Dawn shared this testimony of what the Lord had been doing in her life recently with us on Feb 20, 2002 I have so much to praise God for... First, I have to praise the Lord for being faithful to us when we're at our lowest. We don't always see it at the time, but when you look back and see the "footprints in the sand", it all makes sense. You see, the past several months have been very trying for me in that I haven't really felt worth "a hill of beans" in the kingdom of God. I felt like a "bench warmer" because I was not doing anything to further the work of God. Even though God has given me visions of serving him, I haven't put forth the effort to step out and act on his prompting. I didn't feel that I was spiritually strong enough, physically capable enough, or emotionally stable enough to be used in a practical way, so I didn't even try. All of that changed this month. Purely out of obedience to God (and my pastor for that matter) I decided that I needed to do something, anything really, to help on one or more nights during the play that was being performed at my church("Eternity"). I figured that I would try out for a part, not really suspecting that I would get anything substantial. Well, we all know that God doesn't do things halfway, right? God saw more in me than I saw in myself. Even after I had been cast as Shirley, a woman who believes in New Age philosophy, I had doubts because of my inability to remember even the smallest things in my day-to-day life. Auditions were Thursday, Feb. 7th (with the parts being cast at the end of the evening). We had Friday to memorize our lines. Practice was Friday night and up to dinnertime on Saturday, and then the first performance was Saturday night. There were 8 scenes, with 6 being performed each night. Although I was extremely discouraged that my scene didn't get chosen for either the first Saturday or Sunday performances, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. When we finally did go on Monday night, our scene was a great success (although I crawled out of "Hell" too soon). People were convicted of their "on the fence" attitudes concerning spiritualism and the occult. (They even got to chuckle in the process!) Even though I could barely walk on Tuesday (I had found muscles I never knew I had on Monday night), the next performance went even smoother. So when Pastor announced that the run of "Eternity" was being extended through Sunday, Feb. 17th (instead of Wednesday the 13th as originally scheduled), I had mixed emotions. I was thrilled because I knew more people would make a decision for Christ. I was excited because I was enjoying being on stage. But do you know what the first thing was to cross my mind? It was "Oh my, Bob isn't going to like this!" We had been eating sandwiches and leftovers every night since the auditions because I hadn't had time to cook a single meal. I would go to work, come home, gather my costume and my daughter Meryl (who also had a part) and leave. Every day was much the same. I didn't panic though. I had peace in my spirit that everything would work out, and it did. First, I prayed on my way home that night. When the time was right, I sat down and explained the situation to my husband and told him that I wanted to know what his needs were going to be (transportation-wise) for the rest of the week. I was calm (even when that annoyed look crept on his face), and therefore he was calm. He didn't have a problem with my being gone so much or my needing the car. Then, the following day at work, I e-mailed Bobbie, my cell (small group ministry) leader about the whole thing. I suggested that if one or more of the ladies in my group could cook dinner for my family, it would be helpful, but I didn't want to burden anyone. Well, she took the bull by the horns and ran with it, making phone calls and arranging everything! She cooked for us that night (Wednesday the 13th) and we had dinner prepared every night for the following 3 nights. I didn't have to worry about my family eating, because the food was there before I even got home from work. And oh my, was it good! (One lady, Carol, even brought gumballs!) These ladies blessed me beyond measure by their faithfulness. I praise God knowing that by helping me they supported the work of the kingdom, even if they weren't on stage, even if they weren't there at all. They allowed God to work through me without the after-effects that Satan was hoping for. For those of you who may not already know, more than 6,000 people attended during the 9-day run of "Eternity" and 660 people accepted Christ as their Lord. Now that is cause to celebrate! Although my house is a mess (because nobody did anything, with the exception of trash the place, with Mom gone), there are no ill feelings from my husband or my children concerning my absence. Picking up material things may take time, but overcoming ill will would have taken a lot more time and effort. I now feel spiritually motivated and prepared for whatever task God has planned for me next. I am truly excited about the prospect of serving Him in the future, no matter what it is that He asks of me! I love you all a great deal and praise the Lord for your faithfulness in prayer during this time. You can't truly know how this has changed my life. In Christ, Dawn