Catty- Passionate

As a kid I went to church every Sunday, so I knew who God was and what Jesus had done for me. However, having learned things about Jesus I never desired to have a personal relationship with Him.

As a freshman at UTSA I was walking through the Paseo when I saw a group of people holding up a sign that read, “Bible Study.” I initially wanted to go up to them but I hesitated because I was with some new friends and I feared what they would say. For whatever reason, I walked over anyway. It was there that I met my future small group leader and close friend.

I attended the first few Chi Alpha services and small groups before hearing about Breakaway. I decided not to go freshmen year because this community was still very new to me and I didn’t want to go to a big event and feel alone. By the time sophomore year came around, I had fallen in love with Jesus and this community of believers, and my small group leader and I had become very close. I no longer felt alone. This time I decided to go to Breakaway. As it approached, my small group leader asked me if I had thought about getting baptized, and I said, “No, I was already baptized as a baby”. She gently encouraged me to think and pray about it because I had now made the decision to have a relationship with Jesus, and baptisms publicly proclaim that choice being made. The week of Breakaway she asked me again about baptism and my response remained the same. It wasn’t until I saw people actually getting baptized at Breakaway that I had a change of heart.

After spending the weekend learning so much about God, I felt a stirring in my heart but disregarded it as emotions because of what was happening. My small group leader reached for my hands and said, “Catty, I wouldn’t say this if I didn’t think it was the Holy Spirit, but I really feel like you should get baptized.” I sat there for a moment realizing that this stirring in my heart was not of me, but of God. He was asking me to declare publically my decision to follow Him. So, I said yes, and we went up to the front as my small group leader baptized me that day. We rejoiced and prayed with one another, and I have never regretted that decision.

Although I grew up in the church, it wasn’t until that day that I really began to pursue a genuine relationship with God.

Two years later, I am now passionately seeking out others who may be in the same place that I was – knowing about God, but not truly knowing Him and all the love and life He has to offer.

I am so grateful for my friend for showing me the character of Christ and for always pushing me to be nearer to Him. It is my hope that this would be an encouragement to you to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit as my small group leader was, and to trust Jesus in your friends and what He is asking.