“And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony. And they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die.” (Revelation 12:11 NLT)
Watching my son playing with his toys, I am reminded that the drug addiction, the ugliness of my past, no longer has a hold on my life. My life is forever changed because of Jesus’ love for me. If you are an addict or know someone trapped in addiction, I pray our story will offer you hope. There is freedom in Jesus Christ.
December 24, 2010 I came into Spokane Dream Center’s Women’s Discipleship program. At the time I was a broken young woman addicted to heroin and meth living in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend. The staff told me about Jesus and how much He loved me. They said I could be set free; there was hope. I desperately wanted to change my life because I was on a path that led to death. I said “yes” to Jesus. That day, I gave my life to the Lord.
Months later God revealed to me that I needed to do something about my relationship with my boyfriend. He was not my Savior. He was not the one that died for me. I called him up and told him that if he didn’t become the man of God that he was destined to be, then we were through. Christ had to be first in our lives.
Some weeks later he was fired from his job and went into the Men’s Discipleship program. We were not allowed to talk to one another for the year we were in the program. Why? Because we needed to be anchored to Jesus Christ, individually, before we could be together.
Months later, his brother who was a heroin addict, came to visit us and saw our changed lives. He wanted to change, too, and a few months later, he entered the Men’s Discipleship program. God was beginning to restore our family.
Upon completing the discipleship program, my boyfriend and I began to court. We were not who we used to be, our lives had been forever changed. We needed to get to know one another.
July 2012, we were married at Spokane Dream Center then God called us to return to the San Juan Islands, our former home, to be light in our community. We were no longer drug addicts; we were new creations in Christ. My husband returned to his old job but now was able to radiate hope because of his changed life. In July 2014, we welcomed our first son, Samuel Asaiah. He is a blessing to us and those around him because of his infectious joyous attitude.
In July 2015, God told us to pack up and come back to Spokane Valley, leaving behind our family and friends and a high paying job. Miraculously God provided everything from the moving team to our new home in Spokane. There have been many lessons learned, especially financially, with a dramatic pay cut. God is the provider of all our needs as we continue to seek Him and put Him first in our lives.
At Spokane Dream Center, we’re in drama preparation season. This is our family’s fifth year to be in the cast. Yes, those broken, wounded people that I spoke of earlier, God transformed our lives. My husband will portray John the disciple, my brother-in-law portrays Jesus, and I will be an angel with my son as a ribbon dancer in heaven’s throne room. Only God can do a miracle of healing, deliverance and restoration like this. Come and join us for this FREE production, Behold Jesus, on Saturday, March 19 at the INB Performing Arts Center in downtown Spokane at 1pm and 6:30pm. It will also be streamed live over the internet at www.spokanedreamcenter.org