Stories - Page 24 of 83 - The Christian Heart

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?

Loving Your Neighbor Unique Ministries
TRYING TO ERADICATE POVERTY

I grew up with a single mother and four siblings. Hardship was no stranger. Sometimes, we had no place to call home, and as a kid, I thought my circumstances meant I should dream small. God gracefully proved me wrong. In 2010, He gave me an ambition that destroyed the box I once dreamed in: a dream to eradicate poverty through community outreach and free acts of service. God showed me what once disqualified me in some places now qualifies me in others. He brought me out of poverty so I could tell others, “You can make it.” In 2012, I put my dream on a vision board, then spent the next few years in pastoral roles. By 2019, my desire for outreach was too strong to ignore. I stepped out in faith and started the East Valley Dream Center alongside my brother. We started by handing out sandwiches at parks known for homelessness, but learned that if we truly wanted to help people, we had to build relationships with them. Instead of handing out sandwiches, we started grilling and watching movies in the park, attracting families living the life my brother and I once did. Still, God was calling me deeper. I decided we’d set up near an apartment complex filled with families in need. Soon after, I learned it was project housing; we partnered with the city and began serving all their sites. Unfortunately, the pandemic stopped everything, including our momentum. To show families that we still cared, we would fill a bag with household items from the Dollar Tree and leave it… Read More

July 20, 2022
Children Mentoring Overcoming Obstacles
MENTORING GIRLS IN YOUTH HOMES

Life can be very difficult and challenging for any child that doesn’t have a secure home environment. And I certainly did not. My father wasn’t in my life and my mom was an alcoholic. She went to rehab and thought she was better, but relapsed and was unable to care for me. At age 10, I was taken to Big Oak Ranch, a Christian home for children needing to find a loving, stable environment. Most every child that lives in a home like this is riddled with doubts, no matter how good the children’s home may be. Are we loved? Why are we in this situation? We can’t help but feel alone sometimes and that we are missing out on some things that other kids might be experiencing. When I first entered Big Oak Ranch, I moved in with seven other girls from difficult circumstances but I had incredible Christian house parents that brought me some stability that I needed in my life. They made it seem like one big family. But after 4 ½ years, these house parents decided to pursue other endeavors. It was such a loss, almost like a death in my family. I then lived with a second set of house parents for two years, while I was 15 and 16. During that time, my mom got very sick and deteriorated quickly. She was in the hospital three weeks and then passed away. Even though I hadn’t lived with her in several years, this was still devastating to me. You don’t realize what you have until you don’t have it… Read More

July 13, 2022
Hospital Overcoming Obstacles
MY BLESSED CHARIOT TO HEAVEN

When the neurologist told me with tears in his eyes that I had ALS and there is no known cure, the room grew silent. But my mind focused on a beautiful image: this disease will be my Blessed Chariot that will carry me home to be with Jesus forever. Typically, there is a three to five-year life expectancy for a person with ALS, but my symptoms started in my mouth, so research says my life may be even shorter. I really don’t know how much time I have but I know that God is in charge. And I plan to live each day to the fullest. I have always trusted God completely ever since I was saved at age 15. When I gave my life to Christ, I asked Him to use me in any way He saw fit, to use my life for His glory. While I didn’t know how God was going to use me with ALS, I knew, even with this diagnosis, that I just needed to be faithful and trust Him. I truly feel this will be my great opportunity to shine for Jesus and to live for Him in difficult circumstances, to prove that He’s all He says He is. This will be my last triumph, an opportunity to show that every single promise that God has written in His Word will be true. And I intend to hang on those promises. In 2020, I suddenly started to develop what I’d describe as a slight lisp. Thinking I may have had a small stroke, I went to the neurologist… Read More

July 6, 2022
Other
BRINGING HOPE AND HEALING TO WOMEN

Feeling trapped and scared with an unplanned pregnancy, I entered the abortion clinic resolute in my decision that it was not the right time for me to have a baby. Just weeks away from graduating with a nursing degree, I was eager to start my career and decided to “fix” my problem secretly without disappointing my Catholic parents. I left the clinic feeling relief. Now I could get on with my life. But that abortion wrecked me. Scarred emotionally and spiritually, I was wounded internally by a sin that changed my whole identity. Efforts to continue suppressing my shame and guilt failed when my husband and I welcomed our first child five years later. I hit rock bottom with post-partum depression that I perceived to be God’s punishment. The truth that my Heavenly Father loved me and longed to forgive me was revealed through my sister. She shared the gospel, including Psalm 103 that declares God removes our sin and remembers it no more. I accepted Christ as my savior and was once again changed, this time enjoying the peace and freedom that comes from living in redemption. An invitation to tell my story in church was a difficult first step on my journey to help others confront the lies surrounding abortion. I have since shared my story nationally through Focus on the Family and whenever I have opportunity. I started volunteering at a Pregnancy Resource Center, using my nursing skills to do ultrasounds before becoming the director of post-abortion support at our organization of 13 centers in two Midwestern states. I am also the director… Read More

June 29, 2022
Adoption/Foster Care Special Needs
ADOPTING CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

I was a single mother of two when I answered God’s clear call to adopt and foster children with Down syndrome and other life-threatening medical conditions. It has been quite a wild and demanding ride but it has brought me so much closer to the Lord, and, in looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing. How I got to this point requires some explanation: I got divorced when I was pregnant with my second child. It was right around the holidays, and I was devastated. I cried out to God that this was not how I ever imagined my life when God spoke to my heart and told me to trust Him, that He made me to be a mom and that had not changed. I also knew in that moment that someday I would adopt a child. About six years later, I was volunteering with a nonprofit that advocated for the adoption of kids with various special and medical needs when the Lord spoke to my heart that is was time to pursue adoption. He had opened my eyes to the fact that many children, both here in the United States and worldwide, are abandoned due to the fact that they are simply not considered a “healthy child”. That was when God made it clear that He wanted me to foster, and maybe adopt, a child with Down syndrome. So I faithfully started to follow the Lord in this prompting to pursue a child with Down syndrome. I originally thought this would happen through international adoption and that I would seek an… Read More

June 22, 2022
Labor Overcoming Obstacles
INSPIRING BLOOMS

I was serving at an orphanage in El Salvador when my life started unraveling. Hearing the stories of trauma triggered my own childhood wounds and memories. I was able to hold it together until my term finished, but back in the United States, I had a complete breakdown. I became deeply depressed and developed out of control OCD. For several years I only tried to deal with my anxiety and depression spiritually—pray more, read the Word more. I didn’t start improving until I was finally willing to look at the physiological aspects. I started going to extensive therapy and taking medicine. It’s been a five-year journey, and I still have the occasional day where I struggle, but I’m thankful to be 90 percent better. As a child, I had a great interest in flowers and plants. I loved beauty. I followed my great aunt around her little greenhouse and was always picking bouquets for my mom. That interest got buried as I grew older. Then in El Salvador, I worked on some agricultural projects, and the interest revived. Back in the States, I returned to my old job, but in a new role that wasn’t a good fit. It didn’t feel fulfilling. I prayed, “God, give me something meaningful.” I started building a small greenhouse as a side hobby. Then my cousin gave me books about flower farming, which I devoured. For the first time, I realized that I could raise flowers for a living. I began dreaming and making plans. In 2021, I started Inspiring Blooms, planting a half-acre in flowers. This year,… Read More

June 15, 2022

Browse all categories

Adoption/Foster Care 38

Church Activities 60

Financial Help 18

Loss Of Loved One 39

Loving Your Neighbor 67

Mission Work 52

Overcoming Obstacles 118

Prison Ministry 12

Senior Citizens 22

Special Needs 47

Unique Ministries 169

Verbalizing the Gospel 77

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