It is wonderful how God puts His people in our path to lead and guide us to Him. My grandmother was God’s gift to me as a little girl living through my parent’s divorce and being raised by an aunt. My grandmother made sure I got to Sunday School and Church and prayed for me and talked to me about Jesus.
A missionary family moved in next door to us and invited me to attend the Billy Graham Crusade in Los Angeles in September 1962, my senior year of High School. It was there that I gave my heart to Jesus and received him as my Lord and Savior.
After I received the Lord—He immediately birthed compassion in my heart for people and I followed that leading and started studying to become a Registered Nurse. For a time I thought I would become a medical missionary. But God had other plans. I completed my nurses training and became an RN and also a Youth Pastors wife when my husband became the Youth Pastor of Los Altos Brethren Church.
I continued to work as an RN nd help my husband in ministry and through his last two years of college and then seminary. During these years God used me as an “encourager,” both as an RN and in ministry. And it is encouragement—the gift of “exhortation” (Rom. 12:8) that God continues to use in me to minister to the Body of Christ.
While my husband was serving as the Pastor of Lakewood Grace Brethren Church (CA), I attended a retreat at Arrowhead Springs. It turned out to be a Spirit filled retreat, and a Spirit filled weekend for me. My heart was longing for more of Jesus and when an invitation to come forward for prayer was given—I went and received the Baptism of the Spirit.
That same night a prophecy was spoken over me and I was given Matthew 15:30-31, “…and they laid them down at Jesus’ feet and He healed them.” God showed me that this passage was for both my husband and me in ministry—we were to bring people to Jesus and He would heal them.
Together with my husband we have planted churches, birthed ministries, taught the Word, encouraged others and brought people to Jesus.