God Is

Biography Everyone has a story to tell. The 'Fifth Gospel', the personal one, of God's revelation of Himself to just you, and only you. And that's how Jesus comes to each of us, as if we were the only person in His world. We need to hear these Christian stories, because they inspire us, they bring hope and the comfort of knowing that pain is a shared experience, and God's healing is real. I began performing as a child, in order to win love in a very sad home. I lost myself in pop music, picking up the guitar when I was twelve. At fourteen and fifteen I was singing in bars, asking the bartenders to spike my drinks and having relationships with men. Depression, anorexia, a breakdown in my teens; I left home the minute I could and was married at eighteen. (And quickly divorced.) Years of therapy made me strong enough to stumble into a job in a nursing home, a job I had no training or education for, a job that brought me out of myself and showed me that I had the capacity to love--a job that was God's lifeline to me. I was hired as an activity director (how? I didn't even attend my last year of high school) and my assistant was a retired minister. God has been working on me for a long time. There is too much to tell, but I also write songs. I came to Jesus in September of 2000, after having recorded two albums for an independent label out of Philadelphia. When I realized that Jesus wanted His music back, I went to the label with 'God Songs' and they very nicely let me go. I have never been happier in my life. I never imagined life could be so rich, that the loneliness could actually go away, that I could sleep at night without drinking, that I could have peace in my heart and learn how to forgive, that I could desire abstinence over Êunmarried intimacy; these are the absolutely revolutionary things God has done to me. During the day I still work in nursing homes, utilizing music therapy in one-on-one room visits. I often write about the lives of these people who constantly minister to me. My personal mission statement is Luke 8:39: 'Return home and tell how much God has done for you.' So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him... (NIV). '... Lyrics that tell you as much about your life as they do about hers, melodies always original, never derivative, tasteful, supple, on-the-money guitar work, and a voice that grabs you and hangs on tight with itÕs virtuosity and conviction...' - Michael Kosser, publisher, Nashville Susan Piper worships at Calvary Presbyterian Church of America in Willow Grove, PA.