My Story

My Story

I visited the Southwest Church today, partly to attend the youth group class, which my friend Brad Grow was teaching. He talked about his experience of counseling at Jr. Teen camp a couple of weeks ago, and the theme was “Story”. If there was one reason that I regret taking the summer macro course, it’s that I wasn’t able to counsel out at Jr. Teen. Apparently it was one of the greatest camp weeks Brad experienced, seeing all the kids grow and worship God. Going back to the theme of the camp, “Story”, everyone has a testimony. We all have a background and a present. We have all been through different experiences and cultures, and those things have shaped us to become who we are today.  All of the campers had stories to share, though some probably weren’t as intrepid to share them with others. So at the end of class, Brad (and another guy I don’t know) suggested that we think about our own stories, and that we share them next week.

My story? Well, I was basically born into the Church of Christ, and I’ve grown up in it since. I was baptized, by my dad, on October 13, 2005; almost 5 years ago. Some may obviously assume that I believe in God mainly because of my parents, and it’s true that they have had an influence in my life. But that is not why I believe. Believe me when I say I’ve had doubts of my own in the past. But I got over them, and I still do believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and that he died for me and all of you.

I’ve been through some tough times. The one that always comes to mind is the time I went to bed one night, and woke up about an hour later in an ambulance on the way to the ER because I had a seizure. (I’m not mentioning this to seek sympathy. It doesn’t even matter to me anymore.) That did not shake my faith in God, however. If anything, it only made me question His love. Wasn’t I considered his child? Isn’t He a loving God? I struggled with that for a while, but then I came to the conclusion that I believed it was just a reminder that this life, the one we’re living now, is not the one that holds eternal glory as we were promised if we followed God. I mean, look at Job’s account! We are not home yet. We still have a journey ahead of us. We still have a story to write, and hopefully one with a happy ending.

Throughout my entire life I’ve always been baffled as to how much division exists within the church. People splitting apart because they can’t agree on using one communion cup or several? Sunday school or no Sunday school? Correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t we all have the same Lord and Savior? “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” – Ephesians 4:3-6. “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.” – Romans 12:6-8. These are the two main passages I think of when I think of unity or disunity. Note: I’m not writing this to stir up debates. On my facebook profile, under religious views, I just have “Christian” under it. Yes, I attend a Church of Christ, and have done so my whole life so far. But not once am I going to believe that only Church of Christ members will be saved. Mind you, earlier I only mentioned “trivial” things such as one cup or Sunday school, but concerning other things like “God loves homosexuals too, and He doesn’t care”, I have to disagree, since God is not only a God of love, but a God that is just. And Scripture speaks against it as well. “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” – 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. The key phrase there is “that is what some of you were”, and the keyword is “were”. They “were” those kinds of people, but not anymore, and God has forgiven them for that. I believe God should not be seen as just a genie in a lamp that will grant our every wish. Love goes both ways. And God is forgiving, but He is not an idiot.

I don’t like debates, and I try to avoid them, for three reasons. One, I don’t want to intentionally offend or anger anybody. Two, I may be wrong in my reasoning. Three, who are we to judge? We’ve all made mistakes. I’ve made mistakes. Usually, that’s why today I do blogs or make videos about my beliefs. I’d rather plan and think ahead than just say the first thing that comes out of my mouth. I’ve made two videos,  and they encompass what I feel we should all focus on. God is a God of comfort, that this earthly life is not what matters most, and that we are all God’s children, should we choose to follow Him. My blog basically tells of some chapters in my life that I have felt like sharing.

While I was studying abroad in Europe last fall, specifically Croatia and Germany, I got to know other believers in Jesus. Even on the other side of the world I could be encouraged, knowing that our God is the God of all. Probably my favorite passage is Romans 5:6-8 – “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Now that I’ve shared my “story”, my advice is to not lose focus. Don’t forget who God is, what He has planned for us, why we “go to church”, why Jesus died on the cross, and what we are called to be. Don’t think “God-time” is just Sunday mornings, or even Wednesday nights. “God-time” is all the time, so every day, live for Him. Love Him. Love others, just as He loves you, because the day will come when we will all stand before Him. And if your “story” is about you and Him, then you will come to realize how amazing an eternity with Him will be, and that nothing in this life matters more.

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