The Challenge

Sometimes when you are raised by Christian parents, your faith can become an extension of theirs rather than stemming from your own experience with God—until you experience a fork in the road that can define the start of your own faith journey.

This happened to me in my early twenties. Back when I lived in Sydney, Australia, I worked as a newly graduated registered nurse and attended church occasionally.

A year later, during a conversation with two fellow Christian nursing friends, we decided to travel to the United Kingdom on a two-year working holiday.

We all applied for our visas. Mine was approved almost immediately while my friends had to wait until their arrival before theirs were approved.

We stayed with the parents of one of my friends who lived there at the time while we looked for our own place to live. When they invited us to church, without thinking, I answered, “I really do not want to attend church, but I will this one time. However, I will return only if I feel welcomed.” No one replied, and I promptly forgot about it.

When we arrived at church, we were directed to the hall downstairs to meet with the youth class. As we entered the room, a young man who had been playing the keyboard stopped playing and came over to say hello. Looking at me, he held out his hand to shake mine and said, “Hello, my name is Peter, and I want to welcome you to church today.” He then introduced himself to my friends and bid us to enter the room. I was stunned as I remembered the comment I had made. My flippant remark had been a challenge to God, and He actually answered! Unknown to Peter, God used him to answer the silent cry of my heart, Does God care about me? At that moment, God showed me He does care. I attended church every Sabbath during my time in the United Kingdom, and so began my personal relationship with God.

Dear friend, let me reassure you that you matter to God.

Just as He cares for the sparrow that falls (Matthew 10:29–31), so He sees, loves, and cares for you. When you draw near to God, He’ll draw close to you (James 4:8).

There is no better place to be than within His loving arms.

Jenny Rivera