Some disciples are particularly determined to remain faithful , no matter what the circumstances. Lisa Latham is one such Christian…

Lisa became a disciple on May 19, 1990 in the newly planted Seattle Church of Christ. She was persuaded by her brother, a disciple in the Los Angeles Church of Christ, who said, “You need to go to this church!” So she went, but it was no easy trek. Lisa doesn’t live in Seattle at all. She lives in Burlington, WA, approximately 80 miles away through traffic, weather, and harsh winters. But seeking the truth was more important to Lisa, and she found it in Seattle. Being married and the mother of three young children, moving closer to the church was not a feasible option, but mere geography couldn’t stop Lisa from her commitment to the body and fellowship.

Shortly after Lisa got baptized, she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Under her doctor’s direction, she went though grueling radiation therapy to treat the malignancy. She recalls being in isolation for three days until her radiation level was low enough for her to be around other people. Now that she was no longer a danger to those around her, others now became a danger to her. Her physician advised her to not go around people for a long time because her immune system was so low from the radiation treatment. She promptly refused. It simply contradicted her conviction to stay connected with the body of believers. When asked what helped her to push through, she said, “I knew God would be in control. He would protect me because I really needed the body.”

A few years down the road, Lisa’s three young children became three rambunctious teenagers. Although a blessing, taking care of her children’s spiritual needs was a huge sacrifice for her. On top of going to her own bible talk and midweek, she would now be driving to teen events as well. Sometimes these teen events would be 110 miles away! “Looking back,” Lisa recalls, “God always took care of it, I just had to keep in mind what was truly important.”

As the years passed by, Lisa had always been praying for a church to be planted closer to her. How better to reach out to her family and co-workers? Eighteen years after her baptism, a church was planted in Bellingham, WA, only 25 miles away from Burlington. Although excited to see her faithful prayers answered, Lisa had concerns as well. At the time, Lisa was in the best Bible talk she had ever been in. It not only took faith, but heroic courage for her to leave relationships she had built over the last 18 years to be the only woman of her demographic in a new church.

“Through the years it’s been amazing to look back and see how God has worked everything out. You think, ‘Oh, I hate this’ but then you see what he does with situations and your faith grows. I always had to go back to God’s promises and whenever I start doubting, look at them again… I couldn’t have done anything on my own, only through his strength.”