I began my journey to Christ the summer I turned 18. My friend from school and I went on a grand adventure: a cross country cycling trip that took us from Dallas, TX to Los Angeles, CA; covering 1500 miles and taking over a month. The people I met, love I felt, and things I saw on this trip began to shape who I was to become as a follower of Christ. However, journey is long, and the setbacks were numerous.
I struggled with feelings of having no hope in living and that there was truly no purpose for our lives. No matter how hopeless I felt God would always show his grace and mercy, without me even realizing. Moving away from home and beginning a new life in college began to open my heart to Him.
The summer I turned 22 I went on another great adventure, this time to China to study abroad in a Buddhist monastery. Again, God opened my eyes to awesome love, people, and experiences that I never even dreamed I would have. Upon returning home and attending church services on a regular basis, I began to realize that the Lord was calling me to open my heart and accept Christ. God had been working at this for years without my knowledge. It was a difficult decision made easy with the realization that He was with me every step of the way. I feel incredibly blessed that we have such a patient and forgiving God. When I realized that He had been perusing me for so long, I finally invited Him in and to put Him in charge of my life. I’ve surrendered my life and I’m not looking back.
It’s interesting to now look back on my life from a new lens and see moments of God that I never saw before. I’m thankful that He led me to make the choices I made. God moves each of us towards Him at our own pace. Some people go their whole lives without knowing Christ and find him in their final moments on this Earth. Sometimes I’ll get frustrated when I hear about people who knew and accepted Christ when they were 5; however God answers me every time. “Kyle, my plan for you is perfect, and I have been leading you exactly the way you needed to be led.” I’m a slow learner, but I thank God that it took me so long to understand him.
