Blessed Be: An Autobiography and Christian Testimony

By Julia Wells

Blessed Be, is a true story and Christian testimony of (Judy Ann) Julia Wells. Julia is a hard working wife, mother, and grandmother. She commutes eighty miles round trip to her job at a Gottschalk's Department Store, in Carson City, Nevada.

Her story begins with the introductionexplaining how Roger, her husband of 30 years, has been diagnosed with cancer, and how the Lord put it on Julia's heart to write this book. The story then reflects back to her childhood, and family background. It tells of a small girl's insecurities. Her story is one of abandonment, abuse, molestation and losses. This is a fast paced story that gives you reason to laugh while rubbing the tears from your eyes.

Julias story goes on to tell of her love for music, which gives her the courage to write to Elvis Presley about what is happening in her life. It tells how Elvis became personally involved. She explains how she continued to look for love and acceptance in all the wrong places. While looking for her father, or a father like image, the Lord was knocking on the door to her heart. It tells a common story of finding God, then taking Him for granted. Putting the Lord on a shelf like an old used Bible to collect dust and only praying, or asking, Why me? when problems occur in her life.

When Julia learned that she was a co-dependent, and was fighting with depression, the Lord knocks her feet out from under her. That is when He spoke to her saying, I picked you up and I carried you. I am with you and I forgive you. The Lord continued to work miracles in Julia's life, by healing her of cancer. The Lord gave her the strength and faith to make it through four deaths in twenty-one days, while having oral surgery and living in a tent-trailer with no running water. If that wasn't enough, He sent a guardian angel to protect her from an impending auto accident and the blessings continued.

So many things happened in Julia's life that almost anyone can relate to some part of her stay. It's a must read for anyone who has suffered from childhood abuse, molestation, dependency or codependency. Julia is a member of Al-Anon; she has been an Al-Ateen sponsor. She has been a Sunday school teacher. Julia's greatest blessing is the love of her Father, God; and her family.

This book has song lyrics and scriptures that work with her story or chapters. There are poems that Julia wrote during the times of which she's telling you about in her book. And of course there is that testimony and witness that her prayers will reach the people to whom the Lord has intended.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 16, 2009
• ISBN: 9781462830688

Julia Wells

Julia and her husband reside in Silver Springs, Nevada, which is east of Carson City, Nevada

Book preview

Copyright © 2009 by Julia Wells.

Cover art copyright © 2008 by Julia Wells

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photographing, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

The characters and events in this book are true. Any similarity to real persons,

living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Cover image by Gary Robison.

All copyrights released to Julia Wells,

April 12, 2008.

Original photographer’s release on file with the

author. Copy to be provided on request.

This book was printed in the United States of America.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

[e-mail]

69138

Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Review

Dedication

This book is dedicated first and foremost to the Lord of my Life-Jesus Christ. I thank Him for loving me first and for giving me the strength and courage to write this book as a witness for Him.

John 3:16

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.

Secondly, to my husband and life mate, Roger, for putting up with all my crazy behavior and loving me in spite of myself. Thank you honey for all of your love and support. I will love you forever.

And this book is dedicated to my family and children, Clyde, Cindy, and Bobby. I know that there are things in this book that none of you wanted to read about or wanted made public. For that I apologize. What is written was put on my heart to show where and what state of mind I was in, for the Lord to work in my life. I also apologize for the dysfunctional life that you had to grow up with. All any of us can do is our best. I know that I can get testy with you when I disagree with your decisions; but that’s only because I don’t want you to live with any of the regrets that I have had. Thus far, you have all exceeded my expectations and hopes for you.

My prayer for anyone who reads this book is that my testimony will help you to know and understand me. But, mostly if you have any doubts about the Lord, that will assure you of God’s wonderful and amazing love and grace. He has truly been there and continues to be there for all of you, as He has for me. May the peace and love of God be with you always.

WITH SINCERE GRATITUDE

To

Nickie and Phillip Beebe

Nickie is my dear friend and co-worker who has been so helpful and supportive of me through the writing process of Blessed Be. It was Nickie who asked her husband Phillip to advise and help me through the process. Phillip Beebe is an established author. He went over everything that I had written and gave me the information on the process that a writer must go through to even get read by a publisher.

Introduction

Putting this book together has been a very slow process for me. After all, it has been over fifty years in the making. However, I can’t bore you to death with a year-by-year summary. I’m just a common, ordinary, working person like you, and I’m lucky if you’re reading this at all. But I do believe that it is God’s will that I write this book for you.

I have been married twice. Roger and I hopefully will share our thirtieth anniversary on May 27, 2008, the Good Lord willing. I have three beautiful adult children, who make me so proud to be their mother. And I have seven of the most wonderful grandchildren in the world. No prejudice of course. I don’t have any rich or famous relatives. I haven’t done anything exciting or political to put me in the news. But this average, normal woman speaks to God, and yes, He has actually spoken to me.

God put it into my heart to write this book sometime ago, just like He had put other things into my heart, which you will read about in this book. I just wasn’t certain about sharing my life, and witness so personally, until I purchased a new book last month by Denise Jackson (country music singer, Alan Jackson’s wife), titled It’s All About Him. This book was an inspiration, and I felt the Lord was speaking to me again. For anyone who hasn’t read Denise’s book, it’s not all about Alan. Yes, it is about their lives, but it is Denise’s witness, about her relationship with God. Thank you Denise for encouraging me to give my witness that the Lord put in my heart so long ago.

When I first started putting notes together years ago, I thought about using hymns as titles to my chapters. Denise was able to use inspiration from her talented husband. Many of my choices also came from some great country music legends, known as the Statler Brothers. I listen to their Gospel Favorites CD almost every day in my car and at home, to be uplifted and inspired. It’s not a surprise to me that the Lord chose a song from that CD for me to use as my inspiration, and book title. While writing this book, I have listened to track number five, Blessed Be, as many as twenty to thirty times a day. If while reading this book, you have the opportunity to listen to this song, you to will see how it fits my story. So, I am in hopes that the Statler Brothers will not mind my borrowing their lyrics, and or titles, from their CD, in this book. Another person that you will read about in this book—who truly had a great impact in my life—is Elvis Presley. You will see mention of his song, "If I Can Dream." I think you’ll understand why I relate to that song too.

About six months ago while I was working at an arts and crafts store, I noticed we had received a new shipment of candy for the front counter. There on a shelf in front of the cash register were large (movie theater) style boxes of Whopper Malted Milk Balls. No, not for my sweet tooth, but they are my husband Roger’s favorite. So I walked around the counter to get a couple of boxes for him.

Of course, as soon as I walked away, a customer came to my counter. I told the customer that I would be right with her. I just wanted to get some candy for my husband. That is when the lady turned to me and said, Oh is your husband in a pissy mood? Do you need to butter him up, like I have to with mine? She went on to say how her husband made her sick, and that is why she was out shopping, to get away from him for awhile.

You could have knocked me over with a feather. I was also in all honesty, taken aback by a million memories and times when Roger and I had been petty with each other. However, this day there was a part of me that wanted to reach across that counter to this lady I didn’t even know, and slap some sense into her.

As the tears welled up in my eyes, I very calmly said, Ma’am, I hope what I have to say doesn’t offend you, but no, my husband is not being pissy. My husband was just diagnosed with cancer. And there isn’t anything that he could have done that makes him deserve to be punished by this disease. Suddenly I realized that when you put yours or loved one’s mortality in the center of your picture, it changes your whole perspective of everything.

Years ago, when I would pray, and give things up to the Lord, for Him to fix for me, I gave it like a sweater with a loose thread. I’d ask my God to fix this for me, but I never took my hand off that loose thread. I always wanted to maintain some control. I always had those personal doubts that He would fix my problems or answer my prayers in my time. So when I would look back, my problems seemed to be an unraveled mess.

However, today I can say that I have complete faith in my Savior, to take care of Roger. I’m not a doctor. I can’t heal my husband. I can love him. I can pray for him. I can turn it over to my Father in heaven, without it being like that sweater. And I can know in my heart, soul, and mind, that He will answer my prayers, in His time, and in His way. But there was a time when my Lord had to pull the rug out from under my feet, and put me on my knees, to show me that He is real, and that He was answering my prayers.

That is what this book is about, a little girl, a child of God, looking for her Father, and how my God, My Father, does answer prayer. Maybe some part of my story will remind you of the child that sees a picture of Jesus for the first time, and says, I know Him. He sat on the floor with me. But mostly, if it opens the door to one heart, asking God to come in, it will be worth digging up all these bones and sharing my soul with you.

Blessed Be

Blessed be the children that are free

It blesses me that they come to see

And come to know His love, He has to show

And it will grow and it will grow.

And the children will find their peace of mind

In His arms, His loving arms.

And the people will hear what His good book says

In His word, His teaching word.

Blessed be that the world should see

And understand that it only took one man

This one man, who took our sin

Never did condemn we call Him friend.

And the children will find their peace of mind

In His arms, His loving arms

And the people will hear what His good book says

In His word, His teaching word.

Blessed be, that we all come to see,

And come to know eternally.

Blessed Be

(K. Reid) American Cowboy Music Co, (BMI)

Admin. By Copyright Management Inc.

Chapter 1

Precious Memories

Everyone has his or her favorite memories. With age, I like to jokingly say that I have forgotten half of everything I ever learned. But part of that isn’t a joke. Most of the time we enjoy being with our family, sharing, and remembering those naughty and fun memories from the past. Then there are the memories we hide and choose to forget. Or there can be reasons for amnesia. One thing I’ve learned through the years is that when things get too bad, I can bury those memories and feelings, when they are too painful for me to handle. But they usually come back in the form of flashbacks.

Like most everyone else, I thought that I had a normal childhood. Then whose childhood can we compare ours too? Some people thought that I was spoiled. I guess we don’t ever really know what is going on behind those closed doors. My mother Phyllis was absolutely the most beautiful woman in the world to me. I have some photographs of her that have brought inquiry into whether she was a model or a star. Momma was born in Arkansas, and lived in Oklahoma, before the family moved to California. My grandparents did field work and followed the crops. As a child, momma had been a tomboy, but when those hormones kicked in, she became a beauty. All four of granny’s girls were very attractive.

My grandmother, Oma May, had been sold to her first husband, by her parents, when she was twelve years old. Her husband had been an abusive drunk that prostituted my grandmother for money. My grandfather bought her freedom from that man and gave her the money for a divorce. He was my grandmother’s hero. Since she had no place to go, she followed him around like a lost puppy, until he had saved enough money to ask her to marry him. Grandpa McCullough was over six feet tall, with dark hair, and was part Cherokee Indian. They had nine children. All five of the boys died at a very young age or at birth. The oldest girl was Aunt Geneva, then Aunt Virgie, then my mother Phyllis and Aunt Ruby was the youngest. Grandpa had epilepsy, and was sometimes treated as an outcast by the people in the work camps. I’m sure he scared some people when he trembled and had seizures. When my momma was twelve, they were living outside of Bakersfield, California, around the Shafter/Oildale area, and grandpa walked momma to a dance that she wanted to attend. On his way back home, a car full of drunks ran him down on the side of the road, killing him. Momma always believed it was on purpose, because the family knew the men involved.

You have to remember that it was a tough time for people. It was during the depression, World War II, and the South Pacific Campaign. Granny (my little momma), didn’t let much grass grow under her feet before she was married again (she was married five times). Back then it helped for two adults with a bunch of young’uns to all work in the fields. At least that was better than a single person, or a widow, with four girls. I don’t know much about her next husband, except that granny divorced him and then remarried him, even though he was abusive to her and my Aunt Ruby. I guess after he molested Aunt Ruby, little momma said that enough was enough.

My momma wasn’t one to stay working in the fields. She might have been a tomboy once, but now she had to be dressed to a T. Momma was just a