December 2

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…” — Jeremiah 1:5

My name is Jasmine B. I was born in New Jersey and now live in Pennsylvania. When I look back on my life, I can clearly see that God knew me, had a plan for me, and was holding me long before I understood it.

My childhood was marked by instability. My mother had been a foster child and struggled to stay rooted, so my grandmother—her foster mother—raised me in the church. Though I was loved, I often felt a loneliness I couldn’t explain.

When my grandmother passed, I went to live with my mother. I met my biological father at age eleven, and by age twelve, my mother had also passed away. I felt like I didn’t belong anywhere.

Yet even then, God placed something in me. I was always the one others leaned on, offering encouragement, wisdom, and faith. I didn’t fit in with groups, but I stood out for being myself.

After many years of searching, I realized that I had always belonged to God. Through death, pain, rejection, poverty, abandonment, abuse, heartbreak, betrayal, and uncertainty, He never let go of me. I am still a work in progress, but I trust this: God makes no mistakes.

Today, I feel called to become a Faith-Based Life Coach to help others heal. People often carry silent pain, and our testimony may be the very thing that helps them find hope again.

This past year has been especially difficult. I am a stay-at-home mother and full-time caregiver to my spouse, who lost his limbs after a severe illness and spent over eight months in the hospital. Even so, God has allowed me to serve as the Women’s Ministry Leader at my church.

That is why I am so grateful for Christian Leaders Institute. CLI is giving me the opportunity to grow spiritually, learn, and be equipped to minister to God’s people— even in one of the hardest seasons of my life. The lessons are excellent, and the interactive church services have been such a blessing.