Testimony: I saw the Light!

My testimony, like that of most, weaves itself in and around many people and places. Looking back I see markers, flags at moments when my life has seen serious change, times when I was at my furthest, and closest to God. Community Christian Church of Marana has been one of those places, and seen me in perhaps the largest changes in my life.

But let me back up because my journey with God begins somewhere else. (I say this knowing He has been there always, yet there was a point in which I acknowledged His presence in my life.)

My 20’s were filled with darkness. I was chronically depressed. I wanted life to end. I was convinced there was no light at the end of the tunnel, not even a train that would end my suffering. I considered suicide. I considered vagrancy. I dreamt of not waking up, of anything that would bring the cessation of what I felt. As we hear so often though, in the worst of times, came the brightest of lights. That light came in several forms, one of which was this church.

While I was in a period of unemployment, my Mom volunteered me to help out my neighbor at a church where he was the pastor. I followed my neighbor to his church that morning, met a man named Gene Brown and spent the morning raking rocks, moving dirt and other various debris. After that day I asked my neighbor, Pastor Dave, what denomination his church belonged to. His response of Disciples of Christ reminded me of the warmth I had felt at Desert Dove, and I decided to attend a service.