Guest Post – Testimony

I met Alli while playing at a youth event held by West County Community Church (ZOE House) with the Kaleb Krueger Band. Soon after the retreat, God moved upon her heart to follow Him. We’ve kept in contact, and I encouraged her to write her testimony so I could share it with you. She is sixteen years old and has developed a passion to share the love God’s given her. Here’s her story:

A year ago right now, I would probably be passed out on my friends couch while thinking about how it sucks that I have to get up for church the next morning. Hangovers at church were a typical situation for me. As sad as it was, I was victim to the temptations of the material world, and it was all I saw and thought about. I was someone who could go to church and think, “hey I want to go to heaven someday,” then that night I would think up a plan with my friends about how we were going to lie to our parents the next weekend so we could go party.

Certain events took place, and my mind and body snapped, leaving me without friends and a vacancy in my life I had tried so hard to fill with every sinful thing you can imagine. Then I found ZOE, and it all clicked: I was missing the love of Jesus.

My life after I realized this could be summarized as two steps forward, one step back. Nothing is easy, especially living for the Lord in this world; I had setbacks, but, with the help of loving friends, old and new, I feel I’ve made substantial improvements. I’ve given my life to the Lord and try to live it to the fullest through him. I feel like an all around happier person now, and I can’t get enough of that feeling.

On the other side it’s opened my eyes to how ridiculous the world and the people in it are. People would be so much better off with the love and knowledge of Jesus in them, but the material world warps our views of success and happiness, making things like “fitting in” and “being cool” a priority. Kids, literally pre-teen, are drinking and doing things they shouldn’t be, and it’s all because of this world’s one-sided propaganda.

Personally this hits close to home, with my struggles at a young age, and other family members I’ve found out about recently. It just blows my mind, how far some people will go to get the approval they think they need to fill that void in their life, when they will always have the approval of Jesus Christ if they look to him! I mean, he created us just the way he wanted to, and we feel as though we’re not good enough, so we turn to human and material comfort to try and make us feel better; but the truth is, God wants us to come to him, he wants to be our father, and he wants us to be in his presence to know, serve, and love him. I just wish more people would realize that, before they end up hurting themselves…like I did.

So its our job, as believers, to show them this wonderful love Jesus has to offer, and to show them the great things God is capable of; how it’s much greater than anything this earth has to offer.