Never Alone Again
My name is Carina, and I have a new life in Christ.
Before I trusted Jesus, my life felt empty and without purpose. I felt lonely, lost, and tried to rely only on myself. I carried a lot of pain, shame, sadness, and confusion. When I was 12 years old, my mother passed away from a terminal illness. My younger sister was only 9 years old, and I felt like I was left alone to take care of her. A couple of month before my mother died, we moved to El Salvador to live with family members we had never met before.
Everything felt unfamiliar. We were in a different country, surrounded by people we did not know, speaking Spanish in a way we were not used to, with no familiar faces around us. During that time, I also experienced things that no child should ever have to go through. I felt unsafe, alone, hopeless, and depressed.
As a child, I did not know how to handle that kind of pain. I did not want to carry it anymore, and I did not want to leave my sister behind. At that time, I thought ending both of our lives would be the better option. My mother had always taken us to church, and I was taught that if someone committed suicide, they would not enter the kingdom of heaven. I felt trapped because I did not know what else to do.
In that moment, when I had made up my mind, I did the one thing my mother had always taught me to do: I prayed. When I prayed, everything changed. I received more than I could have ever imagined. I felt the Holy Spirit, strength, peace, and an unexplainable love that assured me everything would be okay. For the first time in a long time, I felt safe, loved, and no longer alone. God showed me that I did not need to give up.
The love I felt from God was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. Through that love, I found the strength to keep moving forward. I owe my life to God/Jesus Christ for the love He gave me and the greatest sacrifice he has done. Since trusting Jesus, my life has changed. I still have difficult days. I still get sad, worried, and overwhelmed at times, but I no longer give up because I know God is with me. I know He has a purpose and a plan for my life.
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
I want to be baptized today because Jesus saved my life, gave me hope when I had none, and showed me that I was never alone. I want to publicly declare that I belong to Jesus Christ and that I trust Him completely with my life and future. Today, I have decided to give my life, my soul, my heart, and my mind fully to our Lord Jesus Christ. I want to follow Him, trust Him, and live for Him for the rest of my life.