Hi! My name is Brittany Coleman. So who am I? I am Papa God’s beloved daughter who he loves very much! I have been a Christian my whole life. I was saved when I was 6 years old. My mom instilled in me a passion to serve and love people by seeing her serve without hesitation in the church growing up. I have a twin sister, Talaya, who is also my best friend. It’s so cool that she is going on the world race with me! I have a dad that loves me more than words can even describe! I know that I am chosen and called for such a time as this! God gave me a name 7 years ago: Bold courageous leader who is a light to the world. This name was only possible because the Lord saved my life a few months before…
In the summer of 2013, I joined the college ministry at the Vineyard Church in Urbana, IL. Right from the start, they showed me so much love and I immediately felt a part of their family. One particular Saturday in July, I went to one of the leaders’ home from the college ministry. We all gathered in a circle. We each took turns practicing to hear God’s voice by waiting on him to give us encouraging words (for the purpose of uplifting, building up and speaking identity and destiny) for each other. Although I was a Christian my whole life, I never really became aware of how to hear God’s voice, especially to encourage others. So when it was my turn, I was kind of nervous but I listened to what my leader told me: to say the first thing that comes to my mind. A thought quickly passed through my mind and I said one word. To my surprise, the word was correct and it was exactly what my leader was going through!
Two days later, on a Monday night, I decided to walk from the UIUC campus to the Vineyard food pantry to serve. Once I got to a crosswalk I waited patiently until the walk signal turned on. As soon as the cross-signal to walk appeared, I started walking along the crosswalk. After I took a few steps, a thought immediately came to my mind. It was actually the Holy Spirit speaking to me! He told me to “keep looking forward”. At that particular moment I didn’t know why he said that. But I obeyed the voice anyway. It could have been minutes later (to this day I do not know the correct amount of time passed), the next thing I remembered was that I was lying on my back and could barely move. I saw the people from the ambulance coming to put me on the stretcher. I was taken immediately to the hospital. What happened was that as I was walking, a Ford F-250 truck was turning left at the same time and the driver didn’t see me! I texted my mom that I got hit by a truck and the doctor told her how to get to the hospital. My mom stayed with me the entire night until I left the hospital the following day. From the accident, I got a concussion and I couldn’t hear out of my right ear for 3 weeks. What I learned from the accident was how powerful God is. He literally saved me because Satan planned to kill me. What I learned about myself was how I can truly hear from the Lord and trust/obey what he tells me. But also that the Lord trusts me so much! From the experience, I felt that I really do have a purpose and destiny for my life since I did not get badly injured, become disabled, or even die!
So I am forever grateful and honored for what the Lord has done in my life! The accident gave me the courage to step out in faith and not take my life for granted. When the Lord gave me that name few months later, it really inspired me to love people with reckless abandoned and to always look forward to the One that the Lord pursues!
