The Transformation Station
Romans 12:2 And do not allow yourself to be molded by the world system: but be in a process of being transformed [metamorphoo], by a total renovation of your mind [nous], so that you may confirm through testing [dokimazo] what the good, pleasant and complete will of God is. [GBMV]
My Natural Life
If I were to tell you a story about a troubled teen who often ran away from home, got kicked out of schools, and had a juvenile criminal record, and who became a troubled woman involved in the wrong relationships, abused drugs and alcohol, and battled depression, you might think to yourself, “I know how this story ends.”
What if I told you this woman is now a successful businesswoman, a leader in the community, and a history-making leader at her job? Would you believe me? Well, if you know about the life-transforming power of God, you would! What if I told you that troubled teen and broken woman was me?
Views of God and Church
When I look back over my life, I realize that, like many people who do not have a relationship with the Lord, I was LOST! And because I was lost, I was often trying to find myself in relationships, substances, just about anything and everything except the Lord.
Whenever I would think about God, I would think about church and how much I really did not like going to church. My early memories of church were of long, boring services that I did not understand. I knew nothing about what having a personal relationship with God meant. I just thought God meant church and church meant boring.
The ironic part is, even though I did not understand anything about having a relationship with God or how He can change your life, I would often pray prayers like, “Lord, there has to be more to life than this!”
I felt like I lived under a dark, depressing cloud that I could not escape from. In my heart, I kept feeling like life has to have more, but my mind could not comprehend what “more” was, what it looked like, or how I could actually get it.
The Lord Reveals Himself
Then, one day on April 7, 2003, I had a road-to-Damascus experience where the Lord revealed Himself in a powerful way. The dark, depressing cloud was replaced by brightness; depression was replaced by an overwhelming feeling of LOVE. I felt the love of God.
The negative thoughts that bombarded my mind were replaced by hearing the Lord speaking words of purpose. No longer did I question why I was alive; instead, I was grateful to be alive, and I KNEW God had a purpose and plan for my life, even though I did not know what it actually was. Just knowing I was created for a purpose was enough to make me feel special and loved.
Desire To Minister
As the Lord through His word began to transform my life, I began to feel the desire to minister to those who were where I was. The hurt, the broken, the ones with a purpose but who did not realize it, the ones who engaged in reckless behaviors simply because they didn’t understand how valuable they are.
I did not want to just tell my story; I wanted to use the word of God and speak words of deliverance to them. I wanted to war for their souls and command the devil to lose them. I wanted to mentor and help those who were struggling in their walk with God.
The Lord has answered so many prayers and has allowed me to mentor and be a spiritual midwife to those who were like me.