Desrae | S.H.A.P.E. Story
So when I was 18, I went off to college and that was an experience that I didn't necessarily know how to manage per se, and just was living a pretty party, wonderful life. And I got involved with a young man, and well, next thing you know, Desrae is going to have a baby. So that was ... I don't even know. It was very surreal to see those two pink little lines and you're like, "Oh my goodness." But it was exciting, but all at the same time, I was scared to death. What am I going to do? Where am I going to go? I don't even have a place of my own and I'm ready to be a mom? Made the best decision I thought what was best for me, it's very way. So I went to a clinic and it was taken care of, and in that moment, I didn't think I was going to survive.
So years later and through many miracles that happened, I ended up here at Westside Family Church. I heard in the service or one of the connect cards or wherever, everything online, is the SHAPE Assessment. And I remember asking, "Is that for me?" I'm kind of in a weird place. I'm not on staff, but I companion work directly with Jason Morris through the online ministry and where we see thousands of people, which is amazing. I didn't know it was possible to minister to people halfway across the world. Why not, give it a try?
So I took the SHAPE Assessment. I got an email from Amy saying, "Are you ready for the next step?" And I'm like, "Okay." So I scheduled with Debbie. The words that came out of my mouth, the verse where it says, "They bubble up from your heart," I couldn't have stopped it if I tried. But it was because she was listening with her heart, I felt no need whatsoever to edit. She's like, "I have this woman that has been working in the past with post-abortive women." And I'm like, "Really? You do that here?" I thought I was just going to be a part of the group. I'm going to be leading the group in the fall.
So not only do I get to now reach the lost through the online community, I also get to minister to a different group of lost, women lost in shame, women that are struggling with their past that keep them from their brightest future, and I am absolutely scared to death. So for Westside Family Church to be willing to come alongside women, it's an honor to be a part of that.
-Desrae Richter