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Narrative Summary
Interview with Neena Cunningham by Lacy Lynch
In my interview with Neena Cunningham, I learned a lot about the spiritual journey of a strong-willed woman who is a great leader among women in her community. She grew up in northern Missouri and moved to the Ozarks when she was about 21 years old. Her parents were not involved in a church while she was growing up, and she took the first step to ask her parents to take her to church. She was baptized at the age of 12. She noted that there was a time when she strayed away from her spiritual life in her late teens and early twenties while she was in college, but indicated that she realized that her God never left her.When she came back to him, he was right there to hold her hand. She does not say that she is religious and has a problem when people say she is. She believes that religion is just a bunch of rules to tell you how to live. Instead, she prefers to say that she loves her Lord and knows that she is nothing without him. She said that knowing she is nothing keeps her close to him, close to her Bible, and very spiritual.
Neena did not become very involved in her spiritual journey until she moved to the Ozarks and got involved with the Baptist church. She said that when she got married and had children was when she really began seeking a deeper walk with Christ. She realized early on that she did not have to wait for a man to read the Bible to her, but that all women can and should read the Bible themselves.
Neena quickly became involved in her church by teaching Sunday school, couples classes, and discipleship classes. Currently, she is involved in a gospel group and through them she gives many mini-sermons and has even given the sermon on Sundays at her church. She loves to teach others and share her views and opinions with them; although she has not always done so, she indicated that she is glad that she does this now.
Two of Neena’s role models are Joyce Meyer, who is also a Missouri woman, and Beth Moore, who Neena says played into her love for scripture by encouraging her to read on her own and really get involved with her Bible. She enjoys learning from the Bible and finding all that God has to teach her. Her advice to women is that there is a word from God that will help them through the tough times. She says that if you just read one verse each day it could potentially change your whole day.
Neena said that every day, in all of her tasks, she tries to think about God and all he has given her to be thankful for. She talked a lot about how reading the Bible, loving God, and knowing that he cared for her and her family got her through the years she was raising her three children. She firmly believes that changing your way of thinking and having a more positive outlook on life, even during the bad times and in the everyday repetitive tasks, will help you have a more joyful life.
Her advice to young people on having a good spiritual journey is to eliminate the misconceptions of church,for example, the idea that church members think they are better than others and have not been through the tough times. Neena said to remember that these people are sinners too; that’s why they attend church. She also wants them to know that all the churches she knows of are very loving, inviting, and easy to get involved in.
She indicated that her favorite ministry is just living her life for the God that she loves and who loves her in return. She said that more people tell her that she has touched them in a way that she never knew just by living her life for the Lord. To her that is the most important thing that she, and anyone else who wishes to help others, can do.
Missouri State UniversityFall 2008Religious Lives of Ozarks Women