"�He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. So whoever has God's Son has life; whoever does not have his Son does not have life. I write this to you who believe in the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life."

I John 5:11-13

Chris on His Faith:

I was raised in a "good" home and was taught "good" morals and values. I only had a limited understanding of God because we didn't attend church regularly. I was a good kid and didn't get into much trouble, so I thought I was o.k.

A good friend in high school asked me if I was going to heaven, and it really started me thinking. Years later, I ended up working for a Christian organization, and I would see and hear about what God was doing personally in the lives of my coworkers and friends. Through several discussions, a coworker showed me in the Bible that just being a "good" person wasn't enough to get me into heaven. I discovered that even though the wrong things I did weren't that bad, they still really hurt and offended God. That's when I realized I needed to tell God I was sorry and ask Him to forgive me for the things I did. I didn't know how lost I truly felt until after I understood that the bad things I did would keep me from being able to have a relationship with God. The coworker also told me that no matter how good I was, or tried to be, it still couldn't erase whatever bad things were in me. He said that only by believing that Jesus died on the cross as the consequence of my sins would my sins be completely and totally erased. This was the only way to allow me to have a relationship with God forever, even after I died, which assured me I would go to heaven when I died. I prayed with a coworker and asked God for forgiveness, and I asked Him to take control of my life, and help me live the way He wanted from now on.

Since I asked God to be the "driver" of my life, He started to show me other things in my life that weren't pleasing to Him and that I needed to change. I have found that the more that I obey Him when He asks me to change, the more peace and direction He gives me. This gives me much fulfillment. I don't feel lost anymore because I can actually see things in my personal life that He does to constantly show me that He cares, even about the little things, and that He is working in my life all the time. I don't have to feel worried about where I will go when I die, no matter when that happens, because I know my relationship with Him is secure.

Joy on Her Faith

I grew up in a home that went to church every time the doors were opened. I was taught who Jesus was at a very young age. Even at the young age of four, I was able to understand that the things I did that were wrong were called "sins" and that this made God unhappy. I was able to understand that I needed to believe that God sent His son, Jesus, to earth just for me. That Jesus died on the cross to pay for my sins, and that by believing this, I could go to heaven.

Although I made that decision at such a young age, I didn't really understand what it meant for my life. I figured that since I was a "shoo-in" for heaven, that nothing else really mattered. So I went on to live my life and made many bad choices. I always felt very guilty because I had been taught and understood enough to know that God wasn't happy with me, but I just kept doing stupid things. There were several crises in my life when I realized that my relationship with God was the only thing that mattered, and the only thing I could trust, or hold onto. I would just live every moment for a Bible verse that helped me, people's prayers, and other encouragements God gave me along the way. And, as most people do, after the crises passed, I found myself getting more independent of God and not really caring what He thought. There came a time when the places I was going, the people I was with, and the choices I was making just got worse and worse. I lay in bed one night begging God to get me out of this mess because I just didn't want to live this way anymore, and I didn't know how to get out of the situation I was in. Just a few days after that, I had an accident with a four-wheeler that landed me in the hospital. I was instantly out of the bad situation because I couldn't go to the places I shouldn't have been going to, and I couldn't see the people I shouldn't have been seeing anyway. Instead, God removed most of my friends away from me, except for Chris. Not only did this enable me to really see how much my (then) friend loved me, but I was also able to see the escape plan that God had given me. Chris encouraged me to really stop what I had been doing, and instead, start living the way God wanted me to.

After that, God has been doing one miracle after another in my life. I am amazed daily at the things in my life that are so small and silly, but God cares about them. He has provided things for us in the most unusual of ways. Sometimes I still worry about things from time to time, and then God reminds me that HE is in control of my life, and He works out the details so completely that I am often left wondering what I had to be worried about in the first place. Yes, I know I am going to heaven, but I don't have to wait until then to see what God is like. He shows me Himself all the time, and let's me know that no matter what I did in the past, He still loves me. I know that if I was the only human being on the planet, God still would have sent His son, Jesus, to die for me so that I wouldn't have to be apart from Him. I don't have to ever feel bad about myself anymore either, because the Bible tells me that God CHOSE me, that He wanted me so bad, even though I didn't think I was good enough. Even at my worst, He loves me all the same. This relationship has brought me stability and hope, the power to persevere through whatever life throws my way, and a peace that no matter what happens, God is going to work everything out somehow, someway.