Northview Stories

By Mary Anderson

Like many others in the Indianapolis community, Angelina Craig of Northview Church’s Binford Campus felt scared and alone because of the pandemic. But God is famous for taking bad situations, pulling them together and creating something good.

When the pandemic hit, it made Angelina realize how little control she really had and how far she was from God. This scared her as she thought God had left her and that it was too late to return to his loving arms. Angelina had a visual in her mind of what it was like to be “too late,” and she remembers falling on the floor, crying and asking God to show her that he was there for her.

Angelina said that with all the bad in the world – the pandemic, the political divide and all the wickedness in the world – she thought maybe she was left behind in an apocalyptic kind of way. She started praying reading the Bible to figure out if her feelings of being left behind were accurate. One Scripture that drove home the thought of being left behind was Revelation 16:15: “Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed.”

Another more comforting verse she read was 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

God responded to her fearful prayers. The following week, on Facebook, an acquaintance of hers shared Northview’s worship, and she took notice. This pointed Angelina in the right direction – right to Northview Church.

Angelina said the worship had moved her to tears and that she had felt so ashamed that she was far from God who loved her so much. The salvation prayer is what she felt she needed to get right with God. She said she felt the Holy Spirit pulling her in.

During this time of Facebook worship, she prayed to accept Christ. She then texted “Next” to Northview’s phone number to let the church know she’d invited Christ into her life. Northview’s Binford Campus Pastor Garrett Edwards reached out to Angelina and later got her connected with a Life Group – a group of Christians who live near her and attend Northview Church.

Angelina was excited to learn that Northview’s Binford campus was only five minutes away from her apartment. During the height of the pandemic, despite services being online only, Northview reached out to Angelina via Zoom calls, checked in on her, and made her a priority. She said she knew Northview was her home as she felt loved, even at a distance. When she was finally able to attend in person, she knew this was where she belonged.

Prior to attending services, she attended Northview’s outdoor events and was active on the Binford Campus Facebook communities. During one of the outdoor events, she was approached by Garrett and his wife, as well as many others from the church, and she didn’t feel nervous at all. Angelina said that when she started attending church in person, she felt an overwhelming sense of peace and excitement. “I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited for anything in my life, it was like a kid getting to go to Disney World!” she said.

Since Jesus is now a part of Angelina’s life, she no longer feels alone. She feels the support, cheers and prayers offered to her by the Northview community. Not only that, but she also sees positive changes in herself. For example, she made a commitment to do something nice for someone else once a week. She also doesn’t worry as much about money, popularity, and the things of this world that could bring her down. She said instead, she transfers her worries to God and knows he will take care of her.

Angelina belongs to a Life Group she loves. She also attends in The Porch, a service for young adults, as well as a women’s Bible study group called SOAP. She serves as a greeter at services on Sundays and said she loves to share the love Northview first showed her with other first-time guests. She said her participation in these ministries have helped her grow in her faith.

Angelina’s Life Group Leader Bryan Ault said he has seen Angelina grow tremendously in his group. “I remember thinking how amazing it was for her to join a Life Group even though she had never been to an actual in-person Northview church service during the pandemic shutdown,” Bryan said.

“Angelina has the perspective of a newborn believer, a child-like faith, which Christ said is mandatory to enter the kingdom of God (Mark 10:15),” Bryan continues. “Because of that, we all learn something from her when we meet every week. She has probably made as much of a difference in our lives as much as we have in hers.”