Past

Hi~ My name is Teri. I'm 56 years old and have been a devote Christian for 15 years. I'm the oldest of 4 children and was always the one everyone came to when they had problems or needed help. About 5 years ago, I quit my full time job to help take care of my step-dad who had Alzheimer’s. Little did I know that this was a gift from God. My step-dad had given so much to all of us and it was my chance to give something back to him. It was an honor to be able to take care of him the last 6 months of his precious life. During this time my mother was also very ill and in poor health herself.

After my step-dad passed I just assumed the roll of caretaker for my mother. I spent over 3 years taking care of my mother. It was a very hard 3 years as she ended up tearing the family apart instead of bringing us together. I watched my mom suffer a slow and painful death. During the 3 years I took care of my mom, my own physical and emotional health took a nose dive. I sought out counseling for myself and tried the best I could to continue to care for mom.

During this time God intervened by bringing a very dear friend back into my life. She and I spoke on the phone almost every night for hours on end. We would laugh and cry together. But the most important thing we did was we prayed and read Scripture together. This in itself, kept my spirit filled with God's Word and it gave me the strength I needed to take care of mom. Was everything perfect? Not exactly! But what God showed me was that He was right there by my side every day.

Mom passed away in November of 2011. My son and I lived in mom's house for about a year. The house was in a trust and was to be sold upon the death's of my mom and step-dad. During this time I continued with counseling and was part of a team of volunteer’s for Life Church's online live services. I was trying to put the pieces of my life back together again.

After my mother's death in Nov. of 2011 my son and I lived in her house while it was up for sale. I was declining in physical and mental health at that time when God prompted me to get a dog. I wasn't sure about this because I couldn't even care for myself let alone a dog. I wasn't sure I would be able to handle the responsibility that went along with owning a pet. But God kept prompting me so one day I went to the animal shelter and there God matched me up with my dog Riley. He's part shepherd, part chow and part golden retriever. By God brining Riley into my life He helped me learn responsibility. I learned to care for something other than myself. From the first day I brought Riley home he was the perfect dog. He was 5 years old at the time and we have been together for a year now. He brought such joy into my life and lifted my depression. I noticed that I loved taking him for walks and caring for him. He follows me everywhere and goes where I go. He sleeps at the end of my bed every night and loves waking me up in the morning. Physically and emotionally I grew stronger and noticed that I was a much happier person. He was more than a dog. He was my friend and companion. We have a strong bond between us. When I'm sad he knows. He will come up and sit by me with his head in my lap. This is why when I relocate, I have to make sure that my dog can come with me.

Having no place to go, I moved in with my daughter on December 6th 2012. On December 30th 2012 I was stopped by a policeman when he randomly ran my license plates while I was in McDonald's drive through and it appeared that I was driving on a suspended license. I had no idea. I also had no insurance on my car because of lack of finances so my car was towed and since I have no current income, the towing company disposed of it.

I had my court date on February 27th and God intervened again. The charges for driving without insurance were dismissed. My license may or may not be suspended for a period of time. I won't know that until I hear from the Secretary of State. The only fine I have to pay is 161.00 dollars for court costs. I was granted 6 months to pay this. Dismissing charges for driving without insurance is unheard of. I could have been fined 500.00 dollars or more plus court costs. I don't know about you, but this seems pretty miraculous to me. You see, even when we make horrible mistakes in our lives, God can still intervene and be merciful.