Posted by Jon Seger on January 26, 2012
Meet Derick A. Derick, along with his wife, Bessie, and their two daughters, Abigail & Anna, have been member of Sovereign Grace Church for a little over a year now. He has been married to Bessie for almost 15 years and currently live in Bolingbrook.
Last Sunday, Derick shared his testimony of how Jesus changed his life. You can read his testimony below.
“My name is Derick, and this is the story of how Jesus changed my life…
I went to a junior high where my principal was jumped by two students in my lunch period. My dean was attacked in his office by another student. Drug dogs were sent to our school to sniff out the lockers because there was a marijuana problem. And one of my friends committed suicide by hanging himself at home. We were at his house the day before killed himself.
Growing up, I learned to survive by being tough. I hardened my knuckles by punching my dad’s metal filing cabinets in our garage. I was in my fair share of fights. I was tight with the jocks because I played football and ran track. My best friends were two of the toughest guys in school, and because one was a star athlete and the other was the homecoming king, I was popular too. For the 8th grade yearbook, I was voted “best artist” and my girlfriend at the time was voted the prettiest girl in the school.
Between 8th grade and freshman year, a few of my friends went to juvenile detention over the summer, including one of my two best friends. It was a turning point for me – but not to God – to different friends.
High school was great for me. I had a lot of fun. I had a lot of friends, and I went to a lot of parties. I was tight with the jocks through sports, the creatives through my art, the smart kids through my grades, and the party crowd through partying. For our senior class, I was voted “best dressed” and my girlfriend at the time was voted “most likely to succeed”. As a high school senior, I was going downtown to clubs with my college friends and staying out till 3 or 4AM… But even with all the partying, I graduated at the top of my class and was headed to the University of Illinois.
By this point in my life, I thought I was a really cool dude. I was popular, had a girlfriend, etc.
At U of I, I was your typical college party kid. There was a time when my roommates and I went out to the bars and clubs every week. It was a ritual. We also hosted parties at U of I and other schools. We would have a DJ and a lot of alcohol… I don’t want to get in to too much more detail here, but a lot of things happened in my college years that I am not proud of.
However, throughout my college life, some strange things happened:
- My freshmen year some guy I played basketball with tried to witness to me and invite me to a Bible study. I stop talking to that guy.
- As my roommates & I looked for an apartment during my sophomore year, a guy witnessed to me and took me through the four spiritual laws right there in his apartment. I did not accept Christ.
- My junior year, my girlfriend got saved, and we broke up over her faith. She tried to share Christ with me, but I rejected it. She later transferred out of U of I to go to nursing school. (Bessie and I got married 7 years after this, but that is a story for another day).
Throughout all of this, I had become very hardened toward Christianity. I mocked Christians. They had become a joke to me. I was bitter over what happened with my girlfriend, and I thought Jesus was a crutch for the weak. I was a very prideful guy. I had a bad temper, spoke in vulgar language, and I lived for the pleasures of this world. I was part thug, part scholar, part nightclub junkie, and by my senior year in college, had become a cynic, and a mocker of Christ.
On a cold, rainy October day during my senior year in 1991, I had my roommate drive me to the college of commerce to turn in a homework assignment. On my way out of the building, something caught my eye. There was a small pamphlet with the picture of a grim reaper on the cover. I grabbed it thinking it was something that was going to make fun of Christianity since I had seen some other anti-Christian material that looked similar.
The pamphlet told the story of a construction worker that mocked his Christian co-worker for his faith. Then one day, the mocker fell off the scaffold and died. In hell, the mocker pleaded with God to let him go back and warn his friends and family that God and hell are real. But God told the mocker that he has already revealed himself to the world and that every person who hears the Gospel has enough evidence to know that God is real…
That day I knew that if I died I was going to hell because I was just like that mocker.
I believe that the Lord knew that I was too prideful to accept Christ with another person. The Lord met me one-on-one through that pamphlet and opened my blinded eyes to the Gospel.
That day, everything changed.
I went to find a Christian and I asked them to take me to church. Once I found a church I could attend regularly, I also joined a Bible study and was discipled by my Bible Study leader. I remember going to church every Sunday and just crying through all the worship songs before and after the sermon because I was so overwhelmed by God’s grace to a sinner like me.
In that single semester before graduation, the Lord changed me drastically. I was becoming a completely different person. What I lived for and wanted in life was being transformed. Even my demeanor and personality began to change.
But the road was not easy for me. None of my friends back home were Christian, and my parents rejected my new faith because I wanted to leave the Catholic Church. Some family thought I joined a cult, and some of my friends thought I was a religious freak. There were other challenges with work and relationships when I came back home. My faith did not hold up very well. There was a short period of time when I fell back into my old lifestyle, unable to resist the temptations of the party scene after college and giving into the pressure from friends and family.
However, God is faithful, and He used a bad car accident and a series of wild situations to get me back on track.
It is difficult to recount all the Lord has done in the last 19+ years since I’ve accepted Christ. I cannot begin to measure the change the Lord has made in my life. All I can say is that I am completely different from the person I used to be from the inside out. It’s not just that my behavior has changed, but who I am at the core of my being is completely different. My hopes, my desires, what I value most in life, what gives me the deepest amount of pleasure, and who I desire to please above all… are all being sanctified, by God’s grace.
When I think of my life, I think of Galatians 2:20. “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Am I there yet? Far from it. But with the Lord’s help, I think I’m learning more & more about what it means to live by faith – that I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
Posted by Jon Seger on January 21, 2012
Meet Cindy M. Cindy has been attending Sovereign Grace Church for a year now and became a member of the church this past September. She has 4 children – Nathanael, Ruth, Grace, & Naomi-Joy. Cindy lived in Wales up until a year ago, when she & her 3 daughters moved to Oswego and began attending SGC.
A few months ago, Cindy shared her story of how Jesus changed her life. Her testimony was split into two parts and was shared on two different Sundays. If you would like, you can listen to or read part 1 of her testimony. This is part 2 of her testimony.
“After placing my faith in Jesus, my adventure with God began. I got married, and my husband & I went to Wales to work as missionaries with a church in Cardiff. But over time, I began to see my marriage falling apart. After a series of several serious situations, I was devastated. My married ended in divorce. It was during this time that my children & I began attending a Sovereign Grace church in Wales. God used this time at Sovereign Grace church to bring healing to my heart and refreshment to my soul.
After awhile, it became apparent that it was time to return “home” to America. Since I experienced God’s love & grace through the Sovereign Grace church in Wales, I knew I wanted to be a part of a Sovereign Grace church when we returned home. The Lord opened the doors for us to stay with my brother, which is 1 hour & 15 minutes north of here. But I knew in my heart I wanted to be part of the Sovereign Grace churches because of my experience in Wales. Eventually, I moved to this area to be near the church.
The first Sunday here was the first one in January. It was like coming home. The sermon was amazing!! The title of the sermon was ”Trusting God for 2011” by Rick Gamache. I took lots of notes as it was so perfect for me & my situation. I truly felt that God was speaking directly to me.
I spoke to Tab after the service. He met my girls and invited us to the 6:14 youth meeting the following week. Again, God amazed me with His amazing grace. My girls were quickly greeted by other teenagers and made to feel welcome & truly at ease in the new situation. I met some of the parents as well who were very friendly & welcoming.
The next day, Sunday, we were invited to lunch at the Lee’s home. We shared an amazing meal & fellowship, which made us feel more welcome. Upon leaving the Lee’s and not getting very far down the road, the car broke down. Not knowing what to do and only just getting the Lee’s number, we phoned them. We ended up spending the night at their home that night as the car was not drivable and wouldn’t be ready till Monday. Keep in mind, we just met the Lee family and were asking to stay at their house while the car was being fixed. There was a hearty, “Yes!” given, and we were made to feel so welcome. These were truly God’s servants. It was a timely provision from God for us.
About 3 weeks after our arrival I was informed that we needed to find a place of our own soon. I then received a phone call from Angie M. She was asking how things were going on the job & housing front. Afterwards, Jamie M called me and asked if we’d be open to moving into their home. I immediately said yes, and we went for a meal at their home to meet the family. I hung up the phone and told Ruth what God just did on the phone. She & I wept and gave thanks to God for this phone call.
We moved in with the Maxims. I don’t think life for either family will ever be the same. The whole family made sacrifices for my girls & I. They welcomed us with love, care, & warmth. They let us be part of their family. They helped us adjust to living back in the States. They prayed for us, cared for us, and loved us.
I was soon asked if I wanted to be part of a care group. I said yes and was given directions. The first Friday, I went not knowing many of the faces. But I felt absolutely welcomed and loved, almost like I wasn’t this stranger from Wales.
I have been so cared for by this group of people. There were a couple immediate needs with regards to health that arose in the early days. God used these incredibly generous people to meet those needs. We were incredibly blessed by this group of people with a special gift that was for whatever we had need of. They prayed for my family & I and took us in. I experienced God’s love through these incredible people, and I’d only been coming to SGC a couple of months!
When it came time for us to move into our home, there were offers of furniture, bedding, appliances, & food to make our home a home. The offers to help us move in and to get settled into our own place has been so amazing. We, as a family, have been so blessed by so many people here in the church.
These short 8 months have so totally changed our lives. We are so blessed to be a part of what God is doing here and wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. God is so gracious & loving that He had prepared this place for us to come to and be a part of. I am so thankful to Him that He did.”
Posted by Jon Seger on December 26, 2011
Meet Cindy M. Cindy has been attending Sovereign Grace Church for a year now and became a member of the church this past September. She has 4 children – Nathanael, Ruth, Grace, & Naomi-Joy. Cindy lived in Wales up until a year ago, when she & her 3 daughters moved to Oswego and began attending SGC.
A couple months ago, Cindy shared her story of how Jesus changed her life. Her testimony was split into two parts and was shared on two different Sundays. You can listen to part 1 of her testimony or read it below. Stay tuned for part 2…
“My name is Cindy, and this is the story of how Jesus changed my life…
When I was young I was raised in a Roman Catholic home. We were what most people would call religious. We went to church every Sunday, attended a Catholic School, and were taught to do all the right things that good people are supposed to do.
My parents divorced when I was 10 years old, and as a result, we moved to the suburbs. At that point, I stopped all church activities and did my own thing. When I turned 18 years old, I said so long to my mom and moved into my own apartment. That’s what I thought freedom was. I began going to discos & bars. I lived for my weekends & the discos, bars & men.
However, it soon became evident that what I thought was freedom left me feeling empty and wondering what the purpose of my life was. I shared this with a woman I worked with. Surprisingly, she said, “Cindy, I have been praying for you.” Then, she gave me 2 little tracts to read on my own. It was through these tracts that I came to realize that I was the center of my universe and that by being the center, my life was in chaos. The tract explained to me that there was a chasm between God & I. All my efforts to try and reach Him fell short. Nothing I could do could reach God on my own. It further explained that God sent His only Son, Jesus, to live a perfect life in my place and to die in my place for my sins.
My eyes were opened to the truth that I was the center of my universe, doing what I wanted to do no matter what anyone else thought or did. I lived for me, me, me. I was faced with the truth that my self-centered living was sin against God. I was a sinner. The tract went on to tell me that “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus” (Romans 6:23).
I knew that was what I desperately needed & wanted. I knew I could go on no longer the way I was. If I continued on with the way I was living, I was on my way to hell because of the sin in my heart. So next to the sofa in my living room, I knelt down and asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins, to come into my life, and make me His. I asked Him to save me. At that moment, a peace came over me like I had never felt before. I still remember it to this day. At that moment, I was born again. Soon, things started to make sense in the Bible. I wanted to read it more & more. I saw that the things I was doing I didn’t want to do anymore. I stopped going to discos and bars, not because someone told me I should, but because I didn’t want to go there anymore.
That’s where my adventure with God began.”
Posted by Jon Seger on December 21, 2011
Meet Mike V. He’s been attending Sovereign Grace Church for about 10 months and has just finished the SGC Member’s class, Starting Point. He lives with his wife, Katarzyna, in Aurora and works with development in downtown Aurora.
A few Sundays ago, Mike shared his testimony of how Jesus changed his life. You can listen to his testimony or read it below.
“My name is Mike, and this is the story of how Jesus changed my life…
My brother was developing condominiums in downtown Aurora about 5 years ago. I had the opportunity to come work for him, but what went with that was to quit my job, sell my home, and move to Aurora from the Schaumburg area. What I left was a job with insurance, a 401k, and my home I had for 8 years.
Things went well for a few years. I had met a wonderful woman, Kasia, who later would become my wife. I bought a home in the development that I was working on. I thought I had everything. Then, the market fell apart, money was tight, and I thought that was the worst of it. I was wrong. It only had just begun. Soon thereafter, my niece was killed in a car accident. At the funeral, my brother had gotten sick, went to the hospital that night and found out he had cancer.
While he was being treated, he was trying to keep the business going. Money was not coming in, but I was trying to hang on. I was not paid for months, and my good credit was gone. I could not pay for my home, and the stress was too much. On top of that, I was taking out my anger for losing everything on my wife.
Things went from bad to worse. Because of how terrible the real estate market was, we couldn’t make any money, and everyone had to be let go except for me. I could only hope that my job was safe.
As the New Year came, everything was too much. I was not speaking to my mother as well as my brother & his wife. I was so angry about everything. The one thing I thought I could count on was my wife, but I had pushed her to the point of leaving and us pursuing a divorce.
Now, I was at rock bottom and had lost everything. I couldn’t take it. I was shoveling out in front of the buildings after the huge storm we had in January, and I saw an Aurora police officer (who I talked to a lot) eating at a local restaurant. I told him everything about my sister’s daughter to my brother’s cancer to my wife leaving and losing everything. He told me that no one ever said life was fair, but it’s what you do with it that counts. When I thought about it, I remember someone saying once that God only gives you what you can handle. So I prayed and asked him to take some hurt off of me that I could not take anymore.
Soon after, I felt some relief. It was so apparent that I knew God was working. I went to church at Wheaton Bible as a boy, but I didn’t get it then. The more I was around Tim T (a co-worker and member of SGC), the more he saw the state I was in and asked me to come to church with him. So that’s when I started coming.
My brother got worse, and Tim & I had a talk. We thought it was a good idea for me to make amends with my brother and go see him. I am glad I did. He passed away two weeks later. I felt I was being selfish about not getting paid for months, and he was in the hospital knowing his brother would not speak to him over money. I was starting to head in the right direction.
Going to church, I became close to Danny L as well as Tim & his family. They took me in as one of their own, inviting me to functions at their house with the whole family. This is what I needed. I had no one.
I looked forward to talking to Danny every week, and along the way, we had great conversations with Josh, Tab & Jamie. All we kept asking God was that my job would be safe, my home situation would be figured out, and most importantly, for me find a new companion.
At some point during this time, I placed my faith in Jesus as Savior. I knew I was a sinner, and I needed him to forgive me, help me, and bring me back to God.
I decided to get baptized because I wanted everybody to know how the Lord had reached out and helped me at my lowest. But I also understood that He brought me to my lowest so I would find him. Every week I came to SGC, it seemed like the sermons were about me, so much that I ran out in the middle of one tearing up. Danny followed me out, looked at me, and I said, “It’s about me. Every week it’s about me.” Danny said that God was talking to me.
A few times while Tim, Danny, & I were praying about issues I had, I watched the Lord do his work. I was getting stronger & stronger, and I just kept praying that a good woman would come into my life. Danny said that when I was ready, the Lord would give me a companion again. That was a tall order. I thought there was no way I could ever get someone like my wife.
At the end of June, I was sitting at home and finally had come to terms with my wife being gone and being by myself. Now, I felt healed by the Lord.
The end of this story is that my wife called me after I hadn’t spoken to her for 6 months. All I could think of was what Tab read in the bible about reconciling relationships. I kept saying that I am a changed person, that I found Jesus, and that I am a better person and am ready for us to continue. We worked it out and have spent time counseling with Jamie and going to Tim’s Care Group together.
I want to thank the Lord for helping me. I want to thank everybody here who had taken their time with me. I am so grateful. And by the way, my wife Kasia is sitting here today. I hope my story will give some others hope that the Lord is working on us because we believe and have faith in Him.”
Posted by Josh Fenska on July 23, 2011
Meet my friend Matt, a member at Sovereign Grace Church for over 6 years. He works at Crossway as the Digital Project Coordinator (which basically means he does computer stuff). He’s devoted to products made by Apple computers, but even more devoted to Jesus and the church.
Here’s how Matt answered a few questions we asked him:
How did you come to believe in Jesus?
I grew up in a somewhat Catholic home. We went to Mass infrequently but my sister and I attended Sunday School for a few years. I remember coming to the realization that I knew nothing about the god I was supposed to be worshiping. I asked my mother if she would take me out of the classes and she agreed. Through the rest of grade school I floated about through agnosticism and into atheism. I liked to debate or, more accurately, to be right. I was adamantly opposed to religion, Christianity in particular. I hated God’s people and his word. Looking back, I hated God though I “didn’t believe in him”. My dad was diagnosed with Emphysema in high school and my world got rocked. I started questioning what I believed. In the summer of 2000 some old friends, having recently accepted Christ, preached the gospel to me. God began a work in my heart for the next four years, letting me fall further than I ever had before. In the summer of 2004 I found a church, heard the gospel for the thousandth time, repented of my stupidity, accepted Jesus as my savior and was baptized. It’s been quite a ride these past seven years.
How have you been encouraged through your participation at SGC lately?
I think it’s evident that God is doing and intends to do big things through our local church. God is growing us, stretching us through circumstances that are hard and yet very good at the same time. He seems to be stirring up real faith for the future in our congregation. There’s an excitement about evangelism and engaging the community around us, a passion for mercy ministry and meeting real needs of those that are hurting and a burden to see gospel-centered churches sent out and planted from our group. I’m excited to see what God is going to do in and through our local church and I’m encouraged to be a part of such a solid group of believers who love Jesus and want to see more come to know him.
What do you do for leisure?
I read a lot, whether that’s blogs or Twitter or books. Working for Crossway means I’m never without reading material. I make downtempo and ambient electronic music. I also collaborate with a friend trying to fuze ambient electronic musical elements with acoustic live instrumentation. When it’s nice out I like to run or just take walks around Wheaton.
Posted by Josh Fenska on April 30, 2011
Meet Angie, who has been a member of our church since 2000. Angie has been married to her husband, Brian, for almost 17 years. (That’s something to celebrate!) They have two girls who attend Fischer Middle School and Georgetown Elementary School. Angie is currently an active PTA member with both schools.
Here’s Angie’s story of how she became a Christian, before she had met Brian. It’s a great reminder of how God can use a variety of factors–a hard season of life, friends willing to talk about the Bible, a pastor’s preaching–to bring about real and lasting faith in Jesus. It stirs my faith for what God may be doing in the lives of people I know.
In 1984, I drove out to Chicagoland seeking my “Mary Tyler Moore” life. She was my model – a life in the big city, a job with a big company, her own place, her own car.
Actually I was having a hard time with life — crushed by broken relationship of 5 years, quit graduate school after first year, did not want to go back home, did not have a job.
Well, I found a job with a big packaging company, and I got my own apartment and a car. Then, I realized, now what? I grew up Catholic, so going to church seemed like a good idea. I started going to a bible study group near where I lived. As our group was finishing the study, I wanted to learn more. Also, I was going through a hard time filled with loneliness, doubting my decision to move away from my family and the news of my former fiancée married, etc. I was searching and I had asked God to lead me to “someone” or “something” to bring me closer to Him. One of the people in the bible study told me about Willow Creek Community Church, and I started attending.
On Wednesday nights a pastor was teaching on the book of Psalms. It was Psalm 15 – Who could dwell in the house of the Lord – which captured my attention about heaven. I had decided that I wanted to hear more of what the bible had to say through this pastor. It took several months of listening and praying, but eventually God had shown me that “someone” or “something” that I was searching for was his beloved son, Christ Jesus.
It does not matter how I feel, think, behave, talk, or look. The truth is, He is the one and only true God. He sent his Son to earth to be like us, a human, so that He would show us how to live, and save us by giving himself as a sacrifice for our sins.
Posted by Josh Fenska on March 23, 2011
Strands Interviews from Sovereign Grace Church Oswego IL on Vimeo.
(If you’re reading this via RSS or e-mail, you may need to click through to the original post to find the video.)
Posted by Josh Fenska on December 29, 2010
Meet Palmira. Palmira lives in Aurora with her son. She recently shared this story about how God drew her to him through a friendship.
One ordinary day when my son Alex, 7 years old back then, and I walked to the park in our neighborhood, I met Lora Frey. ….to my surprise Lora was my neighbor living right across from my house. Since Lora also had kids, we started to see each other very often doing different activities with the kids. Everytime I would meet with Lora, she would ask if she could pray for me, and this was very unusual for me as no one had asked me that before; I was amazed and thankful.
When I met Lora, I was in the midst of many trials, struggling with many bad choices that I had made. I was raised Catholic but my relationship with God was superficial, and at this time I felt God was angry and that His love and care was not available for me. But when Lora reached out to me so many times, praying and inviting me to her church, I decided to visit Sovereign Grace Church (then, “Grace Covenant Church”).
The Sunday I came with Lora, so many ladies and families greeted me and made me feel so welcome. Almost immediately, I felt the Lord’s peace and joy and something changed deep inside me, that feeling of emptiness was not there any longer. I felt the peace and the desire to be close to God again, and I wanted this church to be my home church.
Tab so kindly through the Gospel showed me that God is for sinners like me, and that He is a merciful and forgiving God. God forgives over and over again if you repent deep in your heart. In His merciful love, God rescued me and restored my soul and my relationship with Him. He closed some doors and opened new ones. He changed my heart and my life. God had a purpose for me when I met Lora.
I thank God to bringing me to this church where I hear the sound teaching of the Gospel and am renewed every Sunday.
Posted by Josh Fenska on December 21, 2010
Meet Heath, who lives in Aurora with his wife Jen and their 7 kids. Heath recently shared the story of how God used the ministry of this church to save him. Here’s an excerpt of his testimony (the full testimony is available at the end of this post).
Jen and I put our trust in Christ for salvation about 8 years ago right here at SGC.
God used many means to bring about salvation, including the personal reading of his Word, prayer, and to a significant degree Christians who were faithful to share the truth with us.
Two of those people were David and Shiloah Ohrvall. I first met David after I graduated from business school and took a job in Chicago at the same firm he was with. I remember meeting David while I was getting a tour of the office about a week before I started. He shook my hand, and if you can believe it, in a 2 minute conversation he mentioned his church and how important is was to him and his wife. I smiled and thought to myself, “What a weirdo Jesus freak.”
David began asking me questions at work. He was telling me about his church and what it meant to be a Christian. He spoke fondly of the people, what he was learning, and how it was a blessing to he and his family. I still thought he was nuts… I mean, seriously, who really talks this way?
Relationally, David and Shiloah had us over for dessert and wine one night. I remember what a pleasant evening that was, and the way they spoke to us was different than our other friends. There was genuine affection and care shown by asking question about our lives. Very selfless. We still thought they were strange, but we were beginning to really like them.
About 6 months before I was saved, the Ohrvalls asked us to go to the company Christmas party together and offered to drive. I thought to myself, “Great, that means I can drink as much as I want.” And I did. Nine martinis later, I don’t remember anything that night. They can fill in the gaps, but I guess I rode home with the window down in the back seat of David’s car because I was acting like I would get sick. It was about 20 below windchill that night! You would think this would have driven the Ohrvalls away from loving us, but it didn’t. David did ask me why I liked to get drunk a few days later, and that was very convicting. The Spirit was really at work by now.
In a few months’ time, David invited me to church. I thought to myself, “Sure, I’ll go, just to make him happy.” I ended up visiting church on June 2, 2002, and by the grace of God was converted through a message on Daniel 5. Amazing how God works!!!
One thing is for sure, without the Word, prayer, and His people, Jen and I would not be standing here today, redeemed and raising our children in the knowledge of Jesus. We are grateful for the faithfulness of David & Shiloah and this church!
Click here for Heath’s full-length testimony.
Posted by andreajennine on July 24, 2010
During the 1 Peter series that we just concluded, we had the opportunity to hear from a couple of different church members about the grace from God that they have experienced in the midst of suffering. One such story came from Nat and Hanna M. Nat and Hanna have been members of SGC for about 8 years, and they live in Oswego with their three kids. Several Sundays ago, they shared how God sustained them during recent trials in the life of their family. After describing how two of their children needed hospitalizations and surgeries within the span of a few months, Nat and Hanna went on to say the following:
Now, we will share the magnitude of care that we received! First of all, we have to say that we never once had to ask for help. Rather, it was all of you asking us how you could help! From the moment Stellan was born until well after his surgery, we were receiving meals from many of you, and those meals didn’t stop until well after Lena was operated on. People were calling to see if there was any other way to serve us – cleaning, laundry, watching the children. A few times we called on some of you to come and take Kaiah as Lena was so drastically sick and Nat had to work and Hanna was also nursing a newborn! There were cards coming in the mail, full of scriptures to encourage our souls. E-mails to encourage and empathize with our trials and to keep our minds on the Gospel, on the Christ who died for our sins and who meets our every need….
Through your care, it was easier to trust God through this trial. We trusted that God is sovereign and in control, but experiencing your care and love really helped us to not lose hope at any time.
Click here to listen to a recording of the entire testimony.
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Meet Derick A. Derick, along with his wife, Bessie, and their two daughters, Abigail & Anna, have been member of Sovereign Grace Church for a little over a year now. He has been married to Bessie for almost 15 years and currently live in Bolingbrook.
