Z
I didn't grow up in a church or any religion. My mum believed in God but that was it really. I was always curious. I had a gold bound book full of Bible stories. I cherished that book and I would often read to our dogs and pretend we were at church and I was ministering to them. Mum always told me that you didn't have to go to church because in the Bible it said "where one or more of you are gathered there I shall be", so I guess I figured that included our dogs. Sometimes we would have the odd occasion where my family would go and check out the local church, but it wasn't a regular occurrence. I think I understand now. Mum was trying to find a church she could call home and a congregation she could call family. Mum always had a lot of visitors from the Jehovah Witnesses' Church who would do Bible study. I would hold my own mass with the dogs, read passages from the books the visitors left and admire my book of Bible stories. For a long time not a lot happened until I hit Grade 8 (high school) and our school chaplain asked us all to sign a pledge of celibacy until marriage. I was one of the few who took that very seriously. I kept the pledge in my toy box and I would often look at it and admire it. I guess at one stage I threw that piece of paper away but I kept my pledge. Of course I was very blessed that God kept close to me despite me never really realising it. I made a lot of mistakes trying to find love as I was trying to work out who I was and what I wanted. Luckily all of my mistakes were made online so I never was tested how my pledge would stand up against raging hormones and a need to fit in. After I got over the whole online thing (and to be honest I was hanging with a bad crowd) I told my bestie at the time how depressed I had been and she invited me to her church - she was a Mormon. For the first time I felt I was accepted especially because the good-looking elders and sisters (missionaries) wanted to spend so much time with me. I was baptised with so many unanswered questions and my happiness didn't last long. I drifted from the church and my friend (who ended up moving away) and it was a few years before I returned only to leave again when an older member told us young and impressionable people about how he had asked God to put a curse on a non-believer and that this man had ended up in the hospital. I left and never looked back. A few years ago I went to the local Baptist Church. I was low and depressed and was ostracised which led to me leaving. I admit I was there for the wrong reasons. Even today only a couple of the people I met will even talk to me. The rest ignore me and literally run away. I'm in a church now that I can call home. I'm there for the right reasons, to become closer to my Father. My mum and I stand together to worship the Lord each Sunday - we have both found ourselves in His presence. I may not know the scripture by heart and I'm still reading my Bible for the first time but each day I grow closer to our Saviour and I get to meet great people like the ones here at CC with the same burning passion to know Him. He saved me and He carried me when I didn't even know He was there. This is just a part of my testimony but it is with great joy that I share this with you today 