My Testimony.

I am a pastor's kid. Yes, I know! A pastor's kid. I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior when I was 5 years old. I also have moved more than a handful of times. 8 different elementary schools produced thick skin. My parents raised my siblings and me in a Christ-driven home where, when conflict arises, we were told these 3 simple things. 1. Take a deep breath. (If you've seen my SEUSpeaks, you know I am loling) 2. Write it down. 3. Give it to God.

Now, living with a pastor as a parent must make you think, “There's no way this chick has ever faced hardship or anything worth mentioning. Nothing like what others go through!" And it's true, I have been blessed to have accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior at 5 years old, and I have been blessed with a Christian home with so many opportunities to follow Jesus and live for him. So why would I ever stray?

It first started in middle school. My world was transformed when I experienced other kids who didn't know Jesus as I did. And because I chose the group of friends who spoke profanity or got involved with boys, I began to think like them too. Which reminds me of a verse: 

Proverbs 4:23: "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." 

Isn’t that convicting? 

Later on, I fell into sin; I wanted nothing but attention from everybody but God. My heart had done a total 180 shift away from God. I drifted. And yet I would still go to church camps and youth groups, but my heart would never be aligned with what was being taught. I was a pretender. I played the part of a pastor's daughter, but when I left those grounds, I became a completely different person. I was so deeply rooted in sin; it stung when I was corrected by my parents or mentors, and it just made me wanna turn away more. That is the tricky thing about sin. 

1. It makes you feel warm and safe and cozy (Though it is the complete opposite)

2. It is temporary. 

You feel like you are constantly striving and running to that feeling. Luckily, I was too much of a goody-two-shoes to do any unchangeable harm to myself or others..It was more of an attack on my spirit. A constant war between my flesh and the holy spirit I invited in all those years ago. 

When I got to college, I met people. People that held me accountable. I had lived the life of striving for acceptance from the world for so long, and I still wasn't satisfied, but when I got to SEU, everyone I met was hungry for the same thing. Jesus. 

So even if you feel like you are in this constant push and pull, HE is a forgiving GOD. He can redeem you and save you from whatever it is you are struggling with. Find people who you know are going to help you and love on you as you are refined. 

Praying for you always, friend. 

Faithfully,

Isa ♡