What was life like before you met Jesus?
Before I met Christ, the “needs” that filled my mind were very materialistic and self-centered. I was consumed with trying to keep up with my peers, and everything I did was for my own personal gain. In my early adult life, I faced a lot of guilt as if the Spirit was speaking to my actions, but I had such a worldly focus. Deep down, I think I knew something big was missing in my life, but I tried to fill that void with things that satisfied me momentarily.
How did you meet Jesus?
There was a time when Matthew and I were living in Northern Wisconsin. He was a new dentist, and we had taken a big risk leaving our families for work. What started as a fun adventure quickly turned into a path of destruction. We were drinking heavily and were associating ourselves with the wrong people. After a few confrontations with people who we thought were great mentors, Matthew and I had a very vulnerable conversation. We expressed our feelings that we felt we were being called to leave the situation. We knew that God was truly looking out for us and our relationship and had a hand in this decision. From the moment we left Wisconsin, God has provided for us in so many ways. We know that once we put our trust in Him, He was and is going to guide and protect us.
After being saved by Jesus, what is your life like now?
God has been so faithful to our family. We are confident in our decisions as business owners and parents because we know we have a faithful Father who is always there for us. We have created a God-honoring atmosphere in our home and delight in the privilege of sharing Jesus with our girls. Becoming a believer has given me accountability in my life where I needed it the most. God has given us a wonderful connection group of people who help us in our journey of becoming more and more like Jesus. Ephesians 2:8 is a verse spoken frequently in our home to remind us that in times of trouble, we must always remember that “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the GIFT of God” (Ephesians 2:8). Knowing that God has given us the gift of his Son, that we may have eternal life with him, not by the works that we do, but solely because His Son died on the cross for us is so humbling. Knowing that I have eternal life because Jesus died on the cross for me is all the motivation I need to work hard every day to strive to present myself as an image of God.