I (Terri Baker) was saved when I was 19 years old and baptized shortly after. I was never prepared or warned about the trials and tribulation that would follow and I began to blame God for the troubles in my life, soon I quit going to church and turned away from God. As I went through live I felt empty and alone, like something was missing, this feeling was always there even when I was surrounded by family and friends.
In May of 2009 I had a strong desire to find my way home to God. I fell on my knees asking for his forgiveness and strength to find a good home to receive Christian fellowship and seek his truth. He led me to East Valley Church, and when I walked through the front doors I was greeted by a wonderful woman named Della. She made me feel so loved and truly accepted for who I was; I knew this was where God wanted me.
Dave's sermon that morning was on the subject of how difficult a Christian's walk is and that when you truly accept Jesus into your heart that your life will never be the same because He will be there always to help you though your trials with comfort and love, all you have to do is ask, seek, trust and obey.
My life is still full of struggles and trials but with God's love, Jesus' comfort and the Holy Spirit to guide me I am at peace and I truly know I am in good hands. God has everything under control, and with Him all things are possible.
"My name is Allen McNichols,
I have been to quite a few churches in my life starting at age 8. I've been to just about every kind of church out there. At the age of 14 I baptized while I attended the Mormon church in Carlin, NV. I became a deacon at the age of 15 and began to pass out the sacrament and take offerings. After I began working in the library I made my own discoveries and found that this was not the church for me. I would then spend the next 6 years away from church, away from God, and my life slipped away into darkness. Up to this point I had denied my savior and God twice out of anger at the situation I was in and here in a moment I would deny him once more. I was arrested and facing serious charges, up till this point in my life I had never been in trouble with the law, I began to read the bible. It is surprising how we only choose to fall into God when it is convenient. In the next 38 days, if I wasn't sleeping or eating a meal I was reading that bible, I was praying and asking God to deliver me from the trouble I had gotten myself into. At day 40 I received a sentence of 3 years, credit for time served, and I was escorted back to my cell. I had no control over my emotions and was completely devastated. I turned my anger towards God once again, and challenged him to show himself, prove himself to me, and since I didn't recognize it at the time my anger burned brighter than my faith. I had denied him once more.
I was then transported to prison and began to once again search for religion as my own family couldn't come and visit me as far away as I was. I researched and studied many religions, Muslim, Christian, Catholic, and the histories they each had. Among many others I began to see a pattern, they each shared a similarity to the golden rules that Christ left for us in the New Testament. I slowly began to turn back to God when the time had passed so quickly before I even knew it I was being released in just a few short months.
Upon my release life wasn't easy but I still did not seek out a church or seek God in my day to day life and so my struggles remained. I caught a break and a friend of my mom's offered me a job at Albertsons. This is where I met Becky, who would later be my wife, and began to open up to the world that had locked me away for nearly 3 years. My skin was thick, my temper was short, and my pride over-rode my ability to think accurately. Soon after acquiring my job I was ordered by my parole officer to complete intensive psychological therapy. I began the therapy without hesitation and slowly worked my way up the ranks at Albertsons and once I had switched to a new store I began to date Becky. Shortly, after we began dating her family invited me to church at East Valley. I'm sure that people didn't much care for the way I dressed when I first arrived but in all honesty, I only came to be with Becky, I wasn't there to seek God. But the more and more I attended I began to feel that pulling sensation again, I started singing in worship, I started listening to the messages that Pastor Dave shared with us. Becky and I were married at East Valley on December 5th, 2009 and we haven't looked back since. When we found out that we were going to have a child I panicked and didn't handle my responsibilities correctly and found myself being separated from my wife and new born child.
That lit a fire in my life and I began to realized that every stumbling point in my life I put in front of myself. It was at this point that I was invited to go with the men from church on a retreat to Washington Family Ranch. I felt God enter my life and with new eyes I saw just how He had moved my life and spared me from disaster time and time again. Everybody who went took a hike up a hill and left a piece of paper containing something in our lives that we needed help with. We made a commitment to come back next year and see how well we did. We have done that many times since and let me just say, everything I left there God helped me to complete it.
This last year the points that were brought up with our guest speaker sparked something else in me, the very fact that I had denied my God and savior 3 times and yet he still moved my life, he never gave up on me, and when I thought he had forsaken me he was there for me that much more. I felt like I had been a selfish child and so instead of asking for his help again this year I instead asked what I could do for Him after all he has done for me. I began to submit and God moved my life more and more, after about 8 months I was allowed to be reunited with my wife and child, and since then we have been blessed with a son.
So, before we go back up that hill again next year I plan to obey and submit to what God has asked me to do. First, find my strength and my ground in Christ. Align my spirit with Christ. Second, recommit myself publicly with humility. Lastly, be baptized and start being the child, student, leader, that I am called to be. As of the writing of this, 2 down and 1 to go.
All praise be to God! "
Submitted November/9/2012 @ 10:29:03 pm by Allen McNichols
"My name is Della McNichols,
From pre-school age I remember praying with my Sunday school teacher for Jesus to be in my life I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God started with me at that time. Since then a whole lot of the issues of life got in the way. I will not go into detail on the topic of what happened because it may someday be a book at least there is enough to be. The abuses that people go through, some from other people and some from themselves have happened to me. But God had a plan, and a hope for me to learn from the things I have experienced in my life. Jesus is faithful I would say my mentor my Lord, while I was growing up every time things would get ugly at home, a friend from school would invite me to go to church with them and I felt God in my life. Our family moved every school year at least one time. This made it amazing to me that when things got bad God was there for me. As a young adult I was to the point that trouble and self-abuse were close companions and I thought that I was not anyone God would want. But God had a plan and sent my faithful husband Barry. After a few years we were married and have been for 35 years now. Things from childhood played a cruel trick on me and the councilor that I needed to go to diagnosed me with post-traumatic stress disorder and be suffering from clinical depression. God showed up again and we moved to Lowell in 1991 I met and fell in love with the people at East Valley Church (it was then Lowell Christian Center). I re-committed my life to Christ and was baptized. The pastor and wife at that time, Neil and Gail Harris counseled and prayed with me and the Holy Spirit gave me forgiveness! Jesus said what He sets free is free indeed and it is very true. I was given freedom from my past hurts through repentance for the things that I had done, and forgiveness was poured out in me for the things that people had done to me. I was able to pray with one that had abused me in childhood for his salvation 14 hours before he died. God is Amazing! I have never had to have medication for depression or post-traumatic stress it is my opinion that God healed me. Life still continues to throw storms into my way but I am able to cling to Jesus and HE has covered me through various trials and always will.
I can truly say I am free! Thank you Jesus! Pastor Dave and Joey are a blessing to me and my family.
Barry and I have two adult daughters a son-in-law and two grandchildren an awesome God is still developing plans for us. I am absolutely convinced God is for us and no one can stand up against us without God's constant protection. Even when things don't look like what we think they should God has his plan and it's by far better for us than we can even imagine. "
Submitted December/1/2012 @ 07:18:20 pm by Della McNichols
