Instructor: Mary Allen
Contact: nhislight7@yahoo.com

Hi, my name is Mary Allen and I am very happy to be here.  I teach because I feel the Lord has called me to teach and also because it is one of my passions.  I am here because I not only felt led to the online venue, but also because I really enjoy it.  I hope you will enjoy this class with me.

Now, I would like to share a little of my background.  I grew up in sunny, southern California with a strong spiritual influence.  My grandmother was an evangelist and her influence (and that of the Lord) in my mother's life was strong.  While knowing about Jesus, I did not actively allow Him to be my Lord until much later in my life(sad to say) when my family experienced something of a Saul/Paul of Tarsus conversion!  After graduating from high school in California, I joined the Army as an aircraft mechanic.

As time passed, I married and was blessed with two lovely sons (and much later one lovely daughter). One afternoon, quite out of the blue, my husband came home and announced that he and my son (who I used to drag to church) were going to church!  As he had gone to buy a riding lawn mower earlier in the day, I wondered what took place to make him suddenly want to go to church.  You see, I had been attending a (rather dry) church for some years and couldn't get my husband to go.  Thus, I stood at the window bemused and watched as my husband and my 12 year old son headed off to church.  What happened that day changed our lives forever.  Indeed, from that day on, my family has been totally turned around and never been the same (thank God)!

What I learned was that unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain.  I tried for years to get my family "into" God, but to no avail.  In actuality, I wasn't really "into" God either, I was just going through the motions.  Once we heeded the voice of the Lord that was all there was.  Our lives have dramatically changed for the better and we have never looked back, praise be to Him!

Today, I live in sunny Florida with my husband and toddler daughter (I told you it was much later when our third blessing arrived).  Our two adult sons serve in the ministry and travel (one recently returned from the Philippines) as the Lord leads.  Outside of my love for the Lord and my family, I am an avid animal lover as my home brood of two dogs, one cat, and two ferrets bear witness to. 

With regard to teaching and education, I have taught in both public and private (Christian) schools, grades 1-12.  While attending a local Christian college (which was time consuming and awkward), I felt the Lord urging me toward online education.  After much research, I felt specifically led to Ames Christian University where I received my B.A. and M. Ed.  Right now, I am prayerfully considering pursuing my doctoral degree.

As far as online education goes, I have enjoyed it very much as a learner and also as an instructor.  In fact, I find the online venue to be quite exciting and different.  I have done extensive research in this area, and hope to continue to enjoy the flexibility and rewards that come with online communication.  My research has shown me that this type of education process is still in its infancy, and that makes me feel kind of like a pioneer in the field!