Baptized: July 18, 2021

I was born and raised in a religious home, the first 10 of which were in Pontotoc.  While living there, I participated in a wonderful basketball program called Upward.  The program teaches you the fundamentals in the game of basketball as well as “promoting the discovery of Jesus through the sport.”  For the halftime portion of these games, the church would have a local preacher to speak or have someone to give their testimony.  They would also have “cardboard testimonies” in which various people would write their struggles they had faced onto a piece of cardboard and then they would flip It over and the other side would explain how Christ had helped them and how they had overcome those struggles.  When I was about 10, I began to feel God speaking to me during one of those “cardboard testimonies” at halftime.  That night, I felt that He was telling me I would go through some hard times but He would always be there to guide me along the way.  I asked Him into my heart that night, but I was never baptized.  The fear of walking to the front of the church terrified me.  This weighed heavy on my shoulders and I carried this fear during the divorce of my parents and a move from Pontotoc to New Albany.  I carried this fear even after starting a new church and trying to adjust to a new town.  This fear held me back until my mom and I decided to try attending Fredonia Baptist on Wednesday nights because of the wonderful things we had heard from my friend, Mary Hannah.  That fear that was holding me back finally started to melt away as I began to feel at home, here with the Fredonia youth group.  I was able to attend my very first church camp with this wonderful group and on the night of June 21, 2021, I re-dedicated my life to Jesus!  I am ready to be baptized and live my full life for Jesus, 100%!