Made Alive In Christ

    When I (Sarah) think of where I would be without having Jesus Christ in my life, I cannot help but rejoice!! Before I became a Christian, I experienced some extremely difficult events. The first happened when I was five and my parents divorced. The justice system decided my dad was a better fit for my brother, my sister and myself. I saw my mom every Wednesday and every other weekend. My dad was my security, constant and the absolute best. Three short years later, my dad was diagnosed with esophagus cancer; he passed away two weeks before starting second grade.  In these two weeks, we had a funeral, packed up my things, said goodbye to my childhood house; friends and moved two hours away from all I had ever known. My siblings and I moved in with my dad’s oldest sister and her husband. They were gracious enough to buy a new home that fit three children and change their lives entirely. As an eight year old, I did not see their sacrifice; all I knew was that my life had changed and I wasn't too happy. My security was gone and the only thing familiar was my mom, who now lived two hours away. Needless to say, my siblings and I were not the nicest children; we made life a living nightmare for my Aunt and Uncle. In fact, it was so terrible, a year and a half later they let us move in with my mom. Shortly after moving in, I started realizing why my dad wanted us to live with his family and not my mom.  Once I hit sixth grade, I started hanging out with kids who “had connections,” students that were in high school or drop outs. I picked up smoking and drinking and did some drugs. I was so young, so lost and walking down a path full of nothing but destruction. I kept this up for two years, until I started to realize none of it really satisfied me.

    My brother went to church and he seemed happy, so I asked if I could go to youth group with him. Once I started going, I didn't stop. A few months later, our Pastor taught us about cold, hot and lukewarm Christians, using Revelation 3:15-17. I was the lukewarm Christian, which was worse than not believing in God. That very night, I decided to give my life to Christ. I also decided it was time to not just go to church for youth group, but also go on Sundays. Going to church on Sundays, turned into also going to prayer on Wednesdays, this later turned into going five and six days a week. I did not go because I wanted everyone to see me as a “Super Christian,” I went because it was a safe haven. I did not like being at my house, I didn't feel secure.

    I cannot tell you that since I became a Christian, my life has been a walk in the park. I continue to go through hard seasons of life and I still have bad things come my way, but I now have a place of refuge to run to. I can, however, tell you that after becoming a Christian, my life has been completely turned around. I do not turn to drinking or drugs when things aren't going well, instead, I turn to the only One who can fix my problems and my pain. I believe there will be children in our ministry that will come in with pain, some similar to my own experiences and some that aren't. Either way, I am confident God has given me the ability to relate to them. He will make a difference in their lives by using mine.

“All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-5