My Faith Story

For my first blog with world race, I want to share my personal story of how the Holy Spirit guided me to follow Jesus. I hope this is encouraging!

I accepted Christ as Lord and Savior over my life when I was little. I do not remember the exact age that I was, nor the experience that I had doing so for the first time, but I do remember how my faith became more real to me. I grew up in a Christian home, though, like many others who are blessed to be brought up in this way, I never really knew God personally for the first few years of my life. It was not until middle school, in sixth grade, that I started to read the Bible and take my faith seriously. As I built the habit of communing with the Lord, I felt more joy and peace in my daily life than ever before. I discovered firsthand that if you seek God, you will find Him. On the other hand, being surrounded by the friends I had made before developing a relationship with Christ, I was surrounded by ungodly character, which led to compromise in my faith. I was casually blurting out slanderous words, listening to music that does not honor the Lord, and idolizing ungodly people. I grew distant from the Lord, neglecting the freedom I once had in Him. However, as time went on, and as I attended youth camps, revival meetings, and other such events, I grew more and more awake to the Lord and to the sin I was living in.

Awakening

During the Upperroom End of Year Conference I attended a few months ago, I came to truly understand that He has always been the one who was running after me; it was always Him who found me. I realized that He is always standing at my door knocking, yearning so deeply to come inside and abide with His child in intimate fellowship. It was during a church service shortly afterwards that I heard my pastor read Revelation 3:20, which summed up everything I had just learned and experienced about knowing God: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” In other words, the Lord extends to us an invitation to commune with Him in a deep, personal relationship that leads towards our own sanctification. I am so thankful to be a child of God, and I am excited for and looking forward to the growth I will experience on this trip and afterwards!