I learned about Jesus, the Son of the Living God, when I was a little girl. I was insecure, worried a lot and I was afraid that people would stop loving me if I wasn’t ‘good’.
Then I went to Sunday School and found out Jesus loves me no matter what! What wonderful news! But that was only the beginning.
As I Got Older
As I got older, two things happened. First, I started to worry about death. I was twelve or thirteen, and the thought of being buried really scared me. It made me feel like I couldn’t breathe. Maybe you have that fear too! I started reading my Bible – that is God’s Word to us. I knew that there was a verse that talked about eternal life with Jesus and that’s what I wanted (John 3:16).
The second thing that happened when I was a teenager was that I learned about sin. Sin is when we do things that displease God. I was a ‘good kid’ so it never really occurred to me that I was separated from God because my bad stuff was bad enough.
Then, by going to Youth Group at church, I learned that we’re all sinners and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). I also found out that the payment for that sin is death (Roman 6:23). And then I was afraid of death again!
I Had To Change
When I looked at my life and the bad choices I was making as a teenager – really bad – I knew something had to change or I wouldn’t get to go to heaven and live forever with Jesus. So, when I was seventeen years old, I and another friend, after spending the evening talking about Jesus, knelt down and prayed.
I told Jesus how sorry I was for the bad things I had done and I thanked Him for loving me and forgiving me. My prayer was that He would help me not make those bad choices anymore. I left there with a new hope and the assurance that I would never be afraid of death again!
He Will Continue His Good Work
God’s Word tells us to trust Him with all our hearts and not to lean on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). Now I trust Him with my life and everything in it. I want Him to be in charge! I still struggle with my will – there are good days and bad days. But His Word also says that He will continue His good work in me until it’s finished on the day Jesus comes again (Phil 1:6).
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