It was late summer 1971 when two Hippies and their son drove to Purdue University from California. We couldn’t get into the first showing of the movie Goodbye Columbus so we were waiting outside. A young couple, Cathy and Dave, stopped by and asked if they could talk with us about Christ in you. I said yes because I had been raised in a Lutheran church. However, my husband Tom was not interested and started arguing so I made the excuse to walk our child around. The first time I walked by Tom was still arguing. The second time he was listening. The third time he was on his knees in the grass praying to receive Jesus. I saw his life change overnight. He read the book of Revelations that night and started preaching to me! I was the one who knew the Bible, hymns, church and of course knew about Jesus. The Navigators invited me to a weekend conference where we went out witnessing. That was new to me.
Around Thanksgiving we drove from Indiana to Memphis Tennessee to see friends or should I say we slide sideways on ice the whole way. I was terrified. Tom asked me a question, “Joanne why are you afraid to die? If you had Jesus in your heart you wouldn’t be afraid anymore.” Two weeks later I woke him up in the middle of the night and said,”Tom! You have to pray with me! I have Jesus in my head, but not my heart.” I made Jesus Lord of my heart and have never been afraid to die since. 50 years later I still love Jesus and Cathy and Dave have been on NavStaff all these years and are serving in Georgia. Thank you Navigators for being an enormous part of my life.