What a joy it is to know that Jesus loves me! Throughout my life, I’ve had opportunities to prove His love over and over again.

I grew up in a large family of seven girls and four boys. Before my birth, my parents had come to Dallas, Oregon, from Canada with...

A few years ago, I visited the country of Israel. One interesting aspect of the trip was seeing Orthodox Jews who live by the teachings of the Old Testament but totally disregard the New Testament. In a sense, they gave a glimpse of what Old Testament times were like, which...

Having the privilege to grow up being taught the Gospel is truly wonderful, but what is even better is to be born into it through the experience of salvation, which no amount of godly heritage can ever provide. This is something every sinner must receive for himself, regardless of his...

At the age of twenty I was married and working in accounting, which I did for many years with different companies. My husband and I had no children and did not want any. My focus was my career and becoming successful, and I always told myself that kids would just...

Kaye's Story:

It was back in 1974, in a little church in Fort Smith, Arkansas, when Jesus transformed my life. I was a miserable young mother at the time, having failed to find the happiness I longed for in life.

I was not born into a Christian home. My parents divorced a...

My parents divorced when I was very young, and I grew up without a father. My mother worked to support my sister and me, so she couldn’t always keep an eye on what we were doing.

At a very early age—ten years old—I began smoking cigarettes, which I stole from my...

The amazing old-growth trees in the forests along the northern coast of California literally took my breath away. I had never seen redwood trees before, except maybe in an encyclopedia. Craning my neck to peer toward the tree tops, I quickly realized that angle could not be maintained for very...

Tracing my “roots” back to 1907, my mother’s parents came to Ellis Island, New York, from Italy, eventually settling in the little coal-mining town of Centerville, Iowa. My mother was raised in a denomination where she was not introduced to the Christian faith and salvation from sin. My father’s family...

It was my privilege to be born into a Christian home. My mom was raised in the Apostolic Faith Church, where my grandfather was a pastor. She loved the Lord as a child and was saved at a young age. My dad’s mother also loved God and raised my dad...

“Just ask.” That sounds simple, doesn’t it? Recently, a couple of incidents—an email exchange and a remarkable statistic—prompted me to reflect on this common phrase and some spiritual applications from God’s Word.

As a building contractor, I periodically am involved in dealing with local bureaucracies to secure permits for construction projects....

Recently my husband and I made the decision to have a small house, officially designated by the City of Portland as an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU), built next to our rental property. We asked the designer who had drawn up the plans for our current home to come up with...

God is the Rock of my salvation, and He has shown Himself strong on my behalf for many years. Jesus found me in July of 1958 when I was five years old. I was not looking for Him, but He was looking for me.

My parents were not Christians at the...

Born in Ika Oku Iboku, Nigeria, I grew up attending church regularly. In my teenage years, while away at school, I attended another church and took part in the services by playing the organ and singing in the choir. None of these things made me a Christian. My heart was...

Music—I enjoyed anything related to it. At school, I was in choirs and bands, and during my high school years, I started a rock and roll band. Since it was just for fun at first, it seemed harmless. But it was not a good choice, and that decision was followed...

Typhoon “Louise” struck Okinawa, Japan, on October 9, 1945. Even though World War II had ended on September 2, this island had a large United States military presence, including ships in Buckner Bay and airplanes on land. The typhoon brought torrential rain that lasted for twenty hours, and wind that...

Growing up in a small city in Alabama, I had a mother who always attended church and who always took her children to church. My mother’s side of the family were church-going people. In fact, my grandfather was a pastor and bishop. So I loved church. After marrying and moving...

Growing up in the remote fishing village of Hooping Harbor, Newfoundland, made for challenging times, particularly during the winter. There was no transportation other than dog teams, no medical assistance, and a shortage of certain foods. However, our family was blessed to attend a small Apostolic Faith Church, which was...

Back in the year 1968, I had the wonderful privilege of attending Sunday school in the Apostolic Faith Church. I was just nine years old at the time and had been invited by my cousin, the late Reverend Robert Omaretseye.

My parents were nominal Christians, and my cousin came to our...

When my daughter, Catey, was in her second year of college, she made plans to spend four months of her junior year in Mexico as an exchange student. Though I had misgivings about her living so far away from home, there was comfort in knowing I could take my concerns...

Growing up, I went to a church where I was taught to know right from wrong, that Jesus loved me and had died for me, and that we should do our best to do what He wants us to. I’m grateful for that because it helped me have a tender...

From the time I was about twelve years old, a disturbing thought started to come to me: “If I die, where will I go?” I had no answer for that question. My heart told me that I would go somewhere, but I did not know where, and that overwhelmed me....

My husband and I live next door to four of our grandchildren. A year or so ago when the oldest two, Barrett and Lily, were at our house visiting, they found a magnifying glass tucked away in my desk drawer. They were curious about what it was, so I took...

Okechukwu relates his story: Something spoke to my heart: “Do not be up in front!” and I obeyed. It was Easter Sunday in 1969, during the civil war in Nigeria, and I was with a troop of soldiers ordered to clear Owerri.A few moments later, the soldier in the front of...

As a child, I was sent to Sunday school, and there I learned the song and the message that “Jesus loves me.” At the age of eight, I committed my life to God, and He made a real difference in me. Before that time, I had an awful temper and...

As a young child I really wanted to be good, but as hard as I tried, I just couldn’t. My troubles seemed to get worse in my teenage years. When I was almost thirteen years old, we lost our home to foreclosure and became homeless. Our family was broken up...

From the time I was a little girl until graduating from high school, I attended Catholic schools. My family was not especially religious, but I was baptized in the Catholic Church and we went to services on Sundays. Growing up, Catholicism was all I knew about God or church.

My family...

I was eighteen years old when God said to me, “You have debated this and run from this decision long enough. You have to decide tonight if you are going to continue serving Me or try things on your own. Will you surrender your life to Me tonight?” I had...

Born into a Muslim family, I was trained from my youth to practice the Muslim way of prayer, praying five times a day, and fasting for thirty days during the month of Ramadan. As much as possible, I followed all the principles of Islam. I went to a Christian school,...

Outside my office window stand two tall leafy green trees. On many occasions I’ve caught a glimpse of the branches blowing in the wind and have been captivated by their beauty. Something about their lush leaves and vivid colors captures my attention. It’s the same feeling I get when the...

My parents raised their children carefully and taught us to love and respect God and His house. The Word of God was planted in our hearts from an early age. My siblings and I were faithfully taken to Sunday school and church. Our parents also made sure we read the...