Hello,
My name is Rene Almada. I just want to share a little about my testimony so you can learn more about me.
I was born in Southern California and was raised in an alcoholic home. Shortly after my mom and dad divorced, my aunt and uncle moved in and they were the heavy drinkers in our home. My mom worked nights and my aunt and uncle took care of us usually drinking and fighting. I never felt loved or cared for but mostly lost and confused. I grew up angry with the things that happened in my life; the physical and sexual abuse were to much for me to bear so I fell into a world of drugs and alcohol from the age of 13 to 30 to relieve my pain.
I was addicted to every kind of drug you can think of but the hardest one to kick was heroin. I loved what it did to me. I was in complete oblivion and liked it that way. I didn’t have to feel and I did everything imaginable to get my next fix. I ended up in prison, mental institutions and treatment centers countless times and it was by the grace of God that I am not in prison for the rest of my life.
Through these years, I felt God’s presence. I did believe on Him as a little girl and talked with Him often. But as time went on and the hurts in life grew constant, I walked away from Him bitter and dissatisfied. But through it all, God saved me from countless ode’s, rape, and attempts on my life.
When I was in prison one night in my cell as I was looking at a picture of my family, I felt an awesome presense fill my cell. I felt that presense lay down beside me on my bunk and all of a sudden like a slide show I saw all my misdeads and shortcomings. I started to cry and the presense lying beside me started to cry too. I felt Him wrap His arms around me and felt a love so overwhelming that in my shame I wanted to crawl under my bunk and hide from this loving presence but He kept His arms aroung me and wouldn’t let go. My cell was lit up with a light so brilliant I had to cover my eyes. I knew what this presense was. It was God, the God of my childhood reaching out to me and drawing me near. After this experience I got up and went into the commen area and thought about it for a while. But in prison, there is no room for remorse, sadness, or weakness of any kind so I shook it off as nothing ever happened and soon forgot about the experience.
After I was released from prison, I went back to my old ways and didn’t come back to the Lord until ten years later while living in California with my family. One day in Church as I was skeptical, I wondered why all these people were so happy. I couldn’t understand the bible and the words that said that a new born baby was born in sin. I put the bible down and went a long my way until one day after a series of tragic events, a light turned on in my head. I picked up the bible and started in Genesis and read the whole bible in six months. God was working on my heart while I was reading and suddenly the things that alluded me made sense. I had good teachers a long the way when I would get stuck on a passage and from there on I gave my life to Jesus Christ. I asked Him to forgive my sins and cleanse my soul through His blood. Ever since then I’ve been passionate for the Lord and my studies from Him and others. I can truly say that my life experiences have been rough. They still are rough at times but I was a tough cookie to crack and the Lord had much work to do with me. He still does.
For the non-believer I can only ask that you read my testimony and consider your life and the emptiness one feels without a savior. It took me a long time to come around and I waisted a lot of time and energy on the wrong things. But now I consider myself confident to enter in the Lord’s presence and claim Him as my good friend and counselor. He is the most loving, kind, and caring savior I have ever witnessed. He showed me that in prison. Even in my disobedience, He loved me.
Thank you for reading my testimony and if I help just one person, I will be honored and grateful because of God’s grace to me, I can pass it on to others who are experiencing life’s turmoils. Thanks and God Bless…
by Rene Almanda-http://www.truelifelivingbooks.com/
My name is Rene Almada. I just want to share a little about my testimony so you can learn more about me.
I was born in Southern California and was raised in an alcoholic home. Shortly after my mom and dad divorced, my aunt and uncle moved in and they were the heavy drinkers in our home. My mom worked nights and my aunt and uncle took care of us usually drinking and fighting. I never felt loved or cared for but mostly lost and confused. I grew up angry with the things that happened in my life; the physical and sexual abuse were to much for me to bear so I fell into a world of drugs and alcohol from the age of 13 to 30 to relieve my pain.
I was addicted to every kind of drug you can think of but the hardest one to kick was heroin. I loved what it did to me. I was in complete oblivion and liked it that way. I didn’t have to feel and I did everything imaginable to get my next fix. I ended up in prison, mental institutions and treatment centers countless times and it was by the grace of God that I am not in prison for the rest of my life.
Through these years, I felt God’s presence. I did believe on Him as a little girl and talked with Him often. But as time went on and the hurts in life grew constant, I walked away from Him bitter and dissatisfied. But through it all, God saved me from countless ode’s, rape, and attempts on my life.
When I was in prison one night in my cell as I was looking at a picture of my family, I felt an awesome presense fill my cell. I felt that presense lay down beside me on my bunk and all of a sudden like a slide show I saw all my misdeads and shortcomings. I started to cry and the presense lying beside me started to cry too. I felt Him wrap His arms around me and felt a love so overwhelming that in my shame I wanted to crawl under my bunk and hide from this loving presence but He kept His arms aroung me and wouldn’t let go. My cell was lit up with a light so brilliant I had to cover my eyes. I knew what this presense was. It was God, the God of my childhood reaching out to me and drawing me near. After this experience I got up and went into the commen area and thought about it for a while. But in prison, there is no room for remorse, sadness, or weakness of any kind so I shook it off as nothing ever happened and soon forgot about the experience.
After I was released from prison, I went back to my old ways and didn’t come back to the Lord until ten years later while living in California with my family. One day in Church as I was skeptical, I wondered why all these people were so happy. I couldn’t understand the bible and the words that said that a new born baby was born in sin. I put the bible down and went a long my way until one day after a series of tragic events, a light turned on in my head. I picked up the bible and started in Genesis and read the whole bible in six months. God was working on my heart while I was reading and suddenly the things that alluded me made sense. I had good teachers a long the way when I would get stuck on a passage and from there on I gave my life to Jesus Christ. I asked Him to forgive my sins and cleanse my soul through His blood. Ever since then I’ve been passionate for the Lord and my studies from Him and others. I can truly say that my life experiences have been rough. They still are rough at times but I was a tough cookie to crack and the Lord had much work to do with me. He still does.
For the non-believer I can only ask that you read my testimony and consider your life and the emptiness one feels without a savior. It took me a long time to come around and I waisted a lot of time and energy on the wrong things. But now I consider myself confident to enter in the Lord’s presence and claim Him as my good friend and counselor. He is the most loving, kind, and caring savior I have ever witnessed. He showed me that in prison. Even in my disobedience, He loved me.
Thank you for reading my testimony and if I help just one person, I will be honored and grateful because of God’s grace to me, I can pass it on to others who are experiencing life’s turmoils. Thanks and God Bless…
by Rene Almanda-http://www.truelifelivingbooks.com/
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