On October 15th, Nick, Jake, and I were baptized at our church. It was a powerful morning as the three of us shared our testimonies of how we came to know Christ. We all three had very different stories, but the powerful part was how they were all weaved together -- all part of God's grand design for our lives. This was a morning I will never forget for the rest of my life!
My friends thought it was hilarious that I had my testimony typed out .. like they should have expected anything less. #mylovelanguageiswords
Nick's testimony definitely got the tears going. Watching God change this man's heart and work in his life has been nothing short of breathtaking. I'm grateful every day he came to know Christ! He is a man of few words, but that morning he put it perfectly into words how God transformed him. I can't wait to see what God has in store for his life!!
Loved sharing this morning with my brothers!
I was baptized as an infant, grew up in a Christian home
with two incredibly loving parents, and had a wonderful childhood. I don’t
remember being at church every Sunday, but I do have many memories of Sunday
school and confirmation so I know we attended frequently and I believed in God at
a very young age.
Most of my life, I just kind of went through the motions
with no real purpose. I thought if I always did what was right, God would be pleased
and never punish me. I tried to control everyone and everything around me to
create this perfect image of myself. I became obsessed with being perfect, or
at least appearing perfect, and spent a lot of time and energy trying to
maintain that image to the point I became not only crippled with fear and
anxiety but also pretty conceited.
In May 2010, Nick and I graduated from college, got married,
and moved to Spirit Lake all in one month and life started to get really,
really tough. Nick wasn’t a believer at the time so while he was still an
amazing husband, I was expecting from him what I should have been turning to
Jesus for and it made that first year of marriage difficult for both of us as I
experienced a lot of grief and loss that year. Life continued to throw one hard
thing after another and I quickly realized I could not control all that was
happening around me and ended up feeling defeated when I had no power to change
things. I had no solid ground to stand on, and I felt very alone.
I remember struggling with post-partum depression and one
evening I was rocking our newborn when I heard a knock at the door and this man
Nick had met once or twice at a small group through CrossWinds handed over a
meal for us. We hadn’t even stepped foot inside Crosswinds, but here they were
showing up to love on us during an overwhelming time. We were completely blown
away by this kindness and I told Nick maybe he should go to that small group
again.. because I like free food, but also because I thought these were the
kind of people we should be hanging around. Then I was invited to a Crosswinds
ladies night on the Queen by Nick’s coworker’s wife. I remember being so excited
and thought it was very sweet of her to invite me. That night I met many ladies
who were welcoming and filled with the spirit, and I felt so encouraged by
them. After that, Nick and I decided to give CrossWinds a try.
It was in this very church that I began to really get to know who Christ is and
start living for Him. I met a Father who is so good, so faithful, so patient and
so loving. I became a woman who knows she is treasured even with all her
imperfections. I no longer have to put on a show or try to be perfect because
God accepts me as I am – a sinner in need of His grace every single day.
I have stopped trying to control the difficult situations in
my life and instead trust God to be the author of my story. As I’ve grown closer to Christ, everything about
my life from my marriage, to how we parent our children, to our friendships has
changed for the better. I’m no longer afraid of being punished by God but
instead living in the freedom that I don’t at all deserve but he so graciously
offers. I’ve been able to witness God repairing broken relationships and
turning completely hopeless situations around for His good. My heart is on fire
for Jesus and because I’ve tasted his goodness, I want to love his people and
go out and tell the world of His unfailing love for us. Not because it makes me
look good or is a reflection of who I am, but because it is a reflection of who
Jesus is and we just never know when someone out there needs to see Him through
us.
Time and time again, people and things of this world have
failed me miserably, but I serve a God who will never, ever fail me and there’s
just nothing that gives me more hope than the promise of an eternity with Him. Today
I want to publicly proclaim that I am a daughter of Christ and living every day
of my life to glorify Him.
