The Alpha Course

The death of her father and a surprise encounter in a supermarket led North Berwick teacher Val Travers on a journey to explore what happens after death - this her story:

I was brought up going to Sunday School until I was 12, but after that only went to church for Christenings or weddings really and I drifted away.

I worked as a teacher and my husband’s job took him away a lot. I was also trying to bring up four children. The daily stress of life was very difficult. I thought I could do everything myself and I didn’t think I needed any help.

Challenging

Soon after that my parents health deteriorated and things became increasingly challenging.

When my father-in-law died, I stopped praying, I don’t really know why I stopped praying but that was when things went really wrong. I had started working a job share, which was fine, but then it unexpectedly became full time. Suddenly I was a full time teacher on top of everything else.

Then my father, who lived 400 miles away, got ill and I spent my time going back and forth to see him and my mum at weekends and during holidays.

I was trying to be successful in my career and as a mum but just couldn’t do it all.
After my father died I started to look into things like life after death and I began asking ‘why?’

My father was this wonderful person with a great personality, he was the life and soul of the party but one minute he was there and joking with us and suddenly he wasn’t there anymore. I thought he had to have gone somewhere.

Searching

So I started to read lots of books about spiritual life and life after death. I wanted to explore what was out there. I started praying again but just with a vague sense that God might be there and He would maybe listen.

I was still searching but the books I read were not satisfying what I was looking for. When we moved to North berwick and I saw the Alpha advertising banners on churches and the signs on buses, I thought it looked interesting and wanted to look into it but I kept putting it off.

Then I saw Alpha advertised locally but I didn’t know who went to that sort of thing and I thought that I might not know anybody there so I didn’t go. In the mean time I got on with my life and the pressures of trying to do everything.

Shortly after Dad died we realised that mum had dementia and I became her carer. My job was getting harder, I had a challenging class, and the pressures of paperwork at school, were increasing.

My mum, who really needed more physical help by this stage, came to live with us. It was really a challenge for us all. I took some time off work and came back thinking I was fine but before long I ran myself into the ground again.

My mother had to go into a home because I couldn’t care for her at home anymore.

Leaflet

I saw Alpha advertised in the local paper. I was interested but I wasn’t sure.

Then a leaflet came through the door advertising the same course which made me think about it some more, but I put the leaflet in the bin.

Then I was at our local supermarket with my husband and I saw a friend by the door handing out leaflets. I went to speak to her and the leaflets were about Alpha!

I realised then that ‘somebody’ was trying to tell me something so I decided to go. It definitely helped that I knew somebody who would be there. I wasn’t able to make every week of that course and my mum died shortly before the end of it so I wasn’t really able to take it all in.

After mum died I, again, had lots of questions and I really wanted to start going to church. I knew it meant something to me but I didn’t really quite get the Jesus thing.

I wanted to do the whole Alpha course so when a course came up the following October at the marine Hotel, I went along. I really stuck at it and enjoyed it. I ended up enjoying the people so much that I wanted to go back every week to see them.  A small group of us still meet up which is lovely.

Bible

On the night where we were talking about the bible we were asked if we had read it, I said I had tried but I found it really difficult and I didn’t understand it.

There was somebody in the group that said that reading the bible had transformed her life, she said it was a wonderful book and was so elated that I thought there must be something in it. After that I started to read it too.

When it came to the Alpha day, I accepted the Holy Spirit and I felt my life change instantly.

Rather than thinking God might be there, I knew He was there and always had been, it all became real to me. I had a wonderful feeling of love come over me.

Beginning

Alpha was just the beginning for me. Jesus has completely changed my life. I ask Him for guidance now. I love my job because I have started to love the children more; I feel like I have a fresh lease of life.

After Alpha I did the Global Teachers Programme in Africa. I really felt God help me with that.

I am much more confident now and I have done presentations on my experience in Malawi which I couldn’t have done before, but now I always pray first and it is great.  My family can see that I am far less stressed and I have more time to talk to them.