Before I received Christ, I was someone who always believed that there was a higher being, but never really explored and wasn’t really keen in finding out more. I was happy where I was, and only reached out to the higher being when I needed help. I didn’t really have a purpose in life. So I lived according to what my parents wanted for me, and strived to make them proud, kind of the “good girl, good daughter” vibe.
I would say that my Christian journey started in my first year of university. Four years ago, I was brought to church by a friend. She invited me to come for the Good Friday service and afterwards, she went on asking me to come along to church for the next few months. Initially, I went to church because she asked me to, and I had problems saying “no” to people. I remember hardening my heart, telling myself not to believe in the Christian faith and not to spend too much time with people at church. Because of this, I would usually head straight home after church. But over time, I did see the Lord working in me and softening my heart. I began exploring more and asking more questions, and these questions were slowly answered through conversations with people. But conversations with people alone did not help me to trust that the Lord is real. It was my experience with the Lord and how He had been working in my life, that allowed me to confidently say that: yes, God is real!
After I became a Christian, I would say that I was greatly humbled by the Lord. I used to try my best to be that ideal daughter for my parents, and that was where I found my identity. I used to seek approval from friends, and that was where I found my worth. Now, my identity and anchor has changed. I find my identity in Christ alone, and He is my firm foundation. I know that my worth is found in Christ alone. I no longer need to please people but strive to live for God, and to love and serve His people. I still see myself falling short of so many things, but learn to depend more and more on the Lord through prayer.
Now, my identity and anchor has changed. I find my identity in Christ alone, and He is my firm foundation. I know that my worth is found in Christ alone.
He opened my eyes and helped me see that the world isn’t as good and perfect as I thought it was. I see how people, and even myself, have rejected God, and just how undeserving we are of His grace. Yet God showed us His love and mercy by sending Jesus to die for us on the cross. For my non-believing friends, the idea of ‘grace’ might seem a bit foreign. Imagine this scenario, a judge walks into a courtroom and sees that the offender he is going to judge is his friend. What is he going to do? He needs to uphold justice, but he also loves his friend. So he punished the offender with a fine, but paid it for him instead. The offender did nothing to deserve that grace from the judge, but it is paid freely out of love by the judge. This probably isn’t the perfect analogy to be compared with God, but it helped me to understand the depth of His love for us that He came down as man to pay for our wrongs.
I thank God for blessing me with the Gracepoint community and my university small group to grow in. I thank God for the conversations I had with people around me. I thank God for working in me and giving me a new heart that wants to live for Him.
Final summary to my brothers and sisters in Christ. Not only do we need to live out the Christian life, but also speak about it. I was brought into this faith because someone told me about the Gospel. I might not have responded to it straight away when I first heard it, but trust in the word of the Lord that it would produce fruit according to His own time. May this be an encouragement to you to take up the courage to share the good news or simply have a conversation with someone.
As for my dear friends who has yet to place their faith in Christ, this is my story of how I came to Christ. I would encourage you to pause and ponder, how has the Lord been working in your life, and where do you stand with God?
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