From Despair to New Life in Jesus

Story by Stephen Lee

Yuri Stefanny Bayern and her husband, Yeiferson Trujillo, along with their children, Valentina, Salome and Maximiliano, recently sealed their commitment to Christ through baptism at the Paterson South Spanish church.

Introduced to Adventism as a child in Colombia, Bayern drifted from the faith amid years of emotional trauma and depression. After moving to the United States, her inner struggle intensified, culminating in a desperate moment when she attempted to take her own life. Though she survived, the experience left physical damage to her neck and a persistent, debilitating headache.

One night, burdened and broken, she cried out to God. That same night, she dreamed she was walking into a church. The next day, she searched online and found a Wednesday evening prayer meeting at Paterson South. Welcomed by a deacon and embraced by a message of hope, she and her husband began attending faithfully.

During a lay-led Week of Prayer, Bayern felt something shift. As one member prayed over her, the headache that had plagued her for years disappeared. “Only God could lift the sadness I carried,” she says. Shortly after, her husband and children decided to be baptized as well.

“Now,” Bayern shares, “God is in our home, and everything is different.”