The Golden Thread

When I look back on my life, I can see the hand of God moving through every season—even in the moments when I didn’t understand what He was doing.

As a little girl growing up in the Catholic Church, I heard all about God. I learned to quote the Apostles’ Creed and say the Lord’s Prayer. I learned about saints who had given their lives because they refused to renounce Christ.

At the age of five, I knelt during a church service and said a simple prayer:

"God, I want to be able to talk to You like everyone else does."

— Prayer

It was a sincere prayer from the heart of a little girl. How precious is that?

The thread of God’s working in my life continued as I attended Catholic school for three years. The nuns were strict and sometimes unfair, but they also taught me things that became part of the foundation of my faith. I learned the Ten Commandments. I learned that God is holy, perfect, and completely righteous—and that we are sinners. I learned that sin separates us from a holy God and that Jesus had to pay the price for our sin. I didn’t understand all of it then, but I wanted to know God so badly.

A picture of a guardian angel protecting two children hung on my bedroom wall. I even made room on my bed for my guardian angel to sit while I slept. That was my childhood.

My parents were not perfect, but I had what I would call the “perfect” childhood. I felt protected, secure, and loved. I was blessed beyond reason, and I had no idea how differently or how difficultly other children were being raised.

Then came my teenage years. They were typical of most young people in my generation. I got into the same kinds of trouble, enjoyed the same activities, listened to the same music, watched the same television shows, went to the same dances and sporting events—and slowly began drifting away from God.

I got married too soon and to the wrong man, but I was determined to make it last. Yet something was happening inside me. I became hungry for more of God. I wanted to go to church. I wanted to know God. I wanted something more than the life I was living.

Looking back, I now understand that tugging on my heart was the Holy Spirit drawing me to Himself.

Eight years later, I really blew it. Divorce devastated me. It left me suicidal for two years. I was in the darkest place I had ever known—emotionally, spiritually, and mentally.

But God. Those two words have become some of the most powerful words in my life. When I had nothing left, God spoke. I listened. I repented. I surrendered everything to Him. And the rest is HIStory.

I have been on this journey—from trials to triumph—for the last 46 years, and I wouldn’t trade my life for any amount of money, fame, or fortune. God is everything to me. And He has given me the desires of my heart.

When I look back now, I can see something I couldn’t see then: a golden thread of eternity weaving its way through every season of my life—from my earliest childhood prayers, through my rebellion, through heartbreak and devastation, and finally into the arms of my Savior. He was there all along. Even when I didn’t recognize Him. Even when I ran from Him. Even when I thought I had ruined everything. God was still pursuing me.

To know God is to love Him. To love Him is to serve Him. And the incredible love of God is reaching out to you, too.

Do you see it? Do you have ears to hear His still, small voice? Is He tugging at your heart? Are you willing to surrender? If He is calling you, don’t run. Listen. Surrender. Trust Him. I promise you—you won’t regret it.