Before Jesus Changed My Life

I grew up in church, but I can’t say I grew up in Jesus. Going to church on Sundays was just a Sunday thing, but it didn’t affect how I lived my life the other six days of the week. I knew about Christ, but I didn’t KNOW Him or have a relationship with him. I was a firstborn child and was always seeking approval from others. Other people‘s opinions of me mattered. I was always striving to be better and valued external validation. My worth came from other people’s opinions of me and not God’s opinion, which is the only one that matters.

How Jesus Changed My Life

I went through a divorce in 2005 and after that I was looking for a new church and was invited to a friend’s church. After a period of time I was invited to join a women’s Bible study. This got me to be in the word and read the Bible more routinely. I then got asked to join another women’s Bible study where I was surrounded by women who knew Jesus in a much deeper way than I did, I learned that Jesus wasn’t just a character in a story but that He was a real person who loved ME and made a sacrifice for all of my sins and poor choices. It became real to me that I mattered to Him. I also went on a mission trip to Haiti in 2016 and was completely out of my comfort zone. It was a life-changing experience. I realized how selfish I was and how I had an idol in my life that I never realized before, the idol of comfort. Watching people who had literally nothing go to church and praise God with a joy that I had never seen before was truly eye-opening. They sang and praised Jesus with a level of passion that I had never had before in my life, despite having so many THINGS. I was missing out on the best thing, Jesus! These are verses that God has used to significantly impact my life for eternity: John 3:16, Romans 5:8, Romans 8:38-39, 1 Peter 1:3-4, Hebrews 11:1.

My Life After Jesus Saved Me

There is now such a comfort and a freedom in knowing I don’t have to work to earn my salvation. That there’s nothing that I could ever do or ever will do that will earn that, it’s only by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. It’s all because of his work and nothing that I have done. Now when I go through trials, I feel I have much less anxiety and worry because I know that God is in control and that nothing will happen outside of his plan. It allows me to be a bit more calm in the midst of the storms of life. Psalm 46:10 says “Be still and know that I am God” I remind myself of this verse frequently. Proverbs 3:5-6 is a verse I keep at my desk at work as a daily reminder to not lean on my own understanding, but to trust God in all situations. I can truly say since my relationship with Christ, I am much more at peace and I don’t let things bother me to the degree that they would have several years ago. I’m just glad I have Jesus, there’s such a comfort in knowing Him. There are times in life when satan just wants to get in my head and try to make me believe that I’m unworthy, but I know in my heart Christ has forgiven me and loves me unconditionally. There’s nothing better than that!