No One Else But Him

Growing up, I was raised by strict Catholic parents. I was forced to attend classes and went through the whole process of Confirmation. But even after all that, Jesus still didn't seem real to me. In fact, I really only went to those classes to make my parents happy. It was never my choice. I lived my life strictly to please others. I felt I lived a pretty good life. I succeeded in all I pursued, I had lots of friends, I was popular, I was happy.

But in 1998, the end of my junior year of high school, my life seemed to get complicated. I started dating my future husband, Jason, who was a born-again believer type of Christian. My parents would warn me about him and make comments like, "Oh, he's only going to try to convert you". So of course, I did everything I possibly could to prevent that to make them happy.

Jason first shared with me the story of Nicodemus, the Pharisee and how Jesus told him, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." (John 3:3) Jason asked me if I believed in Heaven and Hell and if I knew where I'd go after I died. At that point, I stopped him and ended the conversation right away. I was a bit annoyed that he even asked. Who wants to think about death? I thought, 'Here he goes trying to convert me just like my parents said.'

As we continued to date, Jason never gave up on me and my salvation. When he invited me to his church, I would say to him, "If you go to my church first, then I'll go to yours." So one day he did. When I finally attended my first service at his church, I felt nervous, anxious, worried, guilty, and even a little excited. I didn't know what to expect. But God knew. His presence was everywhere, during the praise and worship, the message, and even the people. I had never experienced God that way before. He was starting to change my heart.

I didn't accept Jesus right away, but through curiosity, I started to seek Him more on my own. Growing up, I was never encouraged to read the Bible, but at Jason's church, I was told that I needed to read it if I wanted to know more about Jesus. So I secretly started reading the Bible and continued to attend Jason's church.

In October 1999, I finally accepted Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. I didn't care what my parents thought anymore. I did it for myself. I was convinced that life without Jesus was no life at all. I wanted to please no one else but Him. I realized that God really does love me just for me; that no matter how good we are, or how popular we are, or how pretty we are, or how proud our parents are of us, we ALL still fall short of the Glory of God, because of sin. God definitely made a way for me to want to know Him despite my stubbornness.

Carmela
(accepted Christ 1999)

A Search For Peace

I was raised Catholic and went to church every Sunday. At some point, we stopped going every Sunday and only went during Christmas Eve and Easter. By the time I was in my late twenties, I stopped going to church and had little interest in “my religion.” I then made some bad choices in my life (mainly with relationships), and thought that this is what I deserved. After ending the worst relationship of my life, I decided to leave Dallas, TX (which is where I had lived the past 10 years), and decided to start a new life in Arizona. I moved to Phoenix in 1999 where my sister resided.

I wanted “peace” in my life and wanted to “find myself.” I was in desperate need of wanting some kind of spirituality. I visited Buddhist temples, Japanese Healing Homes, Unity Church, and other mediation places. I was never satisfied and jealous of my sister who was finding peace at most of these places. We would often go to these places together, and for some reason, people would welcome and accept her instead of me (now I know that I was being protected or maybe these people sensed that I was not satisfied with their beliefs). At times, I even experienced migraines after meditations. To me, this was not “peace.”

During my search, I was working at the Make A Wish Foundation and met a co-worker who seemed to always be at peace with his life. He told me he was Christian, but I did not fully know what that meant. I had known Christians in the past, and unfortunately, they were always judgmental of others. But, this guy laid it all out for me. He answered all my questions and even gave me my first Bible.

I prayed for God to reveal himself to me. It was a long battle because I refused to have someone else be in control of my life. I also started to have feelings for the person who was witnessing to me, BUT, I knew he was already a Christian, and I wasn’t. I prayed to God all the time and asked him “why did you bring this person in my life”? He was so different from others that I had dated in the past. I now know that God meant to bring us together, not only to have us be united as one (in marriage) but also to have him witness to me! 

I came to Christ in April of 2001. I feel closer to God than ever and desire to have Jesus be my main focus in life. I want to continue an intimate relationship with Him and continue to grow. I thank God for Johnny who I not only fell in love with, but who told me truth. God protected me during my “search” and for that I am extremely grateful!

Christina 
(accepted Christ in 2001)