By Bobby Davis
The Holy Spirit moves in marvelous ways upon the hearts of God’s children. Consider how He used 3ABN and a mother’s prayers to reach Colin and Judy Marshall from Salisbury, England.
Difficult Childhood
“I thought I stumbled onto 3ABN in 2003, in my birthplace of Nassau, Bahamas,” Judy begins, “But of course I know better. It was the Holy Spirit leading! I was amazed they weren’t begging for money, like the other religious channels, and as I listened, the Bible seemed to come alive and finally make sense. But this story really started long ago,” she adds.
“My parents were both artists and became Seventh-day Adventists early in their marriage. But by the time I was born, my father had decided to return to the Catholic faith, so that’s how we were raised,” Judy says. “In my early teens I left that religion because I never had any faith in confession, nor did I believe in purgatory. It amazed me that God supposedly loved us so much, but would burn someone in hell forever and ever!”
Although she had eight siblings, Judy says her father never showed interest in anyone but her. “He would return from his long trips abroad, his trunk overflowing with expensive clothes for me—and nothing for my baby sister or anyone else. I truly hated him for those things!” she recalls.
“After a thirty-five-year stormy marriage, my parents divorced—something mother tried to do several times before, but his death threats had always stopped her. Shortly after that, he returned to the house with a shotgun and blasted the walls until all the shells were gone. Miraculously, everyone was spared!”
After a nasty court battle, her Mother obtained custody of Judy and her younger sister, but a year later, Judy’s father convinced her to come study in Miami, Florida.
“Well, you can’t trust the devil,” she says, “because once I was enrolled, he announced that I’d never see my mother again! After many months, I managed to make a collect call to Mother and some people came and took me away from Daddy. But they put me in an orphanage, and all I could think was, How can I be in an orphanage when I have a family? I was there for five months until Mother finally won custody and I was returned to Nassau.”
Unfortunate Choices
“I gave my heart to the Lord in a evangelical church when I was fifteen, and I dreamed of becoming an evangelist,” Judy says. “But I eloped, instead, with my English boss a year later! He was twenty-nine and I was sixteen. He was an atheist, and I didn’t stand a chance!”
The plan was to get married in Mexico and then come back to Nassau in a few days. But soon Judy discovered that he had lied about being divorced and now he planned to fly to his mother’s place in Switzerland and tell everyone they were married.
Racked with guilt and shame, Judy wondered how she would ever face her family again—“And that’s what he was banking on!” she says. “Mother never received the letter I gave him to mail, and it almost killed her. She hardly ate for months!”
Six weeks later, they were in England, and Judy says their first year was fun—but the next seven were hellish. “The lies, gambling, womanizing, and physical abuse were awful, and after he managed to wring out the last drop of love and pity I had, I left him with my five-year-old and three-month-old baby when he was on another one of his ‘business trips.’ ”
Colin
Judy met Colin in 1978 and moved to Hong Kong, where eventually they married. “Colin was a loving and caring husband, and a good father to my daughter. But my ex had whisked my son away to Scotland, and it was killing me,” she says.
“My mother came to visit, and it must have broken her heart to see me smoking, drinking, and living in sin. My seven-year-old told me that Mother spent entire nights on her knees! We’d often sing hymns from her worn hymnal, and then I’d ask her to tell me Bible stories, which I could never get enough of!”
After Hong Kong, the Marshalls moved to Brunei, Saudi Arabia, and England before returning to the Bahamas. But stress was taking a heavy toll on their marriage.
“Recession was creeping in, and with all the stress from my beauty business, I began to enjoy my ice-cold chardonnay and my evening ciggies even more,” Judy says. “I pleaded with God to help my business, and to help me stop drinking and smoking. What is wrong with me? I wondered as I cried myself to sleep so many nights. Why has God turned His back on me?
“I was reading the Bible and going to church on Sundays. I had answered many altar calls, but in my heart I knew I wasn’t saved. I was sure that God had taken His Holy Spirit away from me!”
Back and Forth
“We left the Bahamas again and went to Pakistan, Nepal, Africa, and India, living worldly lives. By now we were both searching, but God seemed so elusive. Then when we moved back to the Bahamas in 2002, I decided it was time to get serious about where I would be spending eternity. My ninety-eight-year-old mother died, and I really wanted to see her again someday, so I decided to attend her church. I knew in my heart that Saturday was the true Sabbath, but I didn’t think I could keep it because it was such a big shopping day!
“I also tried to quit smoking and drinking, but it was impossible. I would throw away a pack in the morning, and by evening I’d be buying another one! It was degrading! I was a strong woman and very health-conscious. Why couldn’t I give it up? I cried to the Lord so many times to help me, but He seemed to stay silent.”
A few weeks after her mother’s death, Judy had a series of vivid dreams about God’s Judgment Day. “I knew He was trying to change my heart, so when an evangelistic series came up, I attended every day for two weeks,” she says. “I was in full battle for my life night after night as the speaker made altar calls. I felt the Holy Spirit pulling me, but I resisted.
“Then, just before the meetings were over, I was on my knees praying for strength to give my heart to Jesus when suddenly those awful dreams flashed before my eyes.
“As I struggled, the pastor who had come to our home several times knelt down beside me and whispered, ‘Sister Judy, don’t grieve away the Holy Spirit. Have courage, sister!’ I am sure the Holy Spirit guided him to my side, since I was among hundreds of people.”
“I got up—and immediately felt as if heavy chains fell away from me! A few days later I was baptized on Sabbath in the beautifully warm Nassau ocean. From that moment on, I had no desire for wine and cigarettes. I was free!
“When I surrendered my cherished sins, God took them from me!
“Psalm 66:18 says, ‘If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.’ But I praise God for Jesus’ promise in John 8:36: ‘If the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.’ Glory to God!”
Another Victory
By now Judy had been watching 3ABN regularly, and says that Colin’s heart was stirred by the Prophecy Code series with Pastor Doug Batchelor. “It was a three-week series, and I wondered how I’d get him to watch that long,” she admits. “But a week or so before the series began, he came in while Doug was telling his story about how he lived in a cave. He stood and watched for a long time, then sat down and watched it to the end. I knew the Holy Spirit was preparing the way!”
Although he’d shown some interest in the Bible when he was young, Colin had been sidetracked during his university years. But after three weeks with Doug Batchelor, his heart was stirred. He was especially interested in the Proverbs, because the wisdom it contained blended well with his business of arbitration and adjudication.
In 2005, Colin’s business took them to Sri Lanka, where they attended an Adventist church in Colombo. He also watched House Calls on 3ABN, and had many questions answered. “But Colin was a hard nut to crack!” Judy says. “If you look up stubborn in the dictionary, you just might see his face!”
Next, they moved to Georgia in 2008 and found a wonderful church in Canton, outside of Atlanta, where Judy says “a very seasoned English elder and a South African pastor took Colin under their wings and fast forwarded him in deep Bible study. He soaked it up like a sponge, and in a few months he was baptized on my birthday! It was the best birthday present ever!
“Years before, when I suggested tithing, Colin would look at me as if I was barking mad, and said we worked too hard to give away what little profit we made. But now he was ready, and God was true to His promise by blessing us more than we could ever have expected!”
Colin takes every opportunity to share the gospel, especially through his work abroad, settling construction disputes. “It’s amazing that people are so ready to talk about Jesus and the Bible in places like Ethiopia and Eastern Europe,” Judy says. “It gives him much encouragement to do the same back here in the U.K.—even if he draws a blank now and then!
“We both thank God for my mother’s prayers. They reached both of us—even after her death! We pray for our four kids and twelve grandkids, confident that one day they’ll know Jesus like we do! We also thank God for 3ABN and all the pure Bible truth over the years, and we’re thankful we have you here by satellite, since we have no Adventist church nearby! However, we are planning to start a Bible study group, so please pray for us!
“When I look back on how God put us together and how He kept His loving hand on us, I’m in total awe of His long-suffering and deep love for His children!”