My Testimony

Okay, well, I received an application from the Casa de Amor, (the children's home which I am hoping to volunteer at.) On the application were several essay questions, one of which was "Describe your relationship with Jesus Christ and how you became a Christian." I was afraid this would be difficult to write a lot about, as I don't have an extraordinary conversion story like some people do. But I decided to chronicle my Christian walk, so far, as honestly as I could, and this is what came pouring out.

I decided to post it on my blog, as these days, I don't get many opportunities to share my "testimony". But I must warn my readers, that it is much cheesier and sappier than my usual posts. So please bear with me.

Well, here goes...

I am so blessed! I grew up in an "Uber" Christian family. (Pardon my slang, I've been in the Navy for the last six years!) We went to church twice a week. My parents read us Bible stories and prayed with us almost every night. But aside from all of that, what really made me see Christ alive at such a young age was that my parents were people who really, really lived their faith. My father made a decent paycheck. When I was younger I thought he was rich, but looking back, I realize this was not entirely true. But he gave- anytime God told him to. And when God told my mother and father to take in children with special needs, their response wasn't so much "why", but "how", and "how many?".

That's a big reason why I still follow Christ to this day- because my mother and father made Christianity more than just a cultural phenomenon for me, but rather a real reason to live, to breathe, to wake up each morning, and to die one day.

But I also know that God was tugging at my heart. For some reason, which I cannot fathom, he chose me to be one He would save. I consider myself fortunate, that the amazing God of this Earth would notice, and remember me. Me- my stupid, silly self.

I really don't know how old I was when I was first saved. I prayed the salvation prayer so many times during my childhood, I really can't say which one was the one that stuck. I know it was in my teens that I really felt secure about my salvation- and stopped begging for it. It was then that I began to have a real, personal, relationship with my Father, God.

When I was in Bolivia for the first time, I decided I was going to live as an instrument of God. I would never smoke, never drink and never do anything impure. I would be a saint and live every day of my live for my Holy Father, and for my family, who I loved and respected more than I could ever say.

But things didn't work out that way. I think God wanted me to know, that it wasn't me, (or my family) but rather Him that was perfect. He wanted me to understand my humanity. And to know what it was like to live making my own decisions.

When I joined the Navy, I was free from my parents umbrella. It rained, and I got wet.

There was a time, where I had no Christian friends. No idea whatsoever that God was still alive in this Earth, except a faint echo from my family so far away...

I began to question everything... Why not drink, why not smoke? No one is pure, so why should I be? I began to read books about alternate faiths. I read a book by a man who thought there was a God but no such thing as Hell. Why would a loving God send someone to hell, meaning to me, why can't I date someone who isn't a Christian? (Lol, are you following my logic? This is what I wanted to believe.)

But my loving God never let me go. Praise God!! Nothing I searched for made sense. As much as Atheists like to bash Christianity- their "logic" was faulty. Read Richards Dawkins- he's an idiot! There was never anything that made sense to me more than my God did.

And now, here I am. Not perfect. Not pure. But loved by my God. And where my faith in me has decreased, my faith in him has increased.