Why I have turned to Jesus Christ

Jesus. Saves.

Jesus Christ is my Lord and my Savior. I have been more than confident about this for my entire life. And right now in today’s world, people need a relationship with Jesus.

I was raised a Christian. For as long as I can remember, God has been the biggest part of my life, and the thing that keeps me afloat.

I have the greatest family and built-in support system in the world. I have two loving parents, and two amazing sisters that I lean on daily. I grew up learning about Jesus, going to church, reading my bible, praying, etc. As I’ve gotten older though, I have truly come to know and put all of my trust into the man above.

I had the greatest childhood. Always outside, always hanging out with my family, with my friends, always playing sports. My parents made it their mission to know that us kids knew Jesus and had a relationship with Him. This made my childhood truly special, and I loved every second of it.

And then, in October of 2021, our lives took a spin. My dad was diagnosed with colon cancer. My dad was my best friend, and was the person I went to the most when I was happy, sad, confused, annoyed, or needed absolutely anything. He had to go through so many different rounds of chemo and radiation and so many different surgeries and procedures. This left him unable to do a lot, and some days he struggled to move or talk.  This meant that I had to become the man of the house at 16. I had to be there for my sisters and my mom, who I cared about so dearly and it killed me to see my family like this.

I truly had to lean on Jesus during this time, because I didn’t know what else to do. One verse in particular helped me to get through everything. Isaiah 60:22 states “When the time is right, I the Lord will make it happen.” This helped me to realize that God’s timing is so much greater than mine, and that when the time is right, things will get better.

He truly helped me get through one of the toughest situations of my life, and I will forever be grateful for the blessings He has given me.

My dad ended up defeating cancer on my birthday, Aug. 27, 2022. I praised God for giving him the strength to get through it.

For the next year or so, my purpose in life just became so much clearer. God put me here for a reason, and has woken me up every single day so I can be a light, and try and spread His name.

I decided to get baptized in September of 2023. Although I had already accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, the baptism is just a way of declaring that publicly. I also decided to get a tattoo on the right side of my chest that states, “His plan > mine”. I look at that daily to remind me that His plan got me through one of the toughest times of life.

Little did I know my life would once again take a turn.

In February of 2024, my dad’s cancer had decided to come back for round two (as if he didn’t kick it’s butt hard enough the first time.)  Once again, I felt beyond devastated. I had to go through the hardest time of my life for a second time.

But this time, I felt confident in the situation. Because, if God didn’t think my dad could handle this, He wouldn’t have put it on his path.

I prayed every single day of my dad’s second battle, and sat right by his side while he fought this fight again.

Once again, the Lord gave him the strength to defeat it once and for all.

God works in such mysterious ways. I didn’t understand what He was doing at the time, and I may never will. But, in the end, once again, His plan will always be greater than mine. I relied on Isaiah 60:22 the entire time.

There are many different things in the world that are falling apart right now. People. Need. Jesus. People need to come to know Him, and realize just how great being in His presence is.

He saved my life, and I know for a fact, if you pursue Him, and what He teaches, He can save yours.

My life changed when I truly understood what having a relationship with Jesus looked like. Open a bible, talk to someone who knows him. I truly just encourage everyone to find Jesus Christ, because He is so good to us.

Gabe Perry is a Liberty, Mo., freshman studying journalism.

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