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God has been on my side so much to get me through so much more than I would ever expect, getting me out of toxic relationships and putting me in a healthy one. It may be hard sometimes, but God can get you through anything.
Times may get hard, but just know God’s got you.
God encouraged me to finish school and walk across that stage with my friends.
Many things I may go through, I know God’s got my back.
There were many times where there was stuff I couldn’t get through, but I prayed and prayed that I’ll get through it and I got through it.
I moved to Brunswick and lost hope because I left everything in Florida, but I’m gaining my hope back with the amazing friends!
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When I went to Basic Training or Boot Camp, for the Air Force, I didn’t think I’d make it.
I was mentally unprepared and out of shape due to my weight. So in that moment of weakness, I prayed.
I prayed every night and went to church every Sunday. I told God my secrets and insecurities. I gave Him everything. The last week, we had a final PT test that determined if you graduated.
Because of God I passed and got to see my family. Because of Him, I am making it. Prayer and action works!
United States of America
Born Kenyatta Sirena Lowe 11-20-1991. My mom wanted to name me Spring. My mother was a single parent. Who came from a single parent. She raised four kids on her own, with little help. I witnessed what God could do at a young age. We always had what we needed. Living in government housing always felt like an abundance. My mother’s mentality was “greater.” Before I started my 5th-grade year, my mom bought a house in Pooler, GA, on her own. I remember her ranting for years before how she’d buy this house and celebrate by playing Jesse Powell’s song “You” loud on her stereo. In the kitchen of this house, she also married my bonus dad.
In 2008, February 7th, the Imperial Sugar explosion would take her life and take her from us. She suffered four weeks in the Augusta burn unit before succumbing to her injuries. My mother worked 12-16 hours faithfully, and the value of her life was determined by white-collared white men who did not know her.
I would suffer with healing for ten years. In 2013, I married and had my first child in 2015. I filed for divorce in 2016 after I had enough of the abuse. I was pregnant with my second child. Now a mother of one daughter and son, we struggled with stability for one year before moving in with family in October 2017. From 2018-2019, I would work warehouse jobs, barely making ends meet for my kids until finally declaring to God that I’d had enough.
In January 2019, I received a full-time job, and on April 15th, 2020, on my daughter’s 5th birthday, I purchased my second home. I had no money saved because I couldn’t afford to save, but God covered all expenses. I had no money for closing, but I received money back. After a year of being in our home, I had started two businesses while working full-time, and I felt a tug in my heart that led me to leap. I thought of my mother and knew God had called me for more. He wanted more for my family. On June 17th, 2021, I quit my 9-5 to be a full-time business owner. God said it. Jeremiah 29:11
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The Lord has blessed me with the skills to work with children to teach them how to start a business. For some reason, I was unable to get help from the local church to host or support the program. However, God made a way and opened doors in the community, allowing me to work with young entrepreneurs. When COVID-19 shut everything down, my love and faith in God grew even more. During this time, God showed me how to rewrite the program and how to focus on this new teachable way to help the children even more.
The program would need a new home and I trusted that God would provide a space to use where I didn’t have to load and unload every week as my hip issues at the time made it hard to do. One day I called Pastor Baker where I had been a guest speaker a couple of years prior. He allowed me to use his church fellowship hall for the school year 2021 and open a virtual learning center for West Savannah youth who attended a community school that needed a space to learn and had Internet access. Through Faith I showed up and volunteerd for nine months. I obeyed the calling God had for me during this uncertain period of the pandemic.
The church has a house building on the property. I had used it years prior when I tried to help the woman in some way that may help them with their reading program. While volunteering I spoke with the pastor about the building, which was/is currently being used for storage. It seemed perfect for the kids entrepreneur, club sessions for the West Savannah area youth in any community families that would like to join our Saturday Academy.
Through patience and faith, God has opened the doors for me to offer the program and use of the space to give the program a new home.
I can tell you I went through some rough travels to get and stay on the road that God has me on. It has not been easy and I felt a lot of hurt along the way. I have asked God on many occasions why me? But I trust Him and have faith that He always makes a way even when I don’t see how. But in my heart, I always know he will have his way. I work to do His will, and know every step I take, He has for me to do for his glory.
Schenelle
United States of America
I lived in Savannah, GA, 40 years ago, and loved it. My daughter was born there at 24 weeks old, and we lost her twin brother. She is a miracle and shouldn’t have survived (she was 1 lbs. 7 oz. at birth). She is a miracle in and of herself.
We’ve always wanted to come back, but my husband and I have both been self-employed, and it’s never easy to restart a business in a new place. Even though I’m from the north east, it’s frankly never felt like home. Over the last few years, with the changing political climate and a loss of moral compass, it felt less and less like home. Well, on a trip to the Outer Banks in May 2020, I suddenly realized that we probably had the chance if I acted fast to make a move back to Savannah. As a result of Covid a lot of my work had become remote. It was now legal for me to treat my patients on Zoom from anywhere. We put our house on the market that summer and, after a few twists and turns, sold it for quite a bit more than we paid. We knew that if we waited at all to take action, market conditions might change for the worst and they did. This was God speaking to us I know.
We came to Savannah to buy here and homes were selling right out from under us. We weren’t really considering Rincon at all as we wanted it to be somewhere in Savannah proper but anytime we made an offer on something it sold out from under us.
My husband and I were having dinner at a downtown restaurant. A text came in from our broker with a photo of a house in Rincon. We looked at it and immediately knew it was home even before seeing it. Our offer was immediately accepted. The move itself presented many challenges. But we are exactly where God wanted us to be. We love the neighborhood and the wonderful folks. We met and our next-door neighbors introduced us to Compassion. We love it and feel so blessed most importantly, my husband due to his unfortunate exposure to church as a child hadn’t been to church in about 50 years. Now he’s is the first one out the door for church and we both love it. We know it’s all God’s hand.
