp pages and a red hard paper binding. I was around age ten when I first stumbled upon it. Back then, I picked the book up often.

Unlike many of the older books in our home, none of the pages of this book were dog-eared. Nor was there writing along the side columns. So, I was certain that I was the first to read it. Through the years, I often wondered how this little book found its way into our home. Still, what kept me most fascinated was the title of this particular book. It simply read, "HOLY BIBLE."

Even though our family attended church regularly, I had never seen a bible before. Our church didn't require that we bring one and no one I knew ever carried one with them. Nevertheless, one day I decided to first pick the little red cover bible up and try to read it. With all my might, I struggled to understand what I was reading. However, the foreign names of people and far off places along with historical references were simply too difficult for me to comprehend. As a result, I placed the bible back down on the counter as quickly as I had picked it up. I repeated this pattern for years, hoping that one day I would begin to feel close to God.

Unable to connect with God through reading the bible, I decided to search for Him in a church.  I was especially attracted to the church building during Christmastime when it had a warm and welcoming sense about it. Our family attended the last service on Sunday night, when it was already dark outside. Perhaps that is why the glowing lights from the large Christmas tree and flickering advent candles, always seemed to shine a little brighter.

I was a small child whose little frame was easily lost among the countless rows of pews. As a result, I often sat close to the front of the church. In the still of the night, I rested my chin on the back seat of the pew directly in front of me. I often watched the alter boys light the weekly advent candle. I love to gaze at the porcelain Nativity scene that only appeared at that time of year. I can still recall today the fragrance of incense floating among the gentle breeze that wafted through the church on those colder winter nights. Sitting in that peaceful church, listening to the bells that reminded me to throw my cares away, I couldn't help but feel closer to God.

But, somehow through the years, the ability to feel God's presence in that church, dissipated. Perhaps it was because my heart had become hardened from years of pain and faithlessness. For years, I had desperately needed someone of good character, morality and and faith to walk my heart back to the Lord. When that didn't happen, I shut down feelings of love and understanding and filled my hardened heart with judgment and anger. As a consequence,  my heart only allowed me to see the human mistakes of other churchgoers. After awhile, I became disenchanted with my beloved church, even at Christmastime.

Ironically, at first, I tried to win the approval of other Christians by involving myself in church activities. But I soon exhausted others with my arrogance. Next, I tried church hopping. The first few times in a new church, felt warm and welcoming. However, it didn't take long before I again noticed that hypocrisy I had focused all my attention on before. After that, I stopped going to church for awhile. Instead, I tried watching church on the television. But, even in the comfort of my own home I still felt out of place. 

Later, in 2006, our family moved to a new town.  I tried several new churches. Each time I couldn't capture that old feeling of closeness to God. I made the excuse that our entire family needed to fit in and then stopped attending the church. 

Then one day in late October 2008, I prayed for God to send me on a mission trip. Perhaps God was with those missionaries I saw on the television who had devoted their hearts and lives to serving Him. Four days later, I was taken to the most unlikely place, a jail holding cell. http://dlouyoung.blogspot.com/p/my-personal-testimony.html

Confused and desperate, I cried out to the Lord. "Please God, if You really do exist, draw near to me!" God immediately appeared! Amazed, I realized, that all along, God had been patiently waiting right by my side to enter my heart. And finally, I welcomed Him in.

My Childhood bible

I plan to attend church this Christmas. Yet, I won't be going alone. I will be bringing God with me, in my heart and tucked under my arm in the form of a little red bible over 30 years old.  

Please share your thoughts in the comments section below! 
To read the first written and published personal testimony,
please go to: http://dlouyoung.blogspot.com/p/store.html