My Testimony

God has blessed my life by allowing me to grow-up in a Christian family. There is nothing sweeter than having both parents love and fear the Lord. I came to know Christ at the age of five, in a small Southern Baptist church in Phoenix, Arizona. Shortly there after I was baptized in front of the whole congregation, proclaiming my decision to be a servant of God. When I think back on that day I smile and praise God for seeking me at such a young age. The coolest thing about my baptism is when I got out of the water, all I could see was a bright light that shone from the window in the back of the sanctuary. I fell that was the Holy Spirit confirming my dedication and God’s blessing on my life. Finding Christ at a young age is amazing but my life has been extremely difficult. A few years later my parents went through a messy divorce, leaving my sister and I torn between two households. It’s hard as a kid to respond to divorce, especially myself. I suffered from really bad stomachaches and depression. I was no longer the blond haired, happy girl who spent her days swimming and playing with her friends. I became instead aggressive, chubby and kept to myself. Slowly things started to change. My father remarried a year later; a marriage that was loveless and difficult. My sister and I became to despise my step-mother and step-sister, along with her family. On top of it, my mother moved to Colorado, leaving my sister and me without support. My mom remarried as well to a wonderful man and eventually my sister and I moved to Colorado at the age of 13 in the middle of my eighth grade year. Soon after, my father moved to Texas, divorced his wife and remarried three years later to an amazing woman of God with two kids. God was always present in those situations. Divorce is something I wish no one as to experience but I was given relationships with two fantastic servants of God who have changed my life. High school came and went quickly. During that time I became active in my family church and build some of my closet relationships there. My senior year of high school my stomach pains returned, along with extreme nausea. I can’t remember a morning where I wasn’t sick. I was angry with God, why would he allow me too feel this way? Gradually I lost my appetite all together, eating only a little at every meal. After graduation I went on a Christian leadership trip through Europe, and one night I felt the touch of the Holy Spirit, healing my body. On that trip God taught to me to walk by faith, trusting that He has everything under control. I took that knowledge with me to college. I loved college and the Godly relationships I built there. This past year though until a month or so ago has been the most difficult. Within that time, I ended a serious relationship, had surgery, got diagnosed with both severe acid reflux and ovarian cysts on Christmas Day, and moved to a part of America that is hostile to the Gospel. A week before Camp Gilead I fasted for four days, along with some close friends, asking God to reveal His will here in Connecticut. I was starving for REAL friendships and a purpose. God heard my cry and blessed me with more than I asked. He healed my stomach problems and heart burn. God gave me strong Christ centered relationships. God gave me a hope with my future at Hillside. I no longer desire to retreat back to Colorado; God only knows where I will end up.