We are ecstatic that our brothers and sisters have decided to be reborn in our Lord this Easter.
Here is Jonathan Kha testimony:
I grew up in a Christian family, and was raised surrounded by christian people and christian culture. Though my life may have sound easy, I still went through the same problems my parents went through growing up in a non-christian family. I remember when I was a kid at about 7 yrs old, I wanted to accept Jesus into my life because all my friends were doing it, it was during VBS at San Jose Alliance church, the church I was born into and they were asking kids if they wanted to accept Jesus into their life and I saw all my friends nodding their heads so I’d nod my head with them, but I didn’t know that you were suppose to come up to the stage to receive a certificate. When I realized it I quickly ran up to the stage just in time for a group picture and I was in the front row standing by myself with no certificate and a little tear in my eye, but I was embarrassed so I wiped my tear away and tried to act tough. I’d say to myself that, ” I don’t need a certificate to be saved as long as I believe in Jesus I am saved,” and that would comfort me for a while even my VBS leader agreed with me but it always made me feel guilty like I needed proof or I won’t actually be saved just like I had to eat my vegetables or I won’t actually be healthy. So 3 years later in my living room I asked my mom what happens if you don’t accept Jesus into your life before you die and she said very briefly you would go to hell, but then I asked what if you got baptized but you didn’t accept Jesus into your life and she laughed and said I don’t think a person would get baptized if they didn’t accept Jesus in to their life, but I was confused because as a kid I thought I had to get a certificate to be saved I never knew I was suppose to make the decision on my own. I told my Mom my story of what happened and how I want to be officially saved and she took me in my room and she said a short prayer and asked if I wanted Jesus in my life and I said yes, that was the first time I had ever cried tears of joy and I knew I was saved then because I didn’t hide my tears and act tough I embraced them and felt Gods presence in me.
In my growing up years I have had many obstacles and temptations affect my life and my relationship with God and had to ask for forgiveness many times. Especially during my middle school years, I think that time was my biggest fall, I was exposed to a lot of secular opinions of how people viewed me and I saw that there was a lot of social ranking, media, trends, and plenty of other things that would view you as cool or weird. In elementary school there wasn’t much judging and opinions and I was pretty humble. I was happy with anything my parents bought me like; clothes, shoes, toys, and games, at times I would ask for things,
but I hardly ever complained or pressured my parents to get me something better. But during middle schooled I was peer pressured or made fun of the things I wore and how they said cheap things weren’t cool, at first I wouldn’t agree with them but then I’d ponder about it and would subtly justify the things I wanted my parents to buy like the pricier shoes or the pricier clothes, because they were “better quality” and I didn’t realize that I was being influenced by the world. It was very subtle then but when my parents started cutting back on spending and told me I had to get the cheaper stuff I was mad and unsatisfied because the things they were willing to buy me weren’t considered cool, so that unsatisfactory lead me to stealing money from my parents, their credit cards and lying straight to their face just to be accepted by the world. I had no idea how money was made or why they were cutting back on spending I thought money just magically appeared in their wallets whenever they needed it, but I didn’t realize the hours of time and work my Dad had to spend to make that money, the days of not being able to eat dinner with us, my mom working over night for church because they wanted to provide more for us, the constant calculation of vacation and spending money just so we could enjoy our lives. All of that slipped past my mind just so I could fit in with the world, just so I could be satisfied, but that’s the thing about being human, we are never satisfied, we always want more that’s why we were born sinners and need God, because the world is filled with it. Eventually my parents found out, they were shocked because they never thought I would do such a thing, but they still forgave me and told me they loved me and never want to see me fall like this again. From that day forward I changed the way I viewed the world, myself, and God, not saying I didn’t sin again, I still was tempted and still failed here and there and still struggle to this day, but that’s because I am human, God didn’t expect me to be perfect he just wants me to change and love him with all of my heart just as he loves me.
This is why I would like to be baptized, because throughout my life I have felt Gods eternal love for me and I would like to give God that love back to him by proclaiming to the world that I am a christian and a child of God. I will be ready for the path God has for me and the temptations Satan will try on me, and I will be willing to serve wherever he calls me and used the gifts he gave me to serve him.
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