My Testimony
By Ruthann Shank

I grew up in a very Catholic home. My parents insisted that my siblings and I attend church every Sunday as long as we lived in their home, even when we were older.

By my 20's I had become quite rebellious and started using drugs. I was out of control. I wanted to cry out to God. I prayed the way I was taught. I recited the rosary. I was never taught to read the Bible, so I never read it.

By my late 20's I had gotten married and had moved to Idaho. I gave birth to two beautiful children and had both of them baptized into the Catholic church. I did what I was taught to do. Never once did I think about Jesus. I just followed church traditions.

Awhile later I moved back to San Diego. Unfortunately I once again got caught in the drug world and became even more out of control. I only knew the ways of the Catholic church. I called out to God , but only when I was in big trouble.

Eventually I got "clean" and moved from that neighborhood. I was clean, I was happy, but I knew something was missing. I was at home one day and there was a knock on my door. I did not realize at that time how a knock could change my life forever. I opened the door and there standing right in front of me were Lucy and Brandy. We said hello and had a brief conversation where they invited me and my family to church. I said, "No thank you, I'm Catholic."

However, over time, Lucy became a close friend. A little later she introduced us to her husband Wayne, the pastor. Together they shared what Jesus could do in our lives.

My family life has been completely transformed through the power and grace of my Lord and Savior. It began the moment we walked into this church and accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.

This has been our church home for over ten years now, and we have been able to raise our children in the Christian life that God had chosen for us to live.