I grew up going to church every Sunday morning and Wednesday night. I knew a lot about God but didn't have what you could call a relationship with Him. I viewed Him as a scorekeeper who was marking down every wrong thing I did. I was taught that we had to try to earn our way into heaven. My family life growing up was difficult and it felt like God just didn't care. In high school, some Christian friends explained to me how Jesus paid for my sins when He died on the cross and it wasn't up to me to try to earn my way to Him. I accepted Jesus as my Savior when I was 17 and it radically changed how I relate to God. Now I do things out of love, not out of fear or obligation. 

Faith in Jesus has become the center of my life. It affects my marriage, my parenting, my friendships, my work, my view of myself, and every other thing. I know that my identity and worth are not based on what I achieve, but on being a beloved child of His. He is always present with me. He gives a solidness to my life, regardless of circumstances.

I lead a women's Bible study on Thursday mornings and I am the Biblical Literacy Director. (Right now that means I lead our team of women's Bible study leaders. In the future we hope to also have men's Bible studies and online Bible studies that do what we are doing with women's classes-studying whole books of the Bible.) Occasionally I offer workshops on how to study the Bible. I love to teach people how to study the Bible for themselves, and I truly believe it is something everyone can do! I'm also the Mentor Mom Coordinator for our MOPS groups. I love to be involved in the lives of younger moms as they go through the demanding phase of raising little kids. 

Certain opportunities have come up that I couldn't say no to, like being a Mentor Mom with MOPS. I love to mentor others, so it was exciting to have a way to do that at church. With Bible study, I basically started out knowing nothing. Even though I grew up in church, we never used Bibles, as strange as that sounds. Everything we read from the Bible was printed in a program that we used at church. No one in my family had a Bible. Certain opportunities have come up that I couldn't say no to, like being a Mentor Mom with MOPS. I love to mentor others, so it was exciting to have a way to do that at church. With Bible study, I basically started out knowing nothing. Even though I grew up in church, we never used Bibles, as strange as that sounds. Everything we read from the Bible was printed in a program that we used at church. No one in my family had a Bible. Fortunately, I had friends and mentors who helped me. At one point, I went through a very dry spell in my spiritual life. I just didn't want to read my Bible. I prayed that God would help me WANT to study his word, and He did. When I started to study and understand it for myself, I couldn't get enough of it. That experience grew in me a desire to help regular people be able to read and understand the Bible for themselves. I view serving at church as a tangible way to thank God for all He has done for me. Also, it's really fun to put your spiritual gifts to use. 

I always get more than I give. I make wonderful friends, I get to do things I love, and I get to give something back to God. Being involved has made going to church feel like being with family. Most of my community is through church.