Beginning to Share the Story

Graham, our youth minister, asked Mary Beth to share a brief story/testimony in church Sunday. She shared straight out of her experience and from her heart. Here's her unedited story:

Good morning. My name is Mary Beth Colley for those of you who don’t know me. I spent 7 weeks this summer in Uganda going back and forth from the city of Kampala to the rural areas of Gulu, on a mission trip. It would be impossible to fit 2 months of cold showers, living in tents, getting bombed by terrorists, and 35 days of ministry in a 3rd world country into 5 minutes, so today I’m going to share a story from one day of ministry.

On the morning of July 19 we had gone to a youth center and done our abstinence program and in the afternoon some of the students went with us out into the community to be our translators. We were split up into ministry groups, and while my ministry group was walking we stopped to talk to a group of people. The boys in our ministry group were talking to the father, son and neighbors but a girl in my ministry group, Carlie, and I noticed that there was a women sitting with her back to the boys shelling peanuts. Carlie, a translator and I went over to speak with her. She was really apprehensive at first and didn’t want to talk to us, but after a while she started opening up telling us more about her family and kids.

After a while she asked us why we were there. We simply told her God sent us to share his love with the people of Uganda. She told us she had heard of God before but that she produced alcohol for a living and got drunk on a regular basis and wanted to know if she could still be a Christian even though she drank and produced alcohol as a living. We shared Proverbs 20:1 with her. It reads, “Wine is a mocker and beer is a brawler who ever is led astray by them is not wise.” We told her that even though it is not a sin to drink, it is a sin to get drunk because when you’re drunk you lose inhibition and become less aware which can lead to other sins.

She wasn’t really receptive and told us how could we understand when we come from a world of such wealth – producing alcohol was her living it was her source of income. Without it there would be no money for food, for her kids, their school fee’s – without it they wouldn’t be able to live. We kept sharing more about God’s love for her and how he sent Jesus, his only son, to die for her sins and all her burdens so she could live a free life. “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” We told her that God wants her to live a rested life through him. We could tell she was listening but she wasn’t convinced so we continued showing and reading her more scripture.

We shared Jeremiah 29:11-13. “For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord; plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” We told her God has a plan and it’s not to harm her but to prosper her and give her hope and a future. We explained that by putting her trust in God and giving up her source of income and well being He will reward her and prosper her and love her; that through him she will find new life and not only does God give you new life on earth but he promises eternal life with him in heaven. Her eyes were lit up she grabbed both me and Carlie and hugged us. She was so eager she told us she wanted to have God in her life and she was ready. She said that she had faith that he would provide for her and she was ready to stop producing and drinking alcohol and ready to hand her life over to Christ. Afterward we prayed with her and reassured her that God loved her and so did we. She thanked us and gave us one last hug.

 As we were walking back to the bus and on the whole ride back to the Acholi Inn I was just thinking about that woman and how in a hour her life miraculously changed. She gave up everything, her livelihood; she gave up her source of income and the ability to know that she had enough money to make it through the day. As I was thinking about this I thought what if God presented me with that situation would I be willing? Would I be willing to give up my job, my source of income to obey and follow him? If I was faced with the situation would I be so secure in my faith to trust he would provide for me and my family? Would I take that risk? This woman didn’t even know God and wasn’t a Christian yet she was willing, and I know God. I go to church every Sunday, and I can’t say with certainty that I would. I can’t say I would follow God in that situation I don’t know that I’d be willing to give up everything, but I should be.

We all live in a world where it’s safe and we don’t take risks that often and if we do they’re things like taking a different position at work or moving to a different town. Those aren’t really risks – those are luxuries – giving up everything for God? That’s a risk, or so I thought. As I thought about the day more and more I realized if I think giving up everything for God is a risk then there’s a problem because giving up everything for God means being able to relax. The moment you give everything up to God and tell him to do what he wants with your life you become overwhelmed with the fact that everything is going to be okay because like it says in Jeremiah 29:11, God won’t harm you but only prosper you and give you hope and a future, but that’s only if you let him.

I look forward to hearing more of Mary Beth's unfolding story. She's a remarkable young woman! We are blessed to have her with us! God bless!