Susan Navarro
During my upbringing years, I was very successful, both academically and in sports, particularly in track and field, and consequently, didn’t see my need for God. But when I got to college, God used an experience of failure in one of my chemistry classes to bring me to faith in Christ. It was the first time that I understood my need for a Savior. I believe that God still uses failure to bring us to Christ on a regular basis. During those college years, I was discipled through Nurses Christian Fellowship and Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. It was there that I met my husband.
Not long after being married, God called my husband and me into the ministry. I have served as a ministry and pastor’s wife for twenty-eight years.
And as the result of that experience, God has placed it upon my heart to encourage, befriend and to serve as a spiritual coach to other ministry wives. I want to help them abide in Christ to know the Lord’s loving presence in the midst of their busyness, loneliness, ups and downs, ministry demands and spiritual warfare that occurs regularly in a pastor’s family.
During the years that my husband was a pastor, he also taught at Denver Seminary and both of us had the opportunity to serve in their training and mentoring program. I loved the opportunities I had to be a spiritual friend and mentor to women who were in seminary. I am also involved with the Restoring Connections program, learning how to offer spiritual direction to those who are economically poor, homeless, or in otherwise marginalized circumstances.
In my own life, God used a very special spiritual director who helped me grow in my love relationship with Jesus. Now I would like to do that for others. One of the most helpful books for me was Practicing His Presence, a compilation of writings by Brother Lawrence and Frank Laubach. I’ve worked with Laubach’s Games with Minutes, which are methods of staying mindful of God’s Presence throughout the day. I was also introduced to Renovare during these years with my mentor.
Finally, I have also been a part of children’s ministries for eighteen years and want to develop spiritual formation resources for children to help them grow in their love relationship with Jesus. Many resources for children’s ministries are focused on good advice and not Good News. Very few resources introduce children to a God who loves them and wants to have a real relationship with them. This is what I envision helping develop: curriculum that reminds kids that God loves them and that He is with them.