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Church Kid
Hello, my name is Jane De La Rosa. I was born in the Philippines and was raised in a Christian family. When I was a child, I only saw Church as a boring place that we go to every Sunday. I was jealous of the kids in my neighborhood because they had two days all to themselves each week. The only day when I could have a day all to my self was Saturday. During the weekdays, I was busy with school, extra-curricular classes, and other programs. On Sundays, I would go to Sunday school and try to behave as good as I can to receive Bible awards. But after Sundays, I would turn into a two-faced bully. It was quite easy to pretend to be a good kid. For me, being a good kid was just a part-time job.
At around age seven, we went to Canada to join my mother who had been living there since I was three years old. When we arrived in Canada, I did not recognize my mother’s face, nor did I know she was a very radical Christian. Instead of going to Church once a week, we went to church three times a week on Sundays and Wednesdays. Furthermore, we outreached every Friday and would go to every Saturday morning prayers. I despised it so much. I would pretend to be sick or would take a “nap” just so I could tell them I cannot go. This continued until age ten.
One day, I was miraculously listening to Pastor Clyde’s sermon about hypocrites in the Church. Although I was just ten years old, I felt totally convicted and guilty about the hidden sins I have committed. I thought that simply going to Church and showing kindness or trying to be a good person would make me a Christian. But, doing only good works will never attain salvation.
- Ephesians 2:8-9
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."
Everyone has broken the law and is required to stand before God in judgement day. Telling the judge/God to excuse your sentence just because you do more good things than your crime is ridiculous. God will judge us for our crimes, not for the good things we do. It is only through Christ Jesus that we can gain salvation; He paid the price at Calvary so we can stand before God guiltless. But everyone has a choice whether to accept Jesus’ gift of salvation or not.
- Romans 6:23
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
That day I finally understood why Jesus Christ died on the cross; it was because He loves us. Although I was often in Church, I never had a relationship with Christ. I only knew dead religion and went to church to check off the attendance list. That is why during the altar call, on my seat, I confessed my sins, completely surrendered, and accepted Jesus Christ in my heart. One year later, I was water baptized and has been sharing God’s love and my testimony to people around me. Of course, there will still be trials and difficulties. That is why we must continue to seek Him daily and give our worries to God.
Growing up as a Christian, I have seen my non-Christian friends go through extreme depression and have suicidal thoughts. Many have broken families and would tell me that they would cry themselves to sleep every night. I would tell them about Jesus Christ, but some would ignore it and try to fill their sadness with temporary joy. In other cases, there are others who have powerfully accepted Jesus Christ. People who have been addicted to drugs, with broken lives, or incurable sickness all healed through Jesus’ name. It is an amazing sight to see a broken life transformed into a new life filled with God’s peace and joy.
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