32 Years ago on, January 27th 1980, God placed me on this earth to my lovely parents Andre B. Forman and H. Marina Lochner. I was born and raised in Germany with my handsome brother Andre B. jr. In 1997 I was blessed to also unite with my other brother Daniel Witherspoon.
I love Germany and miss it on occasion. I have many great and also very sad memories growing up, but all of them shaped me who I am today.
I grew up in an unstable home. Early on in my life, my parents got divorced and our family was split. Everything changes and things were getting worse. Drugs and alcohol run in our family, that kept the disconnect growing. At age 17, tragedy overcame my brother and me. We lost our dear beloved mother; because of the damage alcohol did inside of her body. My whole world was put on hold the second I found out. I felt so hurt, but realized that I had to stay strong and take care of my brother. From that day on my life has changed. From a teenager, I became a mother figure. I had to take care of all the bills, the household and my apprentice ship.
I have to thank the Lord, because in all this time while I was still a sinner and didn't know Him personally, He was watching over me. God was with me and provided His strength and grace. Isn't that amazing! God has been so merciful to me.
I thought I had my life in control. I thought I was managing fine. I was so busy with work, going to school, taking care of the apartment, managing the bills, taking care of my brother, but I forgot to take care of Nicole. My personal life was put on hold. I became very lonely and started to go out partying and try to have fun. How many of you know that is a lie and a huge trap!
I had the opportunity to be in modeling for 9 years and traveled to many beautiful places. I met wonderful people from different cultures and ate some yummy international food ;-). Over the years I evolved into a business person and it lead me to move to NYC. The fashion industry can either break you into insecurities, pressure, and fear, or make you stronger. I had a bit of everything. But thank God I didn’t allow the industry to take control of my life, instead God was using modeling to lead me to the Brooklyn Tabernacle.
In all those transitioning years I found myself in unhealthy relationships. I was treated very shamefully and felt worthless. The enemy is a liar. I have shared in some painful experiences, but what satan meant for evil, God uses it for good. I was at a desperate point in my life, which made my heart tender to receive Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior in June 2006. From there on out my life was changed for the better. You can read all of the wonderful blessings from a previous blog called, "Look what the Lord has done".
Today I'm rejoicing in the Lord and thank God for my journey. Even though there were some tough and sad moments, God sustained me and is using my story for His glory. I'm married to my best friend Todd Crews. We are so blessed to serve God along side of each other in full-time ministry and serve with the best young adults in NYC. God has placed us in a sweet spot and we exist to reach and raise up a generation to live for Jesus Christ.
I love Jesus, my dear beloved husband, my family, my friends and all the precious people God places in my life. You are all a part of my story and God used you to teach me many valuable lessons. You all know who you are and how much you all mean to me. I appreciate all of you and I thank God for doing life with you. I pray that God will continue to use me for His glory and bless me so I can bless others.
God I thank you for 32 years of life and for allowing me to experience your presence. You are my everything and I can't wait to see all you have in store for me. I follow you where ever you lead me. I'm forever yours and I will serve you until my last breath. I love you and worship you forever. Let your perfect will be done in my life. I'm your daughter and hope to put a smile on your face daily. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Blessings,
Nicole
http://about.me/nicolecrews
Happy Birthday! You have a beautiful testimony! What awesome plans He's had for you all along! We have quite a few things in common about where we came from. I look forward to when we hang out and can share. In the mean time, enjoy your day!
ReplyDeleteThank you Kate, I can't wait to have our coffee time ;-)
DeleteAww, I love this!
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