Reading Plan
Led By The Spirit
“If God could change me, God can change anybody.”
Those words aren’t just something Samantha Major says—they’re the reason she spends her weekends handing out Our Daily Bread devotionals, Discovery Series booklets, and copies of The Journey wherever God opens a door.
But her story didn’t begin there.
It began in heartbreak.
As a child, Samantha endured sexual abuse at the hands of her father. Growing up in a home marked by alcoholism and addiction, she searched for relief in drugs, eventually becoming addicted to crack cocaine.
“I made a lot of wrong choices,” she says honestly. “I didn’t want to become an alcoholic like my parents, so I turned to drugs instead.”
Years later, after becoming pregnant with twin boys, she left drugs behind. But life dealt another devastating blow when her oldest son died from a fentanyl overdose in January 2020.
“It crushed me,” Samantha remembers. “I wanted to die. I laid in bed for ten days and just cried.”
Then, in the middle of her grief, everything changed.
“I finally said, ‘Okay, God, I can’t do life on my own anymore. I’m surrendering it all to You.'”
She called her former youth pastor, who invited her and her husband over for dinner. That evening, Samantha rededicated her life to Christ.
Just three days later, her husband did the same.
Soon afterward, their twin sons also gave their lives to Jesus.
Only weeks after losing her oldest son, the entire family was baptized together.
“It was beautiful,” she says. “We were all baptized as a family.”
Today, Samantha speaks openly about what Christ has done.
“God got me off drugs. He changed my life. Now I have a full-time job with benefits, my own car, my own home. He’s done so much for me.”
She smiles before adding, “I’m not bragging about me. I’m giving glory to God.”
That transformation created a new passion.
“My heart has always been for the lost, the broken, and the homeless. The Bible says those who have been forgiven much, love much.”
Long before becoming an Our Daily Bread Ministries Ambassador, Samantha was already finding creative ways to share Jesus. She distributed Bibles, encouraged children at the school where she works as a caretaker, and looked for every opportunity to remind people that God loved them.
Then she discovered the Ministry Ambassador Program—basically a way for a volunteer to connect their church or outreach ministry with the resources they need from Our Daily Bread Ministries Canada.
“I thought, because I could get my hands on so many Our Daily Bread resources, this would be such a great way to serve.”
Her first outreach event confirmed she had found exactly what she was looking for.
“We gave away almost all the Our Daily Bread devotionals,” she says. “Almost everybody already knew about Our Daily Bread. Some of the younger people even said, ‘My parents raised me on these devotionals.’ That was so encouraging.”
The Discovery Series booklets quickly became conversation starters, with their biblical insights on topical issues.
One man in a wheelchair stopped at the display and shared how he had once planned to take his own life before hearing the gospel at a Christian festival.
“He knew God had a plan for him.”
He took one of every Discovery Series booklet—and purchased a copy of The Journey, an evangelical book that answers the tough questions unbelievers or new believers often have by walking readers through the Gospel of John.
Another visitor explained that his church regularly distributes Our Daily Bread devotionals throughout their neighbourhood while inviting people to church.
“I never even thought about doing something like that,” Samantha says. “We all have our own way of reaching people.”
One of the Discovery Series titles that Samantha recommends most often is Overcoming Grief.
“I tell people that I’ve dealt with grief too. I’ve lost a son.”
At one event, a young woman who appeared to be expecting a baby stopped by the display. It turned out the woman’s newborn had died after just 26 minutes just one week earlier.
“We hugged and cried together.”
The grieving mother took a copy of Overcoming Grief with her.
“It reminded both of us that we don’t grieve without hope.”
Samantha has also found The Journey to be a powerful tool for new believers.
At the outreach event, a ministry leader purchased five copies to give away and planned to hand one to a woman who had just given her life to Christ.
Samantha said, ‘I’ll donate that one.’ The woman buying the books smiled and said, ‘Then I’ll take six.'”
Whether she’s serving at Jesus Festivals, homeless outreaches, church events, or simply encouraging people she meets throughout the week, Samantha sees every booklet as an opportunity for someone to encounter Jesus.
When asked what she appreciates most about being a Ministry Ambassador, she doesn’t hesitate.
“I love the Discovery Series catalogue. There are so many topics that speak to what people are going through.”
She explains that every season of life brings different struggles.
“If churches change the topics every once in a while, people keep coming back because there’s always something that speaks to where they are.”
For Samantha, that’s what makes the ministry so valuable.
“We’re all going through something. These resources help people find biblical answers and hope.”
She also appreciates how easy it is to serve.
“If you’re all about sharing the gospel and getting good material into churches and people’s hands, most definitely become a Ministry Ambassador. It’s so simple to do.”
After everything she’s endured, Samantha has discovered that God never wastes our pain.
Instead, He transforms it into a testimony that points others to Christ.
And every devotional, every Discovery Series booklet, every copy of The Journey, and every conversation is another opportunity to remind someone of the same truth that changed her own life:
“If God could change me, God can change anybody.”
