“It was a quiet January night, just a few days before the presidential inauguration. I was lying in bed in the middle of the night with my six-year-old, Echo, gently calming her after a night terror had awakened her. As she finally drifted back to sleep, I felt a heaviness settle over me, thick and suffocating, like the air before a storm,” she began. ” It pressed against my chest, not like a weight, but like a presence—something unseen yet undeniable. At that moment, I could only think to bow my head, close my eyes, and offer a silent prayer to God.
“That next morning in January, I called Diane, who had texted me earlier, “I want to talk with you about getting baptized.”’ She explained. “This felt like the final confirmation of something I already knew: It was time. I called her then, and we decided that on Sunday (the day before President Trump’s inauguration), she and her husband, Peter, would baptize me in my backyard.”
“During that meeting, Diane opened her worn and well-loved Bible—filled with highlights, underlines, and Post-it tabs. A book that had been studied and prayed over thousands of times. She moved through it with laser precision, guiding me to verse after verse as I struggled to read through my blurry, tear-filled eyes…Diane looked at me and said with absolute certainty that Jesus could save me—that His blood is able to wash away sins…”Shanahan wrote.”I think it took the pain of that moment, the desperate need for hope, and the unwavering intensity in Diane’s eyes to finally break through the last, most stubborn skeptic in me. When Diane asked if I wanted to be baptized, I didn’t hesitate—I said yes.”
“I’ve always believed in God, but I never fully grasped the reality of the devil. Growing up with a father who seemed overcome by his demons, I try to avoid “bad energy,”’ the former candidate said. “He was addicted to alcohol and would fall into manic rages, yelling profanities at the wall. He would scream, laugh, cry, and wail all in a single evening, alone downstairs in our home in Oakland… I never seriously considered whether demons were real—until recently. Honestly, my last year in politics changed that. Learning just how far some will go to inflict atrocities on innocent Americans has shocked me awake.
“Demons certainly exist, and Jesus is our covenant with God to fight them. When I said “yes” to accepting Jesus as my Savior, I felt something I could hardly put into words. It was like being wrapped in a warm cocoon while becoming a grounded, weighted, immovable obelisk…now, my prayers are directed toward Jesus. He is the bridge between us and heaven—our Intercessor before the Divine Creator.”
“Jesus longed more than anything to save “God’s lost sheep.” It was the deepest, most unfulfilled desire of the holiest being to walk this earth. And I believe that longing still exists today—an aching truth we’ve ignored, distorted, and misunderstood for far too long,” she stated. ” The universe itself is pressing us forward, like cheese through a grater, forcing us to feel the weight of God’s pain, the sorrow of a Father who gave His only Son, only to see Him rejected instead of upheld as the one true Messiah.”
Read Her Inspiring Tweet Here:
— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) February 25, 2025
For those who are searching, who feel the same longing I once did, I can only say this: keep asking, keep seeking, “keep knocking. Faith is not about having all the answers but about trusting in the One who does. And when you find Him, you will know you are finally home,” Shanahan concluded. Many online well-wishers flocked to her post to congratulate her.
Featured Image From Embedded Tweet