How Everyday People Live Out Their Christian Faith

Illustrating how men and women display their love for Jesus in their day-to-day lives.
Little things that may have an eternal impact. Might these stories motivate you to use your talents?
  • Hospital Overcoming Obstacles Prayer

    WITH GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE

    I was at the store when I got an urgent phone call from my wife, Blessie. It was July 12, 2024, and she was seven months pregnant, but there was a problem. She was bleeding. I rushed home and took her straight to the hospital. They took her right to labor and delivery. The doctors and nurses took over six hours checking her and trying to decide if they should do a C-section. When my daughter was born, she was incredibly pale and had no heartbeat. “We’re sorry for your loss,” they told us. My wife responded, “Keep trying.” With every failed chest compression, my mind kept going to Mark 5:39, where Jesus says, “Why all this commotion and wailing? This child is not dead, but asleep.” They worked for 28 minutes trying to revive her. At that moment, they gave her a small syringe of blood, and suddenly, there was a heartbeat. Her lungs filled with air, and her skin flushed with color. They wheeled her into the NICU, where she would spend the next 90 days. The doctor told us he was worried because 28 minutes is far too long to go without oxygen to her brain. The next day, the doctors came to our room and went over the severity of the situation, trying to convince us to unplug her. They only gave her a slight chance of survival, and predicted she would need a feeding tube, would not be able to breathe without a ventilator, and would be a vegetable. We prayed for three days to consider what we should… Read More

  • Children Food Unique Ministries

    SUE’S KIDS

    For 25 years, my mom was a school cook in an elementary school, where all the children called her by her first name, “Sue.” She loved them, and they loved her in return for her hugs, friendly teasing and good food. Her school kitchen was known for the special treats she whipped up, especially her famous homemade peanut butter bars that are still talked about today. She would see to it that all the students received plenty of food on their plates, with extras and seconds given to the ones who looked hungrier. Years later, when she was drawing close to death in a hospice facility, I wanted to find some way to honor her giving, loving legacy. She had often expressed heartache and worry for the children who would go hungry when they weren’t at school to get extra helpings, so it seemed fitting to take care of them in her absence. As a result, I created “Sue’s Kids,” a charity in her memory that sends bagged food home with needy children. The teachers of the younger students privately share their names with me, and since I’m a teacher of the older students, my colleagues and I come up with our own list. Donors fund the food purchases, and in my classroom each week during nonacademic time, some of my students bag dozens of microwaveable meals, packaged fruit, breakfast bars, pudding and other snacks. The teachers of the younger students put their food bags in their backpacks before they leave for the weekend. I place the bags of food for older students in their… Read More

  • Children Homeless Labor Unique Ministries

    KETURAH’S HAVEN

    My story started in Jamaica when I was 17. I left home because I disliked my parents’ strict rules. When I left to live with my brother, I found myself in a situation that was not conducive to a young girl. After four weeks, he tried to return me to my parents. Halfway there, I decided I was old enough and responsible enough to find a job without having a place to live. A man near my father’s age offered me a big job. I thought he would protect me, but he took me into his home, and I lost my innocence. He turned me out after four weeks. At that time, I was homeless. Thankfully, a kind lady took me in for several months. I was able to find employment and go to school for my career. Later, I married and had three children, but I left my husband and came to America with them. In 2002, I began volunteering at a pregnancy center in Daytona, Florida, where I worked with pregnant and abused women who shared similar experiences to mine. I loved working with them. In 2008, I moved to Texas with my second husband, and in 2009, I volunteered with a pregnancy center in Katy. While mentoring a young woman, she mentioned how, at 17, she was kicked out of her home and trafficked. This triggered a memory for me, and I wept, realizing I could have been just like her if God had not protected me. Ever since I accepted Jesus when I was 13, I have always believed He was protecting… Read More

  • Loss Of Loved One Overcoming Obstacles

    A WOMAN OF PROFOUND STRENGTH

    Not long ago, I had the family I longed for when I married my husband. When I found out I was not able to have children, I felt my world was shattered. I was wrong. I adopted a child who was five months old, and then another at three years old. I had my family and did everything families would do. Then, the unexpected happened and my world started to shatter. My husband got sick. With two children eight and under, I had to pull it together and find strength. I told my girls, “Daddy is sick and needs to have a kidney transplant. That is when they take an organ from one person and give it to Daddy. His are not working.” He survived the operation. That was the very first time I looked toward Jesus. About 20 years later, the unimaginable happened, something I would never wish upon anyone. My husband, after bouts of hospital stays, was told he had stage four pancreatic cancer, and had three months to live. Once he told his parents, his father went to bed, and passed away a week later. My husband made it through his celebration of life, but ended up in the hospital the next day. He went in thinking he would come home; we all did. But things changed. I had to call in our entire family and tell them it was time to say goodbye. He passed away eight days later. I lost it, I didn’t know how to go on. I knew I had my girls, but I was lost. I didn’t know how to navigate… Read More

  • Labor Loss Of Loved One Other Unique Ministries

    WHAT ABOUT US

    On February 25, 2021, my life changed forever. My oldest son was gunned down and killed. I remember going to the scene and seeing my son with his head lying back in the car. The first thing that came to my mind was, please let him be okay, but he wasn’t. He died at approximately 5:17 pm. I asked, “Where is my grandson?” At the time, he was only two years old and had been in the car with my son. The officer said, "He’s okay, but we don’t want him to see you like this.” Those images are still in my head to this day. For a while, I gave up on God. I didn’t know what He had in store for me. For months, I cried, asking why. I remember my grandmother used to say, “Don’t ask God why or question why,” but at that moment, I needed to question it. Three months after my son’s death, I heard his voice saying, “Momma, I am sorry.” During that whole year, my life was up and down. The day I found out about my son, I had fallen and fractured my hip. I was in so much grief that I went six months without realizing it. The pain in my body did not overwhelm the pain in my heart. On Mother’s Day 2021, I tried to take my life. I took a bunch of pills, and I went to sleep. During that time, I had a vision. My son came to me and said, “Mom, you've got to help the ones like you.” Instantly, I awoke from my sleep. I began throwing up and… Read More

  • Labor Unique Ministries Verbalizing the Gospel

    THE REFUGE COFFEE HOUSE

    In the most unlikely time, 2020 during a global pandemic, God called us to open a coffee shop in Quincy, Michigan. Such irony for two faithful Maxwell-House-only coffee drinkers whose BFF is Betty Crocker. God showed us it would not just be a coffee shop, but a ministry He was calling us to pioneer. Our quaint town is a very rural community—not the most likely place for a business to flourish—but God! We believe obedience brings blessings, and have seen that truth repeated throughout our coffee journey. We purchased our building in August of 2020 and opened the next spring. We could spend hours sharing all the testimonies we have and the ways God met every need and calmed every anxiety with His peace in bringing Refuge Coffee House from heart to reality. He was in every detail, and brought the right people and resources to us at the exact moments we needed them. God’s timing is impeccable, and He really does supply all our needs according to His riches in glory! The term "Refuge" is found multiple times in Scripture. Our coffee shop is specifically named after Psalm 46:1, which says, "God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble." We offer a true place of "refuge" to all who come through our doors. Our heart is to be a safe place for people to experience the love and truth of Jesus. For some, that happens for the first time at Refuge. We pray with customers, share the Gospel, and give away Bibles. We host monthly worship and… Read More

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