Family Issues

Anne Marie

In this life changing story, Anne Marie talks about her early life, her dependency on drugs, her close encounter with death, and her realization that she needed God in her life…

My name is Anne Marie and I want to share how God has saved and kept me faithful to Him through many trials. I come from a family of ten children, seven brothers and two sisters. My parents did the very best for us all, but I had emotional needs that they were unable to meet. As a teenager I was very unhappy and found relief in sniffing solvents which later developed into harder drugs. I did not want to live; this world was such a painful place to live in.

I never thought I would reach my 21st birthday as the abuse of drugs and drink had set me on a downhill spiral. As I lay in casualty after having my stomach pumped out from an overdose of tablets, I knew that if I had died I would go to hell as I knew I was a sinner. I cried out to God to show me how to find him. A verse of scripture that I had memorised as a child of eleven came to mind, "Jesus said, I am the Way the Truth and the Life no one comes to the Father but by me". God was directing me to Jesus as the only way to God. Shortly after that I bought 'Journey into Life' by Norman Warren which helped me understand how Jesus died to take away my sin, I then prayed the sinners prayer at the back of the book and I knew there and then that I was forgiven. I had met with the living God. I knew Jesus was alive. I felt the call of God on my life to go to Bible College where I met and married my husband. We both went into the ministry.

Due to some difficulties in leadership my husband resigned, which resulted in him turning his back on God. He left the family home. I had not told him I was three weeks pregnant as I wanted him to stay for me and our two daughters, not because I was pregnant.

Shortly after the birth of my son, it was discovered that he had suffered a brain hemorrhage about two weeks earlier; this left him with mild brain damage and hydrocephalus. At 5 weeks old he had a life saving operation and a shunt fitted to his brain. During all this time my only hope was knowing Jesus as my Saviour and friend, I would cry out to Jesus for help and many and many times cry myself to sleep, but I had confidence in that Jesus said 'He would never leave me nor forsake me'. The temptation was there to get out and get drunk or high on drugs, but I knew this was not the answer. My only hope was that Jesus would work out all these things for the good of my life.

I got involved with a Christian lone parent group 'Beulah' that started to reach out to people like myself. I was assured that I was not alone. God has now raised me to be the leader of this group. I can say from my heart that nothing or no one can meet my need like Jesus can. When things go wrong in my life as they sometimes do, I now have a lifeline in Jesus that keeps me afloat and gives me hope.

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