Jen

When I came to USF, I was in the middle of a critical period of my life. My parents had recently divorced, and I was discovering what life was like outside of the conservative home I was raised in. My grandparents are pastors, and I was saved during a service when I was 13 years old, but after worldly relationships, family trouble/divorce, and without much discipleship, it was becoming easy to pull away from God. I was curious about the world and did not have a church home at college.

However, I was stopped one day by a campus minister, who asked me to fill out a survey about whether I thought I was going to heaven and invited me to a Bible study. At first, I hesitated to start a Bible study- I thought I knew enough about God, and I had a pretty good relationship with Him. I felt a nudging though, and after a night of partying realized that the world had nothing to offer but loneliness and emptiness. So, I decided to start the Bible study, and quickly realized that I didn’t have as strong of a foundation as I thought I did, and if I were to keep heading down the path I was on it would lead to destruction.

Soon after, I re-dedicated my life to the Lord, and started to learn how to be a disciple of Jesus by hearing and obeying His call (best decision ever!). I started to share my faith with other people, and even had the opportunity to go on a spring break trip to Florida Gulf Coast University, where I helped to lead many other students to the Lord. I am so happy to be a part of a church that values discipleship and fellowship, where I can be encouraged in my faith by other young believers and followers of Christ! ~ Jen