Katelyn* had lived what the world might call a successful life—living under bright lights, loud music, and applause. She was a dancer—one who had learned to use her body to make a living. Money came easily, and perhaps pride even more easily. She later remembered thinking, Pride goes before a fall.
It happened during a performance. Her heel slipped, and she landed on a broken bottle. Blood poured from her knee. When someone called her boyfriend to come help, he refused. She went to the hospital alone. That long recovery gave her time to think, though at first she pushed the thoughts away. She healed, returned to work, and pretended she was fine. But God had begun to stir something deep inside her.
Not long after, a car crash shattered her illusion of control. Again, the police phoned her boyfriend. His cold answer came: “I don’t care.” In that moment, she realized what she had been to him—only a body to use, not a soul to love. She walked away from that relationship and soon met another man, Tim, through her work. Despite the quiet warning of God’s Spirit not to marry him, she did. Tim had two children whom Katelyn loved dearly. When her injuries kept her from dancing, Tim threw away her
costumes and insisted she quit. He still demanded money from her, but removed the only way she knew to earn it. At the time, she was angry, but later she thanked God. It marked the beginning of the end of her old life. She found a regular job, and though Tim’s temper grew, her heart began to soften toward God.
Katelyn’s childhood faith had been confused. Her father was Catholic; her mother had converted to Catholicism to marry him, but the two separated when Katelyn was only 3. She attended a Catholic school but never owned a Bible. Teachers said parts of Scripture “never happened.” Still, something in her mother’s words urged her to question what her teachers said.
Years later, Katelyn was desperate for peace and bought a Bible to begin reading. As she was fasting, the Holy Spirit began opening her eyes to the truth. She could not get enough of God’s Word.
Around that time, she started listening to a financial program that often mentioned Bible verses, so she looked them up. However, she needed someone to help her understand. One evening, she saw a billboard with a number: (83) FOR-TRUTH. She called.
On the other end of the line, a phone team member listened as she poured out her story and afterward connected her to Laura, a mentor who had volunteered to help callers. Week by week, Laura watched the Holy Spirit remake Katelyn’s heart. The darkness turned to light; the lies she’d believed were replaced with Scripture. She texted Laura verses she discovered about gossip, forgiveness, and modesty—each one a step forward in her new walk with Christ. She longed to find a church that truly followed the Bible and eventually joined a small Baptist congregation that welcomed her like family.
Katelyn and Laura prayed often for Tim’s salvation. At times, conviction seemed to touch him, but he fought against it. When his anger turned violent, and he reached for a gun, Katelyn finally called the police. She wanted justice. Yet as Laura reminded her of God’s command to forgive, Katelyn surrendered the case to the Lord. “The moment I let go,” she said later, “I felt free. ‘Vengeance is mine,’ says the Lord—that’s not a suggestion. He means it.” Tim filed for divorce, but Katelyn continues to pray for him.
What followed in Katelyn’s life was a steady stream of grace. Her joy in discovering truth was contagious. She would phone Laura, brimming with excitement over a verse she had just read. Being a student of the Scriptures for years, Laura found her own faith rekindled by Katelyn’s wonder. They rejoiced together in how real God had become to this once-lost woman.
In time, Katelyn visited Laura’s home and attended her church. Afterward, she said softly, “People here actually care. They see you as a person, not as something to be used.” Then she smiled and spoke about
modesty—not as a restriction but a gift. “When you’re modest,” she said, “you’re free. People value who you are, not what you look like. The gossip, the comparisons, the pressure—it all disappears.” Laura’s mother asked if all the changes and new customs felt overwhelming. Katelyn shook her head. “Not at all,” she said. “It’s actually so simple and peaceful.”
Later, when the conversation turned to how outsiders sometimes view conservative believers as “oppressed,” Katelyn laughed gently. “Oppression? Do they see how your husband loves you? He builds you a home, helps with the children, leads in church. Oppression is when a man uses a woman for pleasure and leaves her alone to raise a child.” Today, Katelyn drives a medical transport van. She shares Christ with her passengers as she goes. Some of her former friends have started coming to church. She has even met with Mormon missionaries, kindly pointing them to the truth of God’s Word.
Looking back, Laura often says that watching God change Katelyn’s life renewed her own awe of grace. The woman who once danced beneath flashing lights now walks in the light of Christ. “Truly,” Laura says, “God is still in the business of redemption. He still miraculously turns lives around. His Word is so powerful and so precious. I cannot thank God enough for His beautiful, powerful work in Katelyn’s life.”
*Names in this publication are changed to protect identities.
We would love to continue expanding the billboard program. Currently, about 25 million people, or 7 percent of the U.S. population, see a Gospel message each day. It is our goal, Lord willing, to increase that number to 35 million or 10 percent.
