How did you come to know Jesus?
“I grew up in a family that started coming to Watermark when I was in second grade, and around fourth or fifth grade, I remember really learning the full story of Jesus.
“Later, at a Christian girls’ retreat weekend, I accepted Jesus and got baptized the next day. I was still so young, and while I kept coming to church, I didn’t really know how to walk with the Lord at that time. Leaders and volunteers through Watermark Kids and Students continued to pour into me and show me what following Jesus looks like.
“This year is my fifth year I’ve attended summer camp at Pine Cove, and it wasn’t until this last year that I truly realized I wanted to take my faith fully for myself and live it every day. It felt like an awakening! I learned so much about Jesus, and now all I want to do is show it to others.”
Who has influenced your faith?
“Between my camp counselors, my Watermark Wake leaders, and the girls in my small group, I’ve had great Christian influences around me. I’ve watched my mom be baptized here and watched how she’s grown through Re:generation. (Shoutout, Mom!)
“I’ve watched all of them have a constant relationship with the Lord. It’s just who they are—not a Sunday and Wednesday faith where they put their Jesus sweatshirt on and then take it off the rest of the week.”
What is challenging as a young believer?
“Even at my Christian school, there aren’t many kids who outwardly express their faith. At first, I struggled with that because I didn’t want to seem like the ‘good’ kid. I have wanted to be the person people think is the funniest and the coolest, with a good personality and a good reputation, and I started revolving my life around what others thought of me. But I’ve been learning that I don’t have to follow what those around me are doing; I can stand out and step away because I have Christ with me.
“A few months ago, I started thinking about the sun, and it really helped me understand my relationship with Jesus. If the Earth rotates around the sun, the sun produces light, and it’s what the Earth needs to help plants grow and for everybody to live. Thinking about this made me question myself. What is my sun? What am I revolving around?
“If it’s God, he’s going to provide for me and give me everything I need to help me grow. But if not, it’s just a star that will eventually die. It sounds dreamy, but I took this analogy to heart! I think about that almost every day now to make sure that I’m revolving my life around something that is going to last forever.”
How does your relationship with Christ impact your future?
“A verse that has been shared with me many times is 1 Timothy 4:12, ‘Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.’
“I think about going into high school, and I know that is where people struggle in new and different ways. Building my faith strong and surrounding myself in a community of people that will hold me accountable will set me up for high school in a better way.
“I’ve recently started opening my Bible a lot more to create better habits in my life. It was really easy for me to read the Bible daily at camp because I didn’t have any distractions. But as I’ve created more of a habit now that I am home, I’m able to look back throughout the days at what I read that morning. I think knowing Scripture also can help in conversations in the future when I’m talking to a friend who’s struggling, and I can recall something I read months ago.”
How does eternal life with Jesus give you hope?
“No matter how I ‘stick out’ against the world, I know my life on earth is so short compared to eternal life in heaven. We are on earth called to live for Christ, and that’s our main purpose. So, although I may not please everyone on earth, at least I know I’m pleasing God by living out what he calls us to do. As I walk through hard times in my life, I have hope for eternal life because that’s what matters. I do not want to spend eternity apart from God.”