I was born and raised in Los Angeles. I have one older brother. My dad worked for Standard Oil for 45 years. My mom taught English at Garfield High School and retired in 1960. Her name was Laura Peery. She was a devout Christian. My childhood was good and my parents loving.

I went to Sunday school in a denominational church, learned Bible stories, sung hymns, memorized scriptures but never accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior. Being born again was never mentioned; altar calls were never given. No one told me I needed to have a personal relationship with the Lord.

I got married in the church at 19 to Dave Barringer, an abusive non-believer. We had two daughters, two granddaughters, and, as of 23 March, one great-granddaughter. We went to church on and off during the years and I would cry through the whole service. I knew that something was missing but didn't know what. I struggled with sadness, emptiness, loneliness, and a longing in my soul. (That emptiness lifted when I met Jesus.)

I was depressed most of the time, but caring for my bedridden mother helped me forget to feel sorry for myself.. Also, in 1978 I went back to work full-time at Bechtel Power Corporation in Norwalk. It was a great company and I had great bosses. In 1985, to avoid being laid off, I was hired at Northrop in Pico Rivera. Northrop was stressful. My boss was verbally abusive. Now there was abuse at home and at work.

I’d become bitter, cynical, and foul-mouthed. Being miserable and having a pity party, I stopped going to church altogether. One Saturday I asked my older daughter (who'd been a Christian since age 15) if I could go to church with her on Sunday. She said, "Yes, but I don't think you'll like it."

I asked, "Why? Do they roll in the aisles?"

She said, "Yes."

I had finally come to the end of myself.

On Sunday, January 19, 1991 (my dad's birthday), I went with Cheryl to Canaan Fellowship in Whittier. I’d never been in a loving, Spirit-filled church before. There was an altar call for something (maybe healing). I don't remember. And I went up. I was slain in the Spirit, covered with this incredible liquid love. I didn't know what happened but it sure felt good. I had a smile on my face and felt drunk for about two weeks. All the anger, guilt, and shame were gone.

That night I had a vision of my mother in heaven. She was standing behind a big, high-backed chair with a fuzzy figure sitting in the chair. She said to me twice, "Nicodemus, Nicodemus." I couldn't remember who Nicodemus was.

The nest day while in the coffee room at work a Christian lady I hardly knew came up to me and said, "You're just glowing,. Were you just saved or something?"

I said, "I think so." Then I went to a Christian co-worker and asked her to look up Nicodemus for me.

She said, "That's what just happened to you. Nicodemus was the Pharisee who came to Jesus in the dark and asked Him what it meant to be born again."

So God through my mom was letting me know what had happened to me. I did not realize what had taken place.

My transformation was immediate, profound, and very obvious, enabling me to witness to others. Two of my girlfriends at work did receive the Lord after me. One male non-Christian co-worker even asked if I’d gotten a new job. My newfound faith and prayers even changed the way my boss treated me. So evidently he had been reacting to the fact that I did not like him.

I was so fortunate to have my older daughter and a friend of hers as spiritual teachers. We walked, talked, and prayed every night after work and I grew fast. My husband worked swing shift from 3 to 11 pm. God had that worked out, too. Dave wouldn't have let me out of the house. God answered one of our prayers by building a Christian church in a predominately Buddhist housing area.

I received a prophecy from Claudia Romero at a Women's Aglow meeting in September 1994. Claudia prophesied in tongues, saying, "There's been a thorn in your side for a long time. I'm going to remove it, not immediately, but soon." It was three years to the day that my husband passed away.

In October 1994 Northrop announced a "Golden Handshake" early retirement program effective December 1994. They added three years on to my age and three years on to my anniversary date, which gave me the required ten years with the company, and the required fifty-five years of age, even though I was only 54.

God is good. I'm so blessed. God know what lay ahead for me and was with me all the way.

The biggest miracle was that my husband received the Lord about a month before he passed away of lung cancer. While he was having his car serviced at Norwalk Toyota, a stranger led him to the Lord. His getting saved was worth my putting up with him all those years. His transformation was as extreme as mine. He came to one of the Bible studies even though he was very sick. He had complete peace at the end.

For the last year I've hosted a home Bible study. The teacher is a friend who was Deputy Bible Commissioner at Northrop. I attended on of her Bible studies in Yorba Linda after retiring. I was attending that Bible study when my husband passed away. Our study prayed for him. The teacher and her husband sang at my husband's funeral. They've been good friends and a wonderful spiritual support.

Last November Pastor Gary gave a sermon on everyone using his or her talents. Since I'm not a prophet or a teacher, I didn't think I had anything to offer. While I was waiting to get the sermon tape, Pastor Gary came down the aisle and I said to him that I would ask God what He wanted me to do. Pastor Gary pointed his finger at me and said prophetically, "You're going to join our Christian Political Action Committee and you'll be going to Sacramento to fight some of these bills." I never thought God would use what I thought was my one talent ¾ typing.

In 1993 my youngest daughter had a baby. Living in Arizona where the temperature was 120° in the summer, she had an old car with no air conditioning. I gave her my Toyota with air conditioning, so I needed a new car. God answered my prayers for a replacement car and blessed me with a brand new Cadillac. God spoke to me at the dealership, saying, "Use it for My glory." I’d always driven old jalopies. The car has been a blessing ¾ taking friends to church and church functions. Before he was saved my husband told me that I didn't deserve anything nice. You know what? God wants us to have nice things and be blessed. After my husband's salvation he wanted me to have the best.

God gave me visions and words of knowledge for my youngest granddaughter, preventing the devil from killing her in the womb and afterward.

God is good. He knows the beginning and the end. He's had His hand on me all my life, even while I was unsaved. He gave me favor with my bosses and well-paying jobs, enabling me to retire early with full medical benefits and retirement pay. He knew I was going to be a widow at 57 and has taken care of me financially. My church is a blessing and I'm excited to be able to give something back with my typing and secretarial skills. Also, with political activism, as prophesied by Pastor Gary.

Pain, tragedy, mistakes and evil things that were done to us or our own rebellion against God can be used by God to make something beautiful. Only God has the power to take pain and change it into gain.

God has taken all the pain, grief and sorrows and supplied all my needs. He has shown me that His love is the greatest thing on earth.

I thank God for the opportunity to share my life with you.