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March 19, 2003
3 significant experiences shape Becky's testimony
My name is Becky and I am 40 years old. I grew up blessed with Christian parents who provided a loving home, helping me to know God from my earliest days. My testimony centers around three significant life experiences that have helped me grow in my faith - one experience as a child, and two as an adult.
These three experiences were (1) when I was a child and my parents took care of 35 foster children, (2) as a parent of a child with two brain tumors, (3) when my 44-year old brother died unexpectedly.
During my childhood, my parents raised 35 foster children over a period of 17 years. They took care of children who had been sexually, physically, and emotionally abused and neglected. They also took care of children with handicaps like deafness, mental retardation, and physical disabilities. At the time, I thought taking care of people in need was a common thing to do, and certainly the right thing to do. My parents had four children of their own, along with 2-7 additional foster children. The state had to give my parents a waiver to keep over six children total, because there was such a shortage of foster parents, and they were desperate for homes for children. Our house had double sets of bunk beds in all our bedrooms and our formal living room was even turned into another bedroom, to make room for more children. We lived in a modest brick split level, but God provided the space and resources our family needed to help others.
Watching my parents live out God’s commandment to take care of His children made a significant impression upon me. It showed me that faith is action – doing for others – not just going to church on Sundays. It showed me that faith involves sacrifice of time and love for others. Matthew 25:31-40 is one of my favorite parts of the Bible, because Jesus says that clothing, feeding, visiting, and sheltering members of His family is like doing these things for Him.
The second life experience that has helped me grow in my faith was eight years ago when our son, who was 6-years old at the time, was diagnosed with a brain tumor. We went through an emotional roller coaster, struggling to understand why. Our son was put on prayer lists at churches across the country, in many different denominations – Methodist, Catholic, and Baptist, to name a few. We prayed with the surgeon before our son’s surgery, and waited a grueling six hours before we knew he was OK. Our son healed well, and life returned to “normal” although never as normal as before. 18 months after the surgery, we got bad news again – the tumor had recurred. It was emotionally devastating, because we didn’t know if this cycle would ever end. After another surgery, we tried to get back to normal, although nothing seemed “normal.”
About a year after the second surgery, we were talking with our son, at that time 9-years old, about his experience with having two brain tumors and surgery. He said he thought God gave him the second tumor because God knew he could handle it better than another child, since he had already been through it once! Our son’s insight that God doesn’t give us more than we can handle amazed us. During our son’s health problems, we learned to “Let Go and Let God,” recognizing that trusting Him was the only way we could cope.
The third and most recent life experience that has helped me grow in my faith was when my 44-year old brother died unexpectedly of a heart attack. I remember my mom calling me and saying my brother had died, and I was in a complete state of shock – numb with overwhelming sadness and shock at the news. I had a strong and loving relationship with my brother, and prayed for God to send me a sign that he was in heaven. I knew my brother was strong in his Christian faith, and my faith told me he was in heaven, but I desperately wanted a sign from God. I didn’t just get one sign – I got three signs in a unique way that made me positive God was sending a message to reassure me.
Then, a week later, my 42-year old cousin Debbie, a mother of five who was battling cancer, had a dream/vision about my brother. Debbie had just undergone an experimental stem cell transplant to try and save her life, because nothing else had worked. She had a dream/vision of seeing my brother in heaven, and he was telling her that it was not her time to join him in heaven yet. After months of fighting cancer with none of the treatments working, her blood cells started improving on their own for the first time, and she was recently declared cancer-free!
Losing my brother was the most devastating thing that has ever happened to me, and I don’t think I could have survived without the love of God and my family. I believe God is always there for us, especially in our times of greatest need – if we just call on Him.
May you know the grace and peace of God’s love in your life, and may you share that love with others so they may become followers of Jesus Christ, helping to spread the Good News! Through Him, all things are possible…
[PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION]
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