“Count your blessings” is the title of one song which I really like. I am truly thankful to God for mercy he has shown towards me, that I could have met him as a young person and that I will live bigger part of my life following Him!
My mother and I received salvation in one Christian church when I was 11 years old. I started with evangelization very early, and so I invited my neighbor and her grandmother to the Church. After a certain time, my mother was bothered by some things in the Church, and so she left it, and so did I, because I was too little to make such decisions on my own. I didn’t understand many things. I remember the services at which I would almost fall asleep – you know, peace and quiet- everybody listening, dimmed lights, warm and comfortable.
Then I reached those “crazy years” called adolescence, but while I was having fun “doing all the things young people are doing”, my mother got a cancer. Because my father had previously died, this was a really huge shock to me. What would happen to me if my mother also died? She went for a surgery, but what was even more important she returned to God, knowing that only He can help her to recover her health. Six years have gone by since then and my mother is completely healthy, despite the fact that in the big number of cases such illness returns. And if you could only see the faith she has built – the moment something hurts her, she prays and it’s gone!
I knew during all that time that God does exist, and I even defended Him, the Bible, and His Church (as though God needed that), but I wanted to have fun, “live my youth”. I thought that I would lose a lot of things if I came to church. I thought the Church is a source of prohibitions, restrictions, and seriousness. I had (in my head) a plan to come to God before I die, because I didn’t want to go to hell (?!), and by that time I would do it my way and live as I please, regardless of the consequences.
But, God has different plans. It is often the case with us people that we have an opinion which is different from God’s! I came to God much earlier than I planned, and, you know what, I didn’t lose anything!!!
I inherited asthma and allergy from my father’s side, and so I was taking medicines almost my whole life, went to treatment centers. I don’t know when and how, but God healed me! How did I come to this conclusion? Behind my school there is a real athletic track on which we run. Anybody who knows anything about asthma knows that physical efforts cause fits. Guess! I run with no problems at all and I can breathe normally like all my peers! Fog? It doesn’t cause me any problems now! Spring? It is my favorite time of the year when trees blossom, and everything is full of beautiful scents and colors, and I can finally enjoy them without itching and sneezing. It is great when your eyes don’t itch after you put your make up on, because otherwise you have a black smear below your eyes and eyes full of mascara (girls will understand this).
I could talk more about my wishes which were fulfilled, and for which I haven’t even prayed, about many blessings, help in school… and I am sure there are many other things God will do in my life, but I also know when my life will be over, when I will be able to look back on it, I will be able to be grateful to God because I was one of His people, because He was with me in the happiest, saddest, good and back sides of my life because
“Surely goodness and love will follow me
All the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.” PS. 2325
