Article | - 1:38 pm
Julie's Story
I moved to the US at 12 to live with family members for a better education. It turned out differently than planned. It was a living hell when I moved in with my family members.
I was mentally abused and physically, which tore me down a lot. Even though I grew up in church, I felt like God wasn’t there for me. I didn’t know how to communicate with Him.
Going to middle school, I got influenced a lot by my peers. I was peer-pressured into watching pornography and going to parties. Growing up in church, I never saw any of that, so it was new and exciting to me. And I got deeper and deeper into it, but the more I got deeper into it, the more depressed I became.
I used to have a lot of sleepless nights, insomnia, and I couldn’t breathe. Sometimes I would go outside and gasp for air. I had the sensation as if my heart had stopped beating.
Within the home, even though they said they believed in God, they were not a good example to me. So I just started following the patterns of my family members. I was depressed all the time, had anxiety, and was just flat-out rude to everyone.
I had a lot of suicidal thoughts and tried getting help from my psychiatrist at school, and I told him everything that was happening and how I was feeling. He called my house and told my family, which worsened everything at home. I would sit there and cry and say it didn’t make sense to live anymore.
My mom would never stop praying and using her faith for me, and what touched me the most was when she moved here to the USA to help me.
I realized that someone was on my side. I slowly began coming to The Universal Church with her, taking it more seriously, and participating in the Chains of Prayer.
It took me about 6 months to get rid of the anxiety and the depression and for that “weight” to fall off my shoulders.
Three to four years later, I received the Holy Spirit. It was a process because forgiving my family members who had abused me took a lot.
It took a lot of courage to say, “You did this, but it’s all in the past.” It took me a while, but God touched me and started working with me. I finally let go of all the hurt and the past. I overcame the situation, the depression, the anxiety, the voices in my head, and the suicidal thoughts.
Everyone in my family came to Christ, and today we are happy. We don’t have any more arguments. Finally, everything is peaceful.
Just keep pushing through and putting God first. He really does care for you. If you give Him a chance and open your heart, He listens.
He helps you let go of everything you are holding on to that is weighing you down and making you feel heavy. So, draw closer to God, and He will draw closer to you.
– Julie Armstrong, from Texas
