Growing up, I was brought into the church every Sunday but never really paid attention or absorbed any of the information that was being taught. I just did the little activity sheets that they offered for kids and that was it.
December 2011, my parents got a divorce and we just slowly stopped going to church. I'm not exactly sure why, but I think my mom got her hands full when she became a single mom. I went throughout middle school and high school with no belief in mind, and I honestly didn't even know if I believed God existed at all.
When I started college June 2018, my mental health had declined to the point where I didn't even want to go through my simple day-to-day routine. I was about to move back home when one of my friends from the equestrian team invited me to a college ministry and introduced me to other college students in the Chets College LifeGroup. That is when I started going to church twice a week and hung out with those people outside of the LifeGroup as well.
I wanted to believe in God but I didn't truly have a solid faith until last year when my stepdad was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer. What we thought was a simple and successful surgery, turned life-threatening just days after the initial surgery. Complication after complication seemed to push us even further and further from hope. But turning to God and having countless prayers turned his way did more than we could've imagined.
On the day we thought was going to be it, I wasn't supposed to be able to say goodbye. He wasn't supposed to make it through the night so the doctors just started trying to make him comfortable and started having him make up plans while he was still coherent. 2 hours turned into 4. 4 hours turned into the next morning. The next morning turned into the next week, which turned into the next month. The doctors didn't change their treatment plan, and we all got to witness the power of God at work. I got the pleasure to witness one of His miracles. That is what made me sit back and think, "Wow. He's real."
That day is when I realized just how amazing He is and not only did He introduce me to some of the most amazing people here at Chets Creek, He also saved my stepdad's life and didn't just give us a few more hours, but hopefully a few more decades. I am eternally grateful for His miracles.
I tried to get baptized last year, but things just kept getting in the way until Chris Litton went out of his way to make sure that I was getting baptized this year. I will forever be thankful for Chris for making sure that my biggest hope came true this year. October 2020 will be known for the rest of my life as the day that my life truly began. I thank God every day for all that He has brought into my life since I started attending Chets Creek. I can't wait to see what else He has in store for me.