Life in Alphabet - F

is for Faith. I've blogged about my faith before (see the post from my photo challenge). That basically sums up what I'd write anyway.

However, I thought I might also include my testimony below, for anyone who would like a little more to read... I wrote it on 15th June, 2006 for our small group at the time. It was the first time I'd ever written at testimony and it was easier to write than I thought. Having been a Christian my whole life, I never had one of those 'life changing' experiences where I suddenly found and 'gave my life to Christ' after living without Him, so didn't really think I'd have much of story to tell... however, as I wrote, I realised that I did have a story of my faith journey over the period of my life. So, here it is (although the journey has continued since then, the story remains fairly the same!):

There was never one unique point in my life when I became a Christian. I was born into and raised by a Christian family and learned about the Trinity of God every day, in every day living. I was baptised a week after I was born and confirmed my faith 14 years later at my Confirmation.

I went to a Christian kindergarten and primary school and I still remember that in everything I was taught, it was done with Christian morals and values, whether the class was Maths, English or PE.

When I reached high school, I again went to a Christian college. It was during these years that I began to really use my faith and grow in my relationship with Christ. I began to attend youth camps, first yearly and then I would go to as many as I could each year. During these camps I made close, Christian friends who still remain my closest friends even today. I was challenged in my faith, but within the comfort of a Christian environment.

After graduating high school, I moved to Melbourne and really found the value of the friends I had made at camps. I joined a Student Fellowship ‘group’ who met each Sunday night for a service and attended the camps that they held. If it wasn’t for the Christian friends I had already made, I think it would have been hard for me to find a church and possibly would have left the faith. Already knowing them when attending the new church (after only ever going to one church with my family my entire life), was a big help in finding my place and continuing my Christian walk.

The biggest challenge of my faith came when I met Big Spring. Although he was a Christian, he came from a different walk of faith to me, as well as a Baptist church, which was quite unlike the Lutheran church I grew up in. Attending the Baptist church with him, it helped me to step out of my comfort zone, away from my parents’ faith and finding my own faith. Up until that point, I didn’t even realise that it was my parents’ faith I’d been following.

My parents found that quite difficult and for the first time in my life, I had huge barrier in my relationship with them. Thankfully having Big Spring in my life, he was able to support me through the tough time and help me bring my relationship back to what it used to be, as my parents grew as I had in my faith walk.

Now nearly five years since that fall out with my parents, my faith is much stronger and I am much more open to new experiences of church. Putting my faith in God is a much easier thing to do and I really see the work He is doing in our lives.

Recently, at my nana’s funeral, part of the Eulogy read “She was a wonderful Christian example to her family and friends, as she lived her life sustained by her LORD who is ever faithful to his people.” Even in her last few years, when her health and mind were slipping, she remained strong in her faith, if nothing else. Until reading the Eulogy, I did not realise the impact she had on my life. It wasn’t a life changing event, but she was a constant in my life. Up until her final moments, Nana found comfort in hymns, prayers and partaking in communion. The quote above has made me motivated to have something like that written about me in my Eulogy. She was ready to go home to her LORD and I want to have faith as strong as that when God calls me home.