Saved by Grace Established in Faith

Colossians 2:6-7

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.

Comments

A very unique and practical book. Personally, I believe this book should be in every home. And why? Because it was written, not by an internationally known author, but by a woman of faith who has come out of mire of life and into the knowledge of how to walk into victory. This is the victory that, through faith, our Creator has provided unto all of mankind through Christ.

Pastor Teri Maher lives life right where the rubber hits the road. She works amongst the poor, the prisoners, the hurting - those who society tends to reject. She genuinely loves people! These are the very lives that God loves passionately and wants to help become victorious in all respects!

So, no matter who you are and where you are in life, this simple-to-read book, which is full of short stories of faith, is for you as it is for me and those whom I serve in life.

Rick Daviscourt

President

Restoring Children International

Foreword

––––––––

My husband will have known Teri for three years as of October 2016, and I have gotten to know her over the last year or so. We have both read her book, and my husband has heard many of her life’s stories. We both are honored and blessed to know Teri. Her book reveals one of the most captivating, faith-filled, real life experiences that you will ever read. You can hardly put it down after you begin reading. Teri makes the Word of God first place in her life, and she has an unwavering faith and trust in God! In her book, one can see how she stood on God's Word in the midst of tremendous trials and heartaches. We enjoyed how, in her book, she communicates with the Lord, knowing that He's right there by her side! You can see from reading her book that Teri trusts God and has an approving relationship with Him. She is a woman of inner strength and beauty that cannot be gotten any other way than by spending time with her Heavenly Father. 

Teri knows what it's like to do spiritual warfare and to not give in or shrink back. She knows that God has her back and that He'll back His Word. Teri walks in victory and is experiencing the abundant life that God desires for her. She knows what it's like to fight the good fight of faith and what it’s like to overcome. Her book is one you could read over and over again and still be inspired each time you read it. 

We are delighted to see how Teri is honored, loved, and respected by her husband, children, and grandchildren. Though life was not always easy for her, she has proven over and over again that God is faithful and that you, too, can walk and talk with Him and know that He will answer when you call upon His wonderful name ~ Jesus!

Teri is a lover of Jesus and has His compassion, and she takes great joy in every answered prayer, even when the answer doesn't always come immediately. She knows in her heart the answer is on its way! She believes in miracles!!! Her every test has turned out to be an amazing testimony!

Now to the reader: You won't be disappointed. Blessings on all who read this book, and may you experience life and life more abundantly here on earth.

Dean and Marilyn Braxton

Dean Braxton Ministries

Introduction

When You Hear God’s Voice

I always knew that God spoke to those who were seeking His will. I knew this, because of a story I had heard my mom tell many times. My great-grandma was in deep mourning and sadness because her son had died, and she was not sure he had gone to heaven. She would go out into her yard to cry and pray that her son had indeed gone home to be with the Lord. One day while she was praying and crying out to the Lord, she heard Him say weep no more, your son is with me. Her family said that from that day forward, my great-grandmother was at peace, because she knew her son was in heaven.

Because of this story, I have always been open to believing that we can hear God’s voice. I always felt I knew what God wanted, and He often gave me advice, but it was spiritually, through thought. Many refer to this knowing as our conscious talking to us. I had never audibly heard God’s voice, but all that changed the day my pastor unexpectedly left the church I was attending.

I was a member of a little church in a small town, with only about 10 active members regularly attending. Keeping the church going with very small weekly offerings was a constant concern. About six of us stayed behind after our pastor left, trying to decide what to do next. My thought was to just close the doors and go somewhere else. I was tired of fighting to keep the doors open. Our church had endured several splits in recent years, and I just wanted a peaceful place to worship God. Several others wanted to keep the church open; more to prove a point to a neighboring church, than because of any real desire to see this church full of worshipers again.

The six of us began discussing what it would take to get a new pastor, with only ten active members. There were suggestions of getting a student pastor from the local Christian college, which was located ten miles away. I reminded people that we had not been paying our previous pastor, so we would need to find a pastor who had his or her own congregation who was looking for a church building to want to come to our church.

I was sure I wanted to close the doors, and I was just as sure no one was going to change my mind. No one that is, except God. I had closed my eyes and said a little prayer, asking God if we should close the church or find another pastor.

Immediately I heard God say, go to Christian Ambiance and get Teri. How did I know it was God? Believe me, when you hear God speak, you will know it is Him.

Amazingly, I hardly knew Teri. I had heard her sing several times at our church before it had split several times, and she had given her testimony once. I knew Teri had a Christian Bookstore, but until I heard God speak to me, I didn’t even know she was a pastor. But as quickly as I questioned whether or not she was a pastor, I knew that she was a pastor with her own congregation and in need of a church building. How did I know? God must have downloaded it in me. Simply, I knew, that I knew, what I knew. And what I knew was that Teri was a pastor.

I took another lady with me, and we went directly to Christian Ambiance, the bookstore she owned. We found Teri there, talking with some of her congregation. Thank you, Lord, you sent me to a wonderful pastor, who at this very time, was standing in faith with her congregation for a church building.

I have never wavered in my belief that God spoke to me that day as He had spoken to Teri days earlier in a dream, showing her that she would soon be moving into a new church building.

Because I listened to what God had said, I now belong to a wonderful, loving church family where I have seen signs, miracles, and wonders many times. I now know miracles are for today’s believers, just as they were for those who were touched by the very hand of Jesus. I know I am a child of God and that I have work to do helping to increase His kingdom. When I think this, I realize how blessed I am and how thankful I am that God loved this group of believers so much that He actually spoke our church into existence.

Pastor Rita Wilson

Chapter 1

God, Why Did I Marry Six Times?

I was crying out loudly to God, soaked from tears streaming down my face, as I sat sobbing on my kitchen floor. I was overwhelmed by my circumstances and couldn’t understand where my hope lay. I had a casual knowledge of God, but no understanding of God as a loving Father or Jesus as Lord of life.

Why had I been married six times, yet I was still extremely unhappy? I had felt each new marriage would bring me closer to the elusive happiness I was searching for. Suicidal thoughts now filled my mind. Although I was afraid to do it, death seemed to be easier than continuing to live in this unhappy condition. Being consumed with and agreeing with sick, negative emotions; I believed that everyone I knew (my husband, children, family, and friends) would all be better off without me. I felt I had nothing to offer them.

At this time in my life, I was a cosmetologist and owner of my own salon; and it seemed as though I never had enough. I never felt able to meet the needs of my family. I wasn’t able to pay the bills on time, which made me feel like a failure to everyone and at everything I tried to do. I had thoughts of being unloved and unwanted. I suffered from stress and anxiety and was living in a state of constant depression. Nothing seemed to work out, and I was feeling sorry for myself.

Despite my state of mind, another Christmas season had come and gone. I had undecorated and taken down the tree in the living room and headed out the front door, dragging the tree behind me. I was taking it to the creek behind our house in the country.

I soon discovered that wearing flip flops in January wasn’t a wise thing to do. As I was throwing the tree into the creek, I experienced pain in my big toe. I had made contact with a thorn from some brush at the edge of the creek. At this time in my life, it only took a little something to go wrong to ruin my whole day. I was upset about the thorn in my toe, but inside my soul, I was deeply hurting and in pain. As usual, when something went wrong or did not go according to my plans, my thoughts went to blaming others for my problems.

Feeling sorry for myself, I made my way back to the house. As anger began rising up within me, questions and negative thoughts were coming to my mind, like: Why couldn’t my husband, Tom, have taken this tree out for me? Where is he anyhow? He’s never around when I need him! He doesn’t really care about me. He only cares about his work and everyone else. He never spends any time with me. He will help anyone else in need, but not me.

My feelings and emotions really started taking over as I thought, Well we have made it through another holiday season of buying presents; decorating; and cooking for six children, grandchildren, and other family; as we continued growing and multiplying. There were pressured thoughts and heavy feelings from living in a world where what you have equates to who you are. Christmas fun was over, but the bank loan for making it possible still existed. And when the balance of this loan would be paid off in June, it would be time to borrow again.  Dread had set up in my mind. How is it enjoyable having to worry about everything and having to live like this? Life as I knew it had become a burden. As a mother, I wanted my children to have great things and nothing less than everyone else had. I wanted them taken care of in every way possible. I loved my family very much and wanted to give them more than I had to give, and didn’t know how to do it. I wanted them to have the best!

Tom and I had only been married two years at this time; a new relationship and a blended family at that. His job as a pork producer and owner-operator of a grain elevator required his working many long hours, to build his own successful corporation. We lacked healthy communication and fellowship. I did not recognize that he was trying to do the same thing that I was: loving his family the only way he knew how, by providing for us through hard work.

Because I was expecting Tom