As a child I loved Sunday School and going to church but not necessarily for the right reasons. I was raised in a dysfunctional family with an abusive mother; the adults at Sunday School however affirmed me, I was loved unconditionally and the Anglican liturgy provided a comforting structure in an otherwise chaotic existence.
My teenage years were colourful and I was married, became a mum and was divorced by the age of 26. I was utterly lost until in 1979 I moved to Barton in Fabis with my daughter Wendy. Dusting the furniture one day I was listening to an unsolicited music tape sent by Readers Digest: the Starland Vocal Band singing about someone who loved someone else sufficiently to walk all the way from Boulder to Birmingham (to be found on opposite coasts of America) just to see their face. I remember wistfully wishing someone would love me that way when I was filled with an exciting and profound conviction that there WAS. Curious and with great anticipation I began to read and to seek, ultimately engaging in a series of formal and informal discussions with the vicar.
Throughout 1981/82 an amazing sequence of events led me to become very aware that there was indeed a living God and that I was being called by name to play a part in the unfolding of His plans; that through Jesus He was the one who loved me, and had done so much more than walk from Boulder to Birmingham. He had given His life for me that I may have eternal life. I made my commitment in May 1983 and was confirmed the following year. I gave up my career in biological research to respond to whatever direction God had planned for me and found my path in community development work. Despite obstacles, God’s gift of faith and His clear direction has enabled me to stay on track and to achieve far more than I would have ever dreamed I was capable of. My ministry became my career; my work is my ministry in action.
In 1995 I contracted a potentially fatal bacterial infection and was six months in hospital but along the way, met so many people I needed to meet and who needed to meet me I had no doubt God’s hand was still on the tiller and that even flat on my back I still had a role to play in His plan. In 2012 I prayerfully sensed I was about to start a new chapter in my life whereby God’s influence on me was to be more outwardly visible than it had in the past. I didn’t know what direction this would take but I knew I had to know the Bible better, so began a Journey in Faith. In 2013 I resigned from full time employment after my 60th birthday and set up my own business to give me more flexibility to respond to God’s leading.
Through a local CAMEO group and other courses available locally, I have come to understand God’s plan for the world and the role and responsibilities I have within it. I still can’t quote chapter and verse but have developed a deep love for God’s Word. Not an easy journey but one filled with purpose and love, and one I wouldn’t swap for anything.