Stories of Hope

Sarah’s Story | Dawn’s Story | Amanda’s Story | Keith’s Story | Sarah’s Story (Video) | Ann’s Story | Elaine’s Story | Nigel’s Story | NickY’s Story

This a growing library of stories from Christians in our community of how their faith and hope in Jesus has made a real difference.

Nicky’s Story

I qualified as a Nursery Nurse and worked for a year at Poole Hospital, but the at the age of 19, started my General Nurse Training.

I married Stewart at the age of 21 and we have 3 sons who are now grown up, two of whom are married.

I have just finished 38 years in nursing, which I have loved, and am retiring next month.

Looking back, I can see the Lord’s hand guiding me throughout my life. One of my favourite verses is “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths” Proverbs 3 v 5-6. I know that God has guided me all the way and will continue to do so.

Life is about to change a lot as nursing has been a big part of it up to now, but I look forward to what He has planned for the future and must trust Him for all that is to come.

Nigel’s Story

Most people that meet me think that I am American or Canadian, but in fact I was born within the sound of Bow Bells, making me a Cockney!

My family moved to America when I was 2 years old. My father’s work meant that we ended up travelling to different parts of the country. He was career driven and away a lot, meaning that my mother was left, in the most part, to bring up my two siblings and myself. In my teenage years it was obvious that my parents weren’t happy; there was a lot of arguing and a feeling of instability. For a couple of years my father was away on ‘business trips’ and only occasionally came home. It was left to when I was 18 to be told the truth that my father had another lady/family in his life. I was shocked and hurt, feeling conflicted as to where my loyalties lay. The family situation affected my education, I dropped back a year in High School and eventually left without any qualifications.

On leaving High School I started work as an apprentice printer, it was good money and enjoyable. I stayed there for two years, but my life was empty, and I was just existing, living with the pain of family breakdown, and all that comes with it.

Out of the blue a friend of mine had a plan to cycle across America, and almost on impulse I decided to join him. Quitting my job, we left Philadelphia in June 1973, not knowing, or caring, how long the journey would take to complete.

By September of that year, we had travelled west as far as Indianapolis. Walking down the street we were handed some leaflets inviting us to a tent meeting being held by some Christian group called ‘Christ is the Answer’. Neither of us had any Christian background, and I really wasn’t looking for God! The group had just arrived in town, so we spent a couple of days with them helping set up their 200+ seater tent. My first impression was that they were very different, they were part of the faith based ‘Jesus People’ movement - a bit like Pentecostal Hippies!

I was invited to their first meeting. The tent was busy with people arriving, the folk/rock worship music was completely new to me, in fact it was all completely new to me! Then Bill Lowery, the preacher stood up, his long hair gently rolling off his shoulders. He shared a powerful message, which made it very clear that there was a real God of love who could be known personally, but also the consequences in rejecting him. There was much that I didn’t understand, but when the call came to go down to the front of the tent to receive prayer for salvation, the pull was irresistible. I knew that I could not leave the tent that night without meeting with Jesus. I was prayed with and received the gift of the Holy Spirit. I felt such an overwhelming sense of cleanness and joy. I had met with the real Jesus!

A few days later, whilst handing out Christian leaflets outside a rock concert venue, a member of the team asked if I would like to be baptised and I said yes and was baptised there and then in the nearby White River. My two-day excursion helping some Christian Hippies set up a tent, ended up with me staying with ‘Christ is the Answer’ for three years! This group of around 250 people became my family, we ‘did life’ the Jesus way, living in real reliance on and faith in Him. We regularly used to pray in food, once the prayer being answered by a local farmer delivering a week’s worth of turnips, and we really did rejoice in turnips morning, noon and night! Travelling state to state in a convoy of old buses, cars, and camper trucks, the skills that I had learnt as an apprentice printer came into good use, as I helped in the mobile print shop, producing publicity to attract people to the meetings.

That was over forty years ago! My long hair has gone, now just short and grey, but that journey of faith continues. Jesus has been my friend, my counsellor, my guide. Through the joys of having my own family and seeing them grow and flourish to the struggles and limitations brought on by Parkinsons, from that day in a tent in Indianapolis to today - retired in Christchurch, my Lord has shown me that I can know the one and only eternal God and that his love for me will never fail.

Elaine’s Story

Walking with God through pain What have I done to myself and my family? That was my cry when in my 30s I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia with two children of preschool age. Chronic back pain and migraines with vertigo began in my 40s as the girls were entering their teens. Sitting upright or standing still causes acute pain and migraines impact most days. Medically full recovery is unlikely.

I’ve had to come to terms with never being able to work or drive again and whether I can join a “live” event depends on pain levels. Hardest of all is being unable to be the wife, mum and friend I want to be and having to be cared for by those I want to care for. I am blessed to have incredible support from my husband and daughters. It’s as hard if not harder for them. So many in our church family faithfully pray for us which makes a huge difference.

My faith is about my relationship with God through Jesus. I find it a huge comfort that I am never alone, but God is always there for me and gives me hope and strength. When I am at the end of my tether with pain the message version of Matthew 5 v17 reminds me “You are blessed when you are at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.” In living with pain and uncertainty I have found more of God and peace and joy in a deeper relationship with him. It’s better than any medication and I wouldn’t have missed that for anything.

When my back and muscles are burning with pain I recall Isaiah 43 v 2 in the bible where God says “When you walk through the fire you will not be burned”. I don’t have to be overwhelmed by pain. God will help me through unharmed . My self-worth and security had been overly in my job roles. Now my significance is firmly in who I am in Jesus Christ. He knows what it is like to suffer. He suffered much more than me in dying on the cross so that I and everyone who believes and trusts in him can live in freedom in this life and have a pain free eternity with him.

Normally the back pain reduces when I walk so it helps me to walk and talk to God through the pain, giving the pain and how I respond to it to him. Intentionally giving every concern and disappointment to God helps me to recover physically and emotionally. In the walking and waiting God’s teaching me that his grace and love are enough. I find it helpful to pray God’s promises from bible verses over my family and I.

God constantly amazes me by how he uses my pain to bless me and others. Through what at first seemed like the end of my world I have found that God has given me freedom to prioritise and I am blessed by having deeper relationships with my family and with those who live and work on my estate who I meet when walking. Nothing is wasted when we look for God at work in it. My times walking with God give me mental and spiritual space so I can give the best of me to my family. I appreciate when I can go out with family or friends or to church and treasure every moment of joy so much more. I try to look for what God wants to teach me and for me to share to bless others. Now I measure my success in terms of making a difference, in God’s strength, where he has put me rather than in careers. Placing every part of my life and family into God’s care and joining in with what he is doing in his new purposes for me is the best place to be. I look forward to a pain free body in heaven. Meanwhile only God, not pain, will define me and have the last word

Ann’s Story

My testimony, as to how I became a Christian, begins as many do: I was brought up in a Christian family. This meant prayer times, church services, Sunday school, Saturday rallies, Fellowship teas and so on. And I enjoyed it all. At the great age of 6, I said all the words of a little chorus, as instructed by my Sunday school teacher – “Come into my heart Lord Jesus, come in today, come in to stay…” and was assured I had become a Christian. I spent the rest of my childhood and teen years trying to live the Christian life in my own strength, with a growing sense of confusion and turmoil inside. I was baptised at 14 and charged with running my school Christian union at 16, but with no assurance of personal salvation at all.

I had an argument with a fellow 6th form pupil who said that she knew she was saved. My response? “You can’t know, you can only hope for the best.” At 18 I went to my local Art college for one year, during which I was co-opted onto a Mission team, by a visiting evangelist, to spend 2 weeks in Matlock and Matlock Bath, Derbyshire, to spread the Gospel by means of street evangelism (i.e., collaring anyone who’d listen), taking over coffee shops, large evening meetings and even visiting the Trogladites in Matlock Bath caves! I sang solos most evenings at the main meetings.

I can’t remember in detail, what I said to people about the Lord Jesus, but you can be sure it would be quite forceful, even self-righteous, belying the bewilderment inside. During the 2 weeks there was a battle raging inside me, that had little to do with the mission, and it made me very grumpy! Eventually a friend asked me, “what is the matter with you?” “I don’t know” I replied very testily, but thought “I have to sort this out.” So, one morning, when everyone else was at a training session in the dilapidated building we were camping in, I looked for somewhere to be alone.

The only place I could find was a bathroom with no lock on the door. I started talking to God out loud, getting more and more worked up, and was making quite a racket apparently. “I can’t live this life Lord, it’s too hard. I don’t know if I’m saved; I don’t know if I’m forgiven; I don’t know if you love me”and on and on. The door opened and in came a young woman, not much older than I was. She was lovely with long blond hair. I’d never seen her before but she asked me if I was alright. “NO!” I replied, so we started talking. After a while she said “I think you need me to pray for you.” So, we knelt down by the bath….and she prayed that the Lord Jesus would make himself real to me. As she prayed, a huge weight of guilt, confusion and anger just rolled off my shoulders, and I was ecstatic! A supernatural experience. All I wanted to do was praise the Lord Jesus and smile. I couldn’t stop. And then she was gone. I didn’t know her name and I never saw her again – I’ve often wondered if she was an angel.

When I look back, I can see that the Lord had his hand on my life right from the start – Christian parents, church life, Sunday school, the school CU – he used them all to reign me in and stop me being as bad as I could have been. Oh, did I say? I was a naughty girl at school, always challenging the teachers and breaking the rules, standing outside the headmistress’ room, and threatened with expulsion twice. But then, in that beautiful part of Derbyshire, the Lord saved me, and the following morning I went with the Mission team into Matlock Bath, to hold an open-air service in the bandstand facing the little town and the high cliffs. I sang a solo “All that thrills my heart is Jesus” and, as it resounded all over the gorge, I really meant it for the first time in my life. It was quite thrilling, and through many struggles, the Lord has never let me go.

I needed strong arm tactics!! But not everyone becomes a Christian this way of course. The Lord gave us our individuality and treats us accordingly. He can and will save anyone who calls on him.

Sarah’s Story

Keith’s Story

My parents were godly people so I grew up with a strong positive concept of faith. By the time I was 12 or 13, as a fairly compliant son and with the encouragement of my mother, I was reading the Bible daily using the explanatory notes that she provided. Through my teens I was often challenged by my youth leaders and reminded that God did not have grand-children but only children so I needed to make my own decision to follow Jesus.

At the age of 17 the head knowledge of the Bible that I had built up over the years was turned into heart knowledge. An evangelist at a youth weekend was used by God to open my eyes to see beyond the words to the God who loved me so much that he was prepared to enter the world as a man with the purpose of offering eternal life.

Although I can’t say that my young life changed much after I committed it to Jesus, what did happen overnight was that my long-term habit of Bible reading became an exciting adventure. The Spirit had opened my eyes to see behind the familiar Bible stories to wonderful truths about God and how He miraculously enables His children to relate to the creator of the universe.

After that, God continued to bless me in many ways including through a loving wife and family, a good job and supportive Christian friends. From the outside it looked as though all in the garden was rosy; that was until I reached my early 50s. At that time just below the calm surface I was struggling with pressures at work, the children had left home and the church where I was part of the leadership team was going through a difficult patch, as churches sometimes do.

The outcome for me was what used to be called a mental breakdown. I was signed off work for four months and treated with medication and talking therapies.

God used this difficult time to teach me more about myself and about Himself. I had become complacent with all the apparent “success” and had come to see it as my rightful inheritance based on working hard and “doing the right things”. When life got difficult my tendency to perfectionism told me that I was now a failure, and failure was not something I had often experienced, so I did not cope with it well.

Those of you who saw the recent presentations by Rico Tice might recognise his observation that a Christian’s identity must be in God’s view of us and not in our own status, abilities or activities. We are who He says we are. I learnt this the hard way!

My gradual return to work was very smooth and after some time I accepted more responsibility than before without taking the extra pressure personally. That including managing a project in Russia to support the dismantling of a badly contaminated nuclear support ship and having to deal with some difficult Russian customers!

God used my breakdown to remind me of His unconditional love for me, my frailty and my dependence on Him. He continues to mould my character to be less judgemental of my own and other’s shortcomings and more empathetic with those in difficulty. I still take a low dose of medication, which is helping to make me humble.

We have a good God who often uses the bad things that happen to us to further His purposes.

Sarah’s Story

I grew up in a nominally Christian home. We went along to church as a family. It was just a formality and I don’t remember ever hearing the Gospel as I understand it now. As a teenager I quickly drifted away from any ideas of attending church or religion. It seemed totally irrelevant to my life.

I wanted to experience life and freedom, to do just as I wished. What a mistake!

At the age of 23 I left the UK to begin a new life in Sydney, Australia. It didn’t take me too long to realise that I had a very deep emptiness inside. I saw that my lifestyle of drinking, experimenting with drugs and casual relationships in fact only made me feel a lot worse. I began to experience bouts of deep depression I was admitted to a psychiatric hospital in Sydney. My life got even worse. I never ever gave God a second thought. And yet several years later I realised He had graciously pursued me for a very long time before I responded. After living in Australia for around 6 years I became restless. I was still searching for “happiness”. In 1979 I went to New Zealand and again thought that a new environment, new job and friends would be the answer. But that same emptiness continued. Once again I was admitted to a psychiatric unit because of deep depression. I remember thinking that there must be more to life than this!. During that time God began to bring Christians into my life. I was taken to a Christian meeting while in hospital. I reacted very negatively and walked out taking other patients with me. To this day I still cannot believe I did that. One day a lady called Heather came to visit me. She too was English, and we became good friends. Following a major accident I went to stay with Heather and her family. They often talked about Jesus and the Bible in a very natural way. I thought they were fanatics and that wasn’t for me. But at the same time I was intrigued. Heather and I would stay up very late talking. One day Heather’s husband turned to me and said,

It was like a thunderbolt had struck me. I KNEW he was right. Later than evening I went to my bedroom and knelt by the side of my bed and asked for forgiveness and asked Jesus to come into my life. I can’t say I felt anything had happened. But I understood it was the beginning of whole new way of life. That was in October 1980. I would love to tell you that life was all wonderful from that time on. But it wasn’t. I was a very insecure and broken person. I needed God to do some deep healing in my life. I wasn’t always willing to allow Him into some of those darkest places. But He was and still is so incredibly gracious. His patience and faithfulness have been the two attributes of God’s character that have always stood out for me.

Now let’s fast forward a few years. I returned to the UK in 1983 and came to live in Bournemouth. In 1991 I began attending Lansdowne Church. I became involved in various activities in the church. One significant thing was with the International Student Ministry on Friday nights. Life was busy but depression was often just under the surface. I continued on with my busy life until August 2018. It was then that I began suffering with chronic anxiety. I was unable to work and looking back I was barely functioning. I couldn’t laugh and I couldn’t cry. I had to now begin facing many deep fears and insecurities. God in His grace and mercy I believe had allowed me to crash. He has been graciously healing me this past almost three years. My wonderful Lansdowne Family have been just incredible. There are many who pray every day for me. Back in 2018 meals were brought, people visited me and just sat with me as I grappled with fear and anxiety.

I’m still a work in progress. I am holding onto two Scriptures.

And the other words of Jesus;

There is so much I could have written. One last thing I’d like to say. If anyone reading this is on a similar road to mine back in the 1970’s, may I encourage you to STOP and think. It’s a road to destruction. Jesus alone can fill that emptiness. He is waiting graciously to give you life and life in all its fullness.

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Dawn’s Story

When I received the diagnosis of Small Cell Lung Cancer – inoperable, incurable on 2nd April 2019, I was strangely calm and actually had to reassure the medical doctor who told me, that I was fine, I am a Christian and I have a big God and He will look after me. I always imagined if I was told news like this that I would be devastated, cry hysterically, but that didn’t happen. I said to the doctor “Well, now that we know what is wrong with me what do we do now?”

That night I prayed and said to God, I can’t do this on my own, I need your help! The first Psalm He gave me was Psalm 30 at first it was verse 2 that caught my attention: “Lord my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me.” And He has, but not in the physical sense, but in the spiritual sense. Yes, I would love to be healed physically, so that I can say to my unsaved friends and family, see God has healed me. I read a quote in the book “Where is God in all the Suffering?” by Amy Orr-Ewing: “Miracles are God’s to give, not ours to take.” Then I realised that even if God doesn’t heal me physically, here on earth, I will be healed when He calls me home and that thought fills me with Joy!!

I cannot honestly say how or when I started growing spiritually through all of this, I started feeling that the Lord was with me in everything. I started feeling more and more at peace and relying on Him more and more. I felt Him say “Trust in Me”.

I decided to read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, using audible and following in my Bible, I found this easier for myself having a voice reading the Bible to me and I believe this has helped me to grow too.

People in the Bible suffered so much for various reasons and there were those who still praised God through all of this – that has taught me so much. In Nehemiah when Jerusalem was rebuilt and Ezra stood up in front of the people and read The Book of the Law of Moses and explained it to them so that they could understand, the people lifted their hands and bowed down and praised God. Then Nehemiah said to them in Nehemiah 8:10 -

Amen!

Now we have Jesus, our Rock, Salvation, Healer, Light in the darkness. We are so privileged, we can go to Him lay our burdens down at His feet. He can plead to God on our behalf. I am so very grateful He called me to Him and I accepted Him as my Lord and Saviour.

I give all the Glory to God!

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Amanda’s Story

Having been told as a teenager that I wouldn’t be able to have children due to a medical condition; the news we were expecting twins was like a dream! A dream from which we would awake suddenly when at 25 weeks pregnant I found myself being rushed into Poole maternity hospital in labour.

I hadn’t left work, wasn’t really in maternity clothes and had just got to the stage where it started to feel real. It was a normal pregnancy up to this stage, and I didn’t even realise what I was experiencing was labour.

For three days the staff there tried to delay the imminent birth, and at the same time give our premature babies the best chance of survival. During this time the global church went to prayer, and an office in our home was hurriedly assembled to update friends, family and well wishers. All our parents could do was watch and pray, and we tried our best to reassure them (and ourselves) that we would be alright whatever happened.

Something happened at that point I think. Helpless to do anything for our situation we leant into God. Looking back we feel people and opportunities presented themselves in ways we never normally noticed. I was able to share with a midwife whilst in labour

when she revealed her relationship had ended; and also Psalm 139 v 13-16. I’ve always thought only wise older folk do this in hospital, I was neither of these. But God gave me the words at just the right time!

Three days later it was apparent that my battle to stop labour was over when the medics declared ‘We’re having babies and we’re having them now!’; I was taken into surgery for an emergency cesarean section as their tiny bodies would not survive a normal birth. Darren quickly updated our anxious parents and joined us in theatre. Very quickly two tiny babies were delivered a daughter Georgia at 1lb 15ozs and a son Elliot at 2lb 1oz. This is not the order they were presented to me though as a silent Georgia was whisked away to be resuscitated.

Looking like something out of a sci-fi film with transparent skin and eyes still shut our tiny babies were put in incubators and taken away to Neonatal intensive care. We were given Polaroid pictures of our tiny newborns and the news that they had a 60% chance of survival. The doctors were actually pleased with their weights at just 26 weeks.

I’d like to say that the 12 weeks that followed were full of hope filled positive moments. The truth is it was a roller coaster! Times of absolute desperation and terror seeing their incubators surrounded by medics and thinking ‘Its game over’. What is also true is that we felt held by the arms of our loving Father God. Our friends and family rallied faithful prayer

warriors and those who frankly had never prayed before! Prayers were heard and through scares, surgery and real setbacks our babies grew and were blessed. Darren continued to preach and we got opportunity to share locally and further afield God’s goodness to us.

Finally after 3 months and still 2 weeks early we brought home a 7lb son and a much smaller, sicker twin sister at 4lbs.

Those twins turn 21 in May this year and their journey has not been an easy one. Their lives have been so far tougher because of this premature start. But we thank God that they too trust Jesus, and now are training for a life of service in the NHS as a paramedic, and in the army with the Royal Signals.

Reflecting back on this time and other challenging times we continue to face I remember to be thankful. Those times when I am needing to lean heavily into the ‘everlasting arms’ are the most precious times. I feel most keenly His guidance, His presence and sustaining power.

‘But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.’ 2 Cor 12v9

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