Despite having a Sunday School upbringing, knowing all the bible stories, I knew at 14 that God existed but that I did not feel close to Him. Only when I went to London University did I feel the need to find more of God. Joining a non-denominational group, I discovered God through Bible Study, prayer and church. Over time He became a real person to me - not just for Sundays. At Cambridge I joined a prayer group of three, learning more about God and also about the fellow Christian who became my husband!

God was there (and still is) in the good times and the bad times. Five years after marriage I went through a "perfect" pregnancy, and some complications at the birth. But a few hours later, my son (Nicholas) was in special care with breathing problems. By the end of the day my Dad told me he was leaving home. Two days later Nick's breathing was better, but there was more bad news - he had a heart murmur. Throughout all this God was with me, when I talked and prayed with Him, and Jesus was there to hold my hand - no-one else has much time for you in a hospital. Many friends were praying; one family said that we were to come and stay with them. We needed that Christian love and hospitality for a 7 day old Nick and his parents.

Five weeks later, after an agonizing morning of tests at the local hospital, Nick's murmur was confirmed as serious problem which needed to be seen by a specialist. That late summer evening we drove up to the North York Moors, and stood watching the sun set by an old large wooden cross. We did not know if our son would die before he grew up, but God knew His baby son Jesus would definitely grow up but die on the cross for all our sins. We could feel some of the agony.

Nearly a year later God gave us perfect peace through the long, risky open heart operation. Nick made a fantastic recovery, despite a larger hole between his ventricles than expected. Now, at nearly 6 ft high, he is clearly doing very well.

Two brothers later, and after a time in South East England, we moved to the USA - immediately finding a church home. I realized that I needed to follow Jesus even closer, and was baptized by immersion, like Jesus. Crossing the Atlantic to Belgium, there were Christians from 26 nations at the church we attended. There were opportunities to share and to pray, and support one another which was especially true during one month when Trevor was away. I traveled from Brussels to England to see my father in hospital, and then ended up attending two weddings and a funeral (my father's), driving 2500 miles in all. God sustained me when at this time friends described the family as a single parent with occasional attached husband. 

Back again in the States, we were welcomed by our "old church", and He is now using me to focus on the need in the fellowship for more attention to prayer. God is doing amazing things in people's lives here, and in mine too.