Diane’s Testimony: Her Road to Faith through Songs of Faith
I was born, an only child, in Providence, Rhode Island to Greek parents Sam and Ethel Lafazanis who were born in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. That makes us all New Englanders. Everyone in my whole family attended some Greek Eastern Orthodox church wherever they lived. As a child I went to Sunday school and learned about God and Jesus, good and evil, from children’s Bible stories. I had no real relationship with Jesus, but I certainly feared God. Since we had no adult Bible study, when I was a teenager, I joined the choir which my mother directed. The entire service was conducted in Greek. I enjoyed the music and the hymns and sang out happily. Here’s one I remember: Agios, agios, agios… Do you know what I just said? Guess what? I had absolutely no idea what it meant. It was all Greek to me. But God knew.
Fast forward through high school to college. I attended Brown University in Providence, RI, lived at home and had stopped going to the Greek church much to my mother’s agony. At school, I was exposed to diverse people, cultures, and religions. Some of the philosophies intrigued me so I did a limited amount of exploration which was highly superficial but enough to let me realize that these other ideas weren’t for me. They left me cold and extremely empty, fearful even in the pit of my stomach. I needed my God even though I didn’t worship him or know him. But he knew me.
I joined the university chorus and sang tons of music both sacred and secular. Every year there was a Messiah sing in December in which the public participated. It’s my favorite piece of music. We’d end with the Hallelujah Chorus so everyone left in high spirits. I enjoyed the arias, especially this one: "Come unto him all ye that labor; come unto him ye that are heavy laden and he will give you rest." I thought the song referred to people with terrible problems or who were poor and had no means or were victims of horrible misfortunes in their lives, none of which I’d ever had. Little did I know it referred to me; I was heavily laden with sin and didn’t know it. But God knew it. The words just hadn’t penetrated my soul. I wasn’t ready to respond appropriately. I really didn’t want to obey. I wanted to do my own thing.
Moving on to my early twenties – I’d been working for some time when I met a guy who invited me to a Christian charismatic prayer meeting which met every Saturday night. More than 300 people would attend, praying, singing, giving testimonies, and encouraging others in their faith. I went because the music drew me. One of the songs the worship team sang had this chorus: "I am the vine, you are the branches; my father is the vinedresser; apart from me you can do nothing; abide in me, abide in me." After a few weeks, I had my first but not last experience with singing in the Spirit in tongues, a most harmonious, spirit-filled enrichment for the soul. I began to feel the pull of God again so I started reading different passages and books in the Bible on my own and even went back to my Greek church priest for confession, but sadly without any “adult supervision” or any kind of Bible study availability, this branch wasn’t abiding; it was withering on the vine.
During a better part of this time I got married at age 27 to someone I had met at a prayer meeting, but it ended in disaster and we were divorced. At that point my plant died.
Stuff happens. I never blamed God – ever! I figured that whatever choices I made resulted in whatever happened to me. After receiving a master's degree in teaching Latin and French, then my second master's in audiology from Brown University, out of work and at the age of 30, I finally left RI and joined the Air Force, went through Officer Training School, became an officer and spent almost 20 years living in the world as one of the world, no church, no singing, worked hard, played hard, married and divorced again, moved continuously to different places and assignments. It was the driest spiritual period of my entire life. I lived in the moment. I enjoyed the desert. And, boy, did God know it.
But then from 1991-1998, the year I retired as a Lieutenant Colonel USAF while I was stationed at George, March and Edwards Air Force bases in southern California, I met and married Rick, which is a story all its own, and as you know, we’re still together. Yeehah! Or better yet, Praise the Lord! A year before I was to retire Rick found out he was probably going to lose his job to budget cuts, so he found a position in Seattle and had to leave while I remained behind for six months till retirement. God is a riot, I want you to know.
Edwards Air Force Base was an hour’s drive away through the “desert.” You could call it my wilderness. I used to listen to cassette tapes, because the radio didn’t pick up any stations. One day that changed. When the tape ended, a weak but audible signal/station came in — the Calvary Connection — with someone teaching on the Bible. I believe his name was Jack Hayford and he taught like someone with authority who knew what he was saying and referencing everything in the Bible like our Pastor Jim Rosenquist does. I was fascinated. I started listening to this station every day to and from work and my life changed. My ears were open; my heart was yearning and my soul was being refreshed.
That I knew.
One evening I dusted off this old yet brand new Bible I’d had for many years and I started reading it from the beginning. Over the next five to six months, I saw and heard in my mind all the many verses of so many songs I had sung throughout the years in context in the Bible. I dragged out my score of the Messiah and checked out every song’s biblical reference. Believe me when I say it, I was wide-eyed with excitement, my heart was pounding, I felt like I’d won the lottery and afraid that someone might steal it away. It was my pearl of great price. I cried and cried, I truly repented for the first time of everything I could possibly think of, and the weight of the world was lifted. I was finally free. Talk about breaking out of bondage. I couldn’t wait to tell Rick we had to find a church when I moved up to North Bend, Wash.
Well, Rick was overwhelmed with joy and relief. Apparently, he’d been having the same thoughts but was leery about broaching the subject with me because of past bad experiences he’d had with his former wife. It was a whole new beginning for both of us. We moved a few times, finding great churches at each place, got baptized together, got involved and attended numerous Bible studies, sponged up preachings and teachings. My cup was overflowing and I was singing once more. God you are my God and I will ever praise you. (Repeat) I will praise you in the morning; I will learn to walk in your ways; God you are my God and I will worship you all of my days.
I’m grateful God never gave up on me. I’m ecstatic that he gave me Rick. I’m so thankful to have this Port Townsend Calvary Community Church of believers and doers of the Word. I’m joyful every day I wake up and especially when I walk through the front doors of this church. I was happy to do the work of a deacon and serve the people of this church and glorify God.
And finally, I read the Bible cover to cover almost on an annual basis: “understanding and perceiving.” I am a new plant, a new creation which is being watered and nourished by God’s word. I hope he’ll continue to use me for his good pleasure. Only God knows.
My Greek heritage hasn’t been in vain; my mother’s prayers have been answered — I’m a Christian and still singing — oh, by the way, the translation of the Greek hymn Agios is:
"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty/ Heaven and Earth are full of his glory/ Hosanna in the highest!/ God is holy. All I am and all I do is for his glory. This I know for the Bible tells me so./ Amen."
Diane fought the battle for over four years with multiple myeloma cancer but her heart was to share her testimony to others as an obituary to celebrate her life and her eternal life now in the arms of Jesus.
Diane is survived by her husband Rick.
A memorial to celebrate her life is to be announced in the near future.
