CHRISTINE AND BRETT – CHICAGO, ILLINIOS
CHRISTINE AND BRETT – CHICAGO, ILLINIOS “We are Christine and Brett and we met on February 5th, 1980. Engaged on May 10th and married on February 14th, 1981. We are blessed with six children and 16 grandchildren. Yes, at age 19, we married young, probably not ready for what life had in store for us. At age 34, we owned our own business, the IGA grocery store in our town. His first job was at age 15. Our marriage was facing a lot of difficulties in some regards. We were helping raise our oldest granddaughters, and my mother was in a nursing home 2 hours away. At the time, we were two people living in the same house and not really seeing each other. In November 2018, Brett returned from work and declared that he was finished with our marriage. It totally blindsided me. We’d been married for more than 37 years. I discovered he was being unfaithful to me after three months of in-home separation. My first instinct was to tell him to leave. But God had another plan. I prayed and sought the Lord about what to do. I didn’t say anything, but when I came home from a walk Brett had his clothes packed. I said, “But I didn’t ask you to leave,” so he stayed, still in the basement. I started praying and seeking the Lord like never before and made a prayer closet for the first time. During the summer of 2020, I found Jason Carver’s Standing Supernaturally for Marriage Restoration group. That was the start of an awesome move of God for me. My struggle was very real, and I cried so much every day, some days more, some days less. Every day, I prayed for restoration. I knew the Lord had brought us together, and I believed with all my heart and by faith that the Lord was going to restore our family. Yes, there were times I had doubts. One day, after 18 months, I thought I was at the end and cried out to the Lord, saying I was done. “Show me, Lord, what You want me to see.” I was thinking of the scripture, “Nothing is impossible with God.” I opened my Bible, and it immediately went to Mark 10:27, where Jesus said, “With men this is impossible. But not with God, with God all things are possible.” I knew then to stand for our marriage and to stay standing. I faltered a few times but got right back up, praying even more for restoration. Something happened suddenly on October 2nd, 2021. Brett and I had gone camping with our daughter. I thought it was going to be awkward. He rented a camper. The first night, I wasn’t sure where to sleep as the camper was small, with one bed and a table that converted to a bed. Brett said I could sleep in the bed with him. Coming from a man who said one year before that he would never share a bed with me, ever. BUT GOD! The first night, we slept back to back. The next night, I said I couldn’t do this; it hurt too much. His next sentence was, let’s promise not to talk about the past and move on. He held me for a long time. Full restoration was a little slow at first. On our walk the next morning, he held my hand. Our daughter could sense everything was changing for the better. We go on dates once a week now. Our lives are still busy, but we make time for each other, whether it’s going for a drive and out to dinner or just sitting on the back porch listening to worship music. Brett now says I love you multiple times a day, and we are having the best time of our lives. We are praying together and working things out like never before. My stand would definitely not have been as strong if not for the encouragement and prayers from the group Standing Supernaturally for Marriage Restoration and my prayer warriors by my side. Prayer times with small groups are a must. I did my most important praying on my knees for my husband’s heart to be restored back to the Father. And God has answered. Jason and Christine Carver with Standing Supernaturally are a blessing, and I am so grateful for their obedience to the Lord. Abba Father will never give up on you. He is faithful to complete what He started. Trust His timing and faithfulness. God’s got this — never give up!” Christine was a member of our 12-week e-course called “The Standing Supernaturally Academy.” This 12-week course was designed to train those standing for their marriage to walk in supernatural hope, joy, and power! For info on how to sign up and join the Academy, go to www.StandingSupernaturally.com/Academy
