Tell me about when you believed in Jesus and what faith has looked like in your family.
I can’t really remember the time before I believed in Jesus.
My parents both love Jesus, and I’ve always liked going to church. I don’t remember if there was an exact moment I decided to follow Jesus or even the first time I heard about Jesus. I just know that I’m a sinner, and Jesus is my Savior.
We went to another church when I was little, then started going to Watermark when I was in second grade. When I first came, I really liked watching the skits. It made church more fun, and my other church didn’t have that. Even on mornings when I feel tired or don’t want to go to church, I really like interacting with other believers my age and hearing Bible stories.
Do you have a favorite Bible story?
My favorite Bible story is about Jonah and the big fish. God told Jonah to go to the city of Nineveh and tell the people to turn from their evil ways, but Jonah hopped on a boat that was sailing in the opposite direction. A big storm came, then Jonah went into the water and was swallowed by a big fish. He was inside the fish’s belly for three days, and Jonah prayed to the Lord. After that, the Lord made the fish spit Jonah out on land. Jonah obeyed and went to Nineveh, preached to the people, and they believed in the Lord, so God spared them from destruction.
How have you seen God as your Protector?
I saw God as my Protector on a roller coaster recently. I’m afraid of roller coasters, and when I was on one, I got really scared. I thought I wasn’t going to survive. Then, I remembered that I can be brave because of God. I can do things when I’m afraid because no matter what happens, God is with me.
How else have you seen God do things that seem impossible?
There’s another Bible story I like about Jesus casting demons out of a man and sending them into a bunch of pigs. Jesus has power over evil; he protected the people who had demons by removing them. He is powerful.
How have you seen Jesus save you from sin?
My parents taught me that I’m a sinner, and I know that’s true because I’ve seen it in my life.
It’s important to know that you’re a sinner because if you didn’t, you’d probably think you were just being good the whole time you were sinning. You wouldn’t understand that wrong things are wrong. You would keep making bad decisions and getting hurt or hurting other people.
When I get in trouble, like when I hit my brother, there’s a consequence.
The consequences of my sin separate me from Jesus.
Even though we all do bad things, Jesus rescues us from our sin if we trust in him. If Jesus didn't come to die on the cross for us, we would have to die for our own sins. No one wants to die for their own sins, but Jesus did that for us. And he rose again three days later, showing he had beaten sin.
When we repent, which means to turn away from sin, and believe in Jesus, he saves us. We can have a relationship with him and go to heaven to be with him forever.
What does a relationship with Jesus look like in your life?
The biggest parts of my relationship with Jesus are reading my Bible, praying, and telling other people about him.
I read my Bible with my dad or mom most days, and we read the Bible a lot in school. The Bible shows us about God, teaches us right from wrong, and I get to learn how to follow Jesus from stories about people we read about. Prayer is how I talk to God. Then I tell other people about God because I want other people to know about Jesus.
I get to tell other people about Jesus by helping serve at 2-3 Kids with my parents. Sometimes I help Miss Tess with things she needs, sometimes I sit with other kids who are having a hard time, sometimes I get to greet. I like it a lot.
I don’t feel like there’s a big “before Christ” part of my story, but I know Jesus saved me because I believe in him. The Holy Spirit is working in my heart as I grow up with him, and because I have the Holy Spirit living in me, I am a child of God.