Home Life
I grew up primarily in Huntington Beach with my mom, dad, and two brothers. As I grew up I started to notice I would have to take on a bigger role than necessary. My mom had struggled with alcoholism and drug abuse, so I started to gravitate more towards the homemaker role because of the lack thereof. I became more independent by taking initiative to clean and learn to make home cooked meals so that something was going good in the home. With substance abuse there comes other difficulties and so it was quite common that there was tension between my mother and father. My dad worked a lot to be able to provide for me and my family and so I wanted to be able to play my role well. Granted I was still a child so chores didn’t always sound fun, but slowly as I saw needs I would find ways to fill them. This ultimately took away the simplicity of my childhood forcing me to grow up a little faster than normal. But as you will see throughout this story which is my life, God had and always will have a perfect plan for you. And He has redeemed all of it.
School/Social Life
If high school wasn’t intimidating enough, the summer before freshman year my parents were officially separating and the custody battle began. It was clear to me my father would be the most stable between the two, so as we went through the process the kids started to pick sides and there was great division. It ended in all 3 of us kids with my father, and for the first time ever, without my mom present. It took adjusting to say the least, and I was clinging to anything around me for stability. This resulted in me finding my identity in the attention men would give me. And if I wasn’t dating someone I had no purpose and so I struggled greatly with depression and anxiety because I didn’t know my purpose. It wasn’t until my sophomore year (2019) that I found my true purpose.
A New Life
2019 is definitely a year to remember for me. With my identity being found in guys, it’s no surprise the Lord used a guy to get me to church. I was at school when I met someone who was attending CCSG at the time and we started to talk and exchange info. Sooner or later we started dating and I started to come to CCSG because it was another time we could hang out. Only 3 months into attending on Sundays regularly did I end up giving my life to the Lord during an altar call. After that there was no stopping what God had started, I began to attend the youth group and the Lord started to teach me true love and who He is in His word. Who I was dating was not who the Lord had for me, so we separated. But I continued to attend CCSG and got more plugged in and now I have been saved for almost 5 years! Time flies! But praise God for all He’s done in my life, and how He is continually redeeming parts of my past for His glory!
As I attended CCSG I was poured into greatly by my youth leaders and friends around me. I now serve as a youth leader here and have grown a lot in the Worship Ministry. That was an unexpected thing for me, as I didn’t sing or play guitar before coming here. But the Lord has grown gifts in me since I’ve been here in some crazy ways! I’d love to tell you all more about what God’s currently doing in my life, and if you are interested in hearing about it, feel free to visit the “Hear when Near” tab to see what God has shown me as I draw closer to Him.
Jesus Loves You!!!!!!