Before Jesus Changed My Life

I have known Jesus and thought I knew what salvation was at an elementary age. Sin became a highlight in my life through the confusion of what church meant. I tried to seek approval through the rules of the church but could never live up to the high standards of what the people of leadership told me I had to meet. I thought all Christians must be hypocrites to demand such high standards and then judge those who can't meet them. At that point, I tried to fill the void where Jesus should have been (which I didn't allow him to fill) with approval through worldly things. Putting all my value into what people thought of me instead of living for God. This tore apart friendships and relationships. I found myself constantly anxious, always feeling down, and truly feeling lost.

How Jesus Changed My Life

I was lost after my freshman year of college. I remember even telling one of my friends that I didn't believe in God anymore. I still remember the feeling of saying that out loud and knowing deep down I didn't mean it. Moving back to my hometown, I had a friend reach out to me whom I hadn't seen in 10 years asking if I would like to grab a coffee and catch up. We met up, and she invited me to go to Salt Company with her, I went with her curious to see what a church with worship music was like. My boyfriend at the time, who is now my husband, Maverick, was also starting to regularly attend a college ministry where he went to school, so I was also excited to tell him I was visiting one too. After leaving, I craved more, the worship touched my soul, and I felt Jesus's love in the room. It was one of the first times I felt like I was surrounded by people who actually loved Jesus and weren't praising him to get Glory for themselves but to praise God for his Glory. My friend and I visited Salt some more after that and attended a couple of other college ministries around the area. It was such an enlightening experience to see people so absorbed in Christ, that they weren't absorbed in themselves. I saw a dramatic change in Maverick's priorities, and it was inspiring. I couldn't believe that the man who had gone through such a worldly time could switch his life to be for the Glory of God, I could see God working in his heart. I knew that I wanted that change in my life too. I do not remember the day but I remember the conversation of Maverick calling me and just being excited about what he was learning in his college ministry group and how God was affecting him. God truly was working through him, and it still is one of the things I am most thankful for today. That was the day I decided to stop living for the world and putting my trust in Jesus fully.

My Life After Jesus Saved Me

It is crazy to look back on my life 3 years ago and remember how full of anxiety and sadness it was. My life felt consumed by sin. Now that I am walking with Christ I feel like those worries have been cast away. Sure they creep in every now and then, but God reminds me that I can throw my anxieties on him (1 Peter 5:7). I turn to him when in my time of need and through hard things. It has changed my marriage for the better and continues to strengthen it every day. I do not think we would have made it through our first year, first miscarriage, and first child if we did not have God to lean on. His Glory and comfort have gotten us through the hardest of times. Praise God that he allows us to bear our burdens and sorrows, and he brings us comfort and love. I love when I get the opportunity to have God be shown through my life and talk about all the things he is moving and redirecting in my life. God is so good for allowing us to walk with him. The idea of raising our son to know him and love him brings me so much joy. I pray he sees God's love through us as parents. God has brought so much joy back into my life. The fact I get to serve him instead of the ways of Man is the highlight of my life. I know that I have eternal life through Jesus Christ because I see his grace through forgiveness every day for my sins.