*****I hope that you are seeing how broad the uses for Your Designed to Shine is!!It has helped me to fulfil my dreams

*****Our You’re Designed to Shine retreat was wonderful! The girls got a lot out of it and I don't think that one person did not cry for the whole time. I was really amazed at how much these girls have grown and although some of them are studying the arts I was really impressed at their creative pages. We got a great idea for the my star section. We made suncatchers with glass and glass paint and it was such an awesome idea because it was like the light of God (the sun) shining through us and then the colourful light that is reflected on whatever the light shines onto is like how we can make other people's lives beautiful when we shine on them. Thanks for all you are doing to helping us shine bright!

*****We had to be evacuated from our home because of the fires in Southern Ca. When my daughter and I and her Dad were packing up our "precious belongings" and necessities last Sunday night to prepare for evacuation my daughter Mackenzie was very adamant to include her starfish, your book (with your "autograph") and her You’re Designed to Shine workbook that she worked on last year at your workshop as part of her "precious items" that she wanted to be sure got packed in the car in case we had to evacuate.  God Bless you for coming into our lives as you have made a lasting impression on my daughter and I and to see how God works thru you is incredible and a blessing that we have received first hand!  You do make a difference and I am grateful for you and all you do! 

*****This Friday was week 3 of teaching You’re Designed to Shine and the girls are loving it. I have such a combination of characters, backgrounds and ages all blending with each other - its fabulous, its obvious that God is in the midst. although we are having some 'Kodak moments' as we go, I’m going to save them to show at the end. One of our girls had to leave to go back to her home island Martinique, so last night she followed along with us 'live and direct' through skype - how amazing is that?!  Leading these girls has been such a blessing for me so I wanted to again say thanks for the inspiration and purpose to share the Truth of Gods love with others.

*****I shared You’re Designed to Shine with a friend I teach with and she plans on using them at my church!  But, the best is my teaching partner Amy who ordered You’re Design to Shine the first day I took her to the website.  Right after I read Ocean Star I knew she would be the perfect person to do a workshop. And, as always happens, it was just the thing she was looking for. So she ordered the books and has been doing the workshop in her church for about 4 weeks. Amy is my pearl and a wonderful human being.  She was thrilled when I told her about your idea to come to our area and do and event next summer.  I really hope you can fit it in to your schedule. We would all love to meet you and work with you. Thank you for sharing your story.

*****I'm a leader at First Baptist Church of Windermere and I teach 12th grade girls.  This is my second year in student ministry and my girls have been such a blessing to me!  I read Ocean Star at the beginning of the year and it just became a part of me.  I have so much in common with Christina and I know my calling is to work with teenage girls.  The short version of my testimony is that my dad left when I was 10 and I became a single mom at age 19.  Believe me, that's the very short version!  The most beautiful part of my testimony is how God turned something that was meant to destroy me into such a wonderful blessing!  My daughter is almost 15 now and my husband and I have added 2 precious boys to our family who are 8 and 3. I love seeing what an impact you have all made on so many girls and I can't wait to become more involved!  Last year I taught 10th and 11th grade girls and I promised them we would go to the beach for a weekend and go through this study.  We haven't made it yet due to finances and scheduling issues.  I hope we will make it in November, but nothing is set in stone yet.  I also volunteer at the Accept Pregnancy Center and I'm hoping to implement this study there as well.  I know God put this book in my life for a reason! Thank you for all you do!  I can't tell you how much I look forward to meeting you all face to face one day. 

*****I wanted to share the strength and encouragement I received from attending the You’re Designed to Shine workshop and hearing Christina’s words of faith. I attended with my thirteen-year-old daughter. I enjoyed meeting Christina and wanted her to know that another family was touched and inspired by her love and devotion to the Lord!

*****We have an older lady in our church ( closer to the 88 mark than the 8) and she opens  her home there to for the women’s retreat for the past three years, she also shares it with the teens at our church as well. She has been very gracious!  It has been a huge benefit for the "girls" at our church. I have been so excited doing this the You’re Designed to Shine bible study with the girls in our fellowship group (ages 22-30).  I love working with this age group! I have read " Ocean Star " and can't even begin to tell you the encouragement it has been to me. It has made me think about things that I have pretty much put off or really haven’t fit it into my dream.  My Dream, has been to get Christian woman together to laugh, support, and encourage each other as we grow in Christ together.  I want us all to get excited and enjoy the gift God, our Father has given us!  Well, I could go on and on but I am sure you have other "E's " to read. I will tell you that I have been blessed and continue to be blessed from her book and bible study!

***** I am interested in a women’s retreat, using the "Designed to Shine" journal and leaders guide. A small group met this summer at a Starbucks, inside a Target 8:oo Monday mornings. Wow, what an amazing inspirational, motivating, exciting, study! We would like to share this with the rest of the "girls" in our church!

*****Thank you so much for taking you time to work with us.  I learned so much this weekend.  I have to say that learning about my pearls and thinking about how I can be a pearl for younger girls, was my favorite part.  I had never really thought about that before in that way.  Lately God has placed a want for me to be a role model for the girls in my old youth group at home, and that workshop only magnified that desire in me.  So thank you for opening my eyes to greater things.

*****I live on the island of Cozumel, Mexico.  I read the article on Christina in TODAY´S CHRISTIAN WOMAN this summer on the airplane returning to the island from my parent´s home in Houston.  I have had a relationship with Jesus for 4 years.  I know the Lord is calling me to minister to women of all ages here. The longing in my heart is to help many not go down the road I had to go down to where I finally surrendered to God after trying so long to make on my own.  If I had had someone to guide me in my search at 11 years old when I first felt God calling me I would have made different choices in my life.  But I am so grateful for what the Lord has given me out of hard choices I had to make which now is my testimony for other girls and women.  When I read about your ministry I knew  the Lord had led me to a way to reach women, especially young girls here.

*****You are truly a pearl in my life! It's great that you have touched so many people, you must feel so amazing! I know my road is a long one, but you are absolutely right to say that my journey has just begun!  I know God has a great plan for me and having an author like you inspire me to be the best I can be just helps keep the motivation alive! Keep up the great work, I know God is smiling down on you!

*****I just got done reading Ocean Star last week.  I was given the book by my friend and read it in two days.  I could not put it down!!  I am so overwhelmed right now of how the book impacted me.  I need to take some time to go and reflect on what God has shown me through this book.  There are so many similarities I have already experienced that Christina had mentioned.   I began my journey about 10 years ago and it started
with reading the "Blessing". I just purchased my ticket to the You’re Designed to Shine
workshop in Cocoa Beach.  I am already getting my pod together to join me. Thank you so much Christina so being so brave and writing this book.  You are truly blessed.  I know God is always around me working in ways I can't even imagine.  But you have inspired me to go deeper.  I want the same relationship you have with Him. I want to be so open!  I cannot wait to meet you and do the workshop. I am telling EVERYONE I know about your amazing story! God bless you and your precious ministry!

*****I read about you in Today's Christian Woman magazine, and wanted to share a word of thanks for what you are doing with young women all over the US!  I am an ordained pastor,  my ministry right now is at the Houghton Wesleyan Church, where I do a variety of ministry, including mentoring with Houghton College students, and girls at our local boarding high school - Houghton Academy. 

*****Let me begin with what a wonderful gift your book Ocean Star was to me.  Anyway, after reading the book I decided to check out your website.  Designed to Shine had just been released.  I ordered Ocean Star to give as a gift and a few Designed to Shine journals with the leader guide as well.  Since that first order God whispered actual names of girls who would greatly benefit from this study.  Me being me and relatively new in my faith, wasn’t quite so certain.  “Are you sure God?  Am I really able to lead a group of girls on a journey to knowing and being loved by you.  I mean, look at me, I was a complete mess for so long.”  I began journaling a little prayer to Him prior to my reading of Session 4.  If you don’t mind I would like to share how that conversation went.  “I whole heartidly agree with Christinia’s Definiition of a Pearl Girl – “A girl who started out as a simple grain of sand and through the irritations she encountered on her journey, she allowed God to refine and mold her into something beautiful.  She now allows God to be the center of her life and desires His love, Grace and Glory to shine through her in creative ways to be a light for others.” Yet many times Jehovah, I am the irritation in my own life.  Yet I’m not allowing you to refine and mold me into a beautiful pearl.  I feel like I’m going to come out of my shell mishapen, ugly, and of no value to anyone.  I realize that you don’t look at me that way.  I know it in my heart but my mind just won’t allow me to believe some days. We’ve been talking about it for a few days now God, leaving behind the old me to make room for you to refine me.  Still the fear remains, What if people don’t like the new me?  And then I still fail you!  It’s more rejection than I feel I can stand.  With that said, I know also, that I just have to let all of this go.  I have to give it all to you.  I don’t like or even trust myself at times but you love me and want me to live in victory!  So, there it is God!  My fears, my inadeqacies, my insecurities, my doubts, my failures (past and to come).  Can you truly use me?  I give it all to you.  I am but a grain of sand in your hands.  Mold me!!” I could say so much more about how this study has spoken to me.  Session 5 went right along with the previous day’s conversation with Him.  The scriptures to reassure me of His absolute, unconditional love for me.  (Eph. 3:18)  I may never understand how He can love me so, any of us for that matter, but I was so grateful that He reminded me in that moment!  I could go on and on!!!!!!  After all just like you said, No pearl is Perfect. Thank you so much for having the courage and determination, the faith and the love to share your story with women all over the world! 

*****I was telling my Sunday school teacher about the "Your Designed To Dream" study, and she ordered it! We are now doing the study in Sunday school, and it's AMAZING! I absolutely love your material. You are such a great person. I would love to meet you and your family someday. Your oldest son is actually my age if I read correctly. Anyway, my teacher bought us You’re Designed to Shine books and we all love the study so much!

***** I just finished reading Christina's memoir and it was a book that my friend said, you won't want to put down.  I finished it in a day!!  Upon finishing it, though, appreciation and thankfulness enveloped me because 1), I had was blessed to have been raised in a Christian home and have a foundation that is rich on the Bible 2), that God placed/places on my heart to raise my 6 children with HIM as center of our family and each of our lives.  Just this past Tuesaday, at the You’re Designed to Shine bible study, my 12 year old daughter spoke about what she wanted to surrender to God..she wrote it down on a small piece of paper and placed it in her gift box.  But what she shared with the rest of us, was wonderful.... she said many people tell her, she has a beautiful smile but she wants to give that "vanity" up to God and let her inner self SHINE through!! My mouth DROPPED!!  

*****Keep up the awesome work being a pearl for others, it must be exciting to see them set free, made whole, move on and become pearls too. It is a little like throwing a pebble into a pool of water a seeing how the wave moves out to encompass, and surround the whole pool. This synergy helps us reach so many others that we couldn't do just by ourselves. As the song goes God is indescribable, uncontainable He put the stars in the sky and He knows them by name, You are amazing God and I am totally in awe of Him. Anyway stay focused, excited and flowing with living water, God hasn't finished with you yet.