Testimonies from N.Y. City ( Adobe Acrobat)

Delia

"Today I stand before you whole and free and with a new heart with all the glory to God humbly, but God puts people in your life that lead you to that way, and Johanna from Finland was one of them and Monica was one of them."

• In March and May 2007 our church took short-term mission trips to New York City and partnered with the New York City Relief Bus Ministry to distribute soup, sandwiches, and clothing and pray with people. We met Delia Martinez at 124th and Park. Delia lives in "The Projects," low-income housing where 30 to 40,000 people live in a 15-to-20 floor apartment and most of the time the elevators don't work. Delia lives on the third floor with her son who was injured when a stray bullet hit him in the skull while he was sitting in their apartment.

• Delia was born in East Harlem, the second youngest in a family of 14. Her parents each brought 4 children from previous marriages and had six more children together. Her parents took her to church. They were good and caring parents and even though she had a humble background, they never went hungry. Four of Delia's older brothers did drugs and alcohol and she was exposed to it at age 6. At age thirteen she wanted "to do my own thing" and started to drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes and hid this from her parents for two years.

• "At age 17 my brother molested me and my sisters; we were taken from my parents and given to my mom's sister. When they came to arrest my brother, he committed suicide. This left me messed up in the head. I continued to use and by the time I was 17 I had a child, Julio. I abused alcohol and drugs when he was in my womb. The hospital had to get in touch with child protective services because of this. I wanted my baby even though I abused him in my womb. I felt rejected and said at least I have something I can love and I know it's going to love me back. So I complied with the program. When they gave me my son back, they gave me a worker from child services to check every month and see how I was doing. God had a plan for me because the worker they gave me was a Christian. Jose P. told me, "Delia, the Lord loves you."

• I told him, "There's no hope for me. I'm hopeless because I do alcohol and drugs and this is the life I am going to die in."

• Read Delia's journey to wholeness HERE.

More pictures from NYC coming...