Growing up, I lived in a Christian home and definitely considered myself a believer of God. I had good friends, but I didn’t have a Christian community with whom I could grow in my faith alongside. There were many struggles that I encountered throughout the years, whether it was the effects of my parents divorce, anxiety and panic attacks, or the consequences of my heart defect. In the midst of these struggles, I have seen something good come out of each, all because of God’s love. Ultimately, He drew me closer, and I was able to rely on Him throughout these hard times. I thought that I had a really good standing with God because I was a good person, and, therefore, God allowed me to overcome these barriers. This felt especially true as I started high school. My focus during this time put cheerleading and school over God. I did not see the importance of relying on God in every aspect, even the good aspects, of my life. I attended youth group on Wednesday nights, but that was the extent of my Christian community.

It wasn’t until college that God showed me how much I was missing. I was attending UW-Madison’s Cru from day one, but still would struggle to find people from Edgewood College to go with me. Because of the lack of other believers to encourage me and my understanding of how others my age lived their lives, I started to fall into the party scene. This was not me. But, my friends went out, and it gave me a sense of partial enjoyment and connection for the time being. Soon after, I realized that I hadn’t fully surrendered my life to God like I thought. Quickly, I wanted to change. By Cru’s Winter Conference over winter break, I had three other friends who would come with me to Cru events, such as this. It was there I realized that God was calling me live fully for Him. While I wasn’t good enough for God, it hit me that none of us are, but through the power of Jesus, and His death on the cross, we are saved. I came to understand that I needed to humble myself before Him. My couple of Christian friends were such an encouragement to me in this journey.

Since I have been growing more than ever on my journey with God, I have realized more of the many blessings in and around me. Although I still mess up sometimes, I know that God is greater than all my failures and because I surrendered to Him, He shows me how to live my life the way He wants. Getting back into college, some friends and I felt God calling us to start a Cru chapter on our campus because growing in our faith and finding a Christian community has been the most exciting adventure. We wanted more students to have the opportunity to know God, and grow in their faith as we did. In allowing God to go before us, we were able to start a new chapter. Through His hand in it all, I have seen so many people come to Christ. This community of Christians encouraging students in faith at Edgewood gives me joy and a hope that many others will be able to fully give their lives to Christ as well.