I used to think that how I came to know Christ as my Savior was very ordinary and unremarkable. I was, as many, saved at an early age, grew up going to church, and knowing about God, and that was that; or so I thought.

See, I had always thought I had a boring testimony because I wasn’t drowning in a life of drugs and abuse and decided to follow Christ instead, or something of that sort. What I didn’t realize until recently is the fact that I was saved from drugs, because God strengthened me to not ever dabble in that, thus saving me from entering into it. So whether or not you were led out of a radical life of sin to Christ, or never even participated in that particular sin by God’s power, you were saved from it.  That, to me, really transformed my perspective and made me see that my story of rescue isn’t bland or unimportant; it’s amazing.

At the beginning of this year is when things really changed for me, and where I finally understood the importance of my relationship with God. Last year and starting this year, I felt stagnant. Dead. I saw that I really wanted to want to read the Bible, but I didn’t actually have that hunger for it. The same went for my prayer life; I wanted that desire, but that was the extent of it. Through pastors and leaders at my church and godly friends, I came to understand why I should pray and read the Bible-not to be a “good Christian” or to earn my salvation, but because it would deeply strengthen the most important relationship in my life. Think of it this way: if you have a boyfriend/girlfriend, or even if you don’t, don’t you imagine you would want people to see that relationship you so dearly treasure? You would want to display this friendship because it is important to you; but you wouldn’t want to display a weak, one-way relationship. You would work to grow and strengthen that relationship because of its great importance. That is how I finally started to view my walk with God; as a vital relationship into which I must put in effort and heart to grow. Also, pressing into the Bible and prayer helps you know what to say to others’ questions about God, how to back up and give reasons for your beliefs, and how to keep your mind and heart filled with things of God, leaving less and less room for Satan to creep in.

I am excited beyond words to see what God can do in me throughout the rest of my life. I have never before felt so alive, so hopeful, and so filled with purpose than I do now. If you don’t know this hope, or are feeling stagnant and stuck like I did, please strive to prioritize your walk with God, and do whatever it takes to grow closer to Him. Nothing but God can fill the emptiness that we desperately try to fill. No possession, no amount of financial stability, no title, no degree of popularity, no career, no worldly relationship can fill the emptiness that can only be filled by God; so it’s high time we put our walk with God above all these things that fade away.

This testimony came from the heart of my new friend Grace who is fifteen years old.