OUR STORY
In December 2001 my husband was at work and he suddenly, without warning, lost his balance coming down stairs. Immediately, the left side of his body became numb and started tingling and his right leg could not support his weight. We went to the Emergency Room only to be admitted for a week of spine probing and fluid withdrawal, brain frying x-rays and many other invasive tests. All we were told was that his pupils were very dilated and that he either had Cancer or Multiple Sclerosis of the C7 portion of his spine – we were supposed to wait for 8 weeks to see if the lesion grew - if it grew he had cancer, if not, it was MS. We immediately started to pray – not for a cure, but for wisdom and discernment. God always answers our prayers but not always in the way we expect. As his family around him fell apart emotionally, I watched his acceptance at whatever God had planned for him and my tears flowed with submission to God’s will. I watched Dave plant seeds of faith in his children as he trusted the Lord with his health.
As I prayed the Lord reminded me of Psalm 41:1-3 which reads, “Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the Lord delivers him in times of trouble. The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness.” This was the hope I needed.
As the New Year approached I started my fourth-year round of Pneumonia or Bronchitis. Each year it progressively got worse and each year I had to take antibiotics for longer periods of time. As discouragement set in, my prayers led me to Proverbs 2:10-11 which reads, “For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.”
After Dave was released from the hospital we returned to church; Dave in a walker. Suddenly people from everywhere came to us and said, “you need to start BarleyMax and Carrot Juice.” I said, “What in the world are those?” A friend of mine gave me her copy of “God’s Way to Ultimate Health.” We were scheduled to take a four hour road trip to see my Mom, and I proceeded to read the book out loud to my family. Our 15 year old daughter was in the backseat with her CD headset on. As I consumed the words I was reading I knew God was giving me the wisdom I prayed for. Coming from the Standard American Diet, and realizing the “drastic” change that would be needed, I started to think, “God, surely THIS is not what you have in mind for us!” At eight weeks, Dave’s doctor confirmed he had MS and that
PURPOSE STATEMENT
Providing support and reaching people, one by one, in our churches, and in our community to educate, empower, and encourage them to take control of their health and bodies by offering hope in place of despair, God's peace rather than fear, and to get in balance; body, mind and spirit. To improve quality of life so we can fulfill God's purpose for our lives.
he was to start taking the A, B or C drug for the rest of his life. We refused all the toxic choices and told the doctor we were going to look for an alternative.
As I prayed and contemplated this change I was working as a Financial Controller at our church. A pastor brought a young lady into my office and suggested I listen to her testimony. One year previously she had MS so severely she was in a wheel chair, her body riddled with pain daily and she had refused all drug therapy. She had 12 lesions (11 in her brain and 1 in her spine – Dave only had 1 in his spine). She went on this diet and in six months her lesions were one-half the size. After one year her MS was gone and today she teaches aerobics. I cried as I realized that she was God’s confirmation to me that this Hallelujah Diet was the answer to my prayers. At the time, I didn’t consider myself to have that many health problems (quite delusional I might add), but I knew that if I didn’t do this diet WITH Dave it wouldn’t be successful, as I was the one preparing our family’s meals. I did not want to loose my husband to disease and was willing to do anything to help him. With my Lord at my side I began to consume knowledge to understand HOW to do this thing, HOW to feed my family, HOW to renew my mind.
God has blessed our efforts. For years I prayed that Dave and I would have a ministry we could do together (we both were very active in our church, me in Women’s bible study and Dave in First Impressions Ministry) – I just didn’t realize that Dave would have to become ill for that ministry to be born. God began a good work in us!
We started the diet immediately. Our 15 year old daughter had overheard me reading in the car and on the way home she ordered her usual cheeseburger and fries at a restaurant. She took one bite and said, “I will never eat meat again. I heard everything you read and don’t want to get sick like my daddy.” So as a family we ventured on the journey to health, basically alone, except for a couple of wonderful health ministers from Bradenton, Florida.
In July 2002 we decided to go to the Health Minister training session in Shelby. We went for knowledge – that perhaps this knowledge would help make this easier for us. We were inspired by the 200+ people who shared their testimonies and we loved the heart of Rev. Malkmus. We watched the video by Ed Foreman and were asked to belly-laugh for a solid minute - for the first time since Dec. 2001, Dave’s 24/7 MS symptoms disappeared for a whole day. That gave us renewed hope and faith that we were on the right path. Some time during that week our minds and hearts were transformed. We knew we had to become health ministers and share this with others – everyone we know is sick in some way or another! Our Back to Eden ministry was born in September 2002 and we have touched over 1200 lives since its beginning.
Following are the health improvements we have experienced:
Dave – Threw his walker away – most days his MS symptoms are non-existent, Gone are: Severe arthritic pain (used to take 800 mg of Ibuprofen twice a day), Facial Cancers, 49 pounds, Body Odor, Toe Fungus, Acid Reflux, Headaches, Snoring, Undiagnosed Chest Lump, Severe Joint Pain, Bad Breath and he is now growing hair back on his head - a bald spot he has had for twenty plus years.
Sherry – Off Blood Pressure and Thyroid medicine (taken for 10 years), Facial wrinkles lessened and Healthier Hair. Healed and gone are: Allergies, 63 pounds, Three years Bronchitis/Pneumonia (has never returned), Athletes Foot, Bladder Incontinence healed, Acid Reflux, Body Odor, Bad Breathe, Dandruff, Bleeding Gums, Large Bunion almost gone, Shoulder Joint Pain from previous injuries, Hand, Face and Facial Skin smoother, Back Moles disappearing and for 32 years I was Anemic and now give blood regularly.
H A L L E L U J A H ! ! !
We have all been sickness free since January 2002 and are enjoying God’s promise of abundant health and joy. We are enjoying improved health and quality of life and now feel we can fulfill God’s purpose in our lives.