When I was eight years old, I met a friend who would eventually introduce me to something that would completely change my life, called Campus Life. At first, it was just a place to hang out, play games, and go on trips. But over the years, it became something much deeper. A community where I could be honest and be myself, learn about God, and slowly start to see my life in a new light.
Before Campus Life, I didn’t have a strong connection to God. I had heard of Him and went to church, but I didn’t fully believe or understand what it meant to follow Him. I didn’t know what it meant to really live with faith. I was also going through a lot personally. I struggled with depression and anxiety, and honestly, I just felt really alone. I felt like no one in my city really understood me, and sometimes I wondered if anyone truly cared.
But through Campus Life, I found people who didn’t just listen but they stayed. They prayed with me and reminded me that I wasn’t alone. I started to open up more, and I felt God working in my life in ways I can’t really explain. Slowly, I began to believe that maybe I didn’t have to stay stuck in the pain I was feeling forever.
This past summer, something incredible happened.
On July 1st, 2025 during a Campus Life youth conference, I got baptized in the ocean.
The night before, the speaker told us to write down what we believed defined us. The problems we carried but wished we didn’t. I remember sitting there, just thinking, what do I put down before writing, “I am my depression. I am my anxiety. I am my loneliness.” I didn’t think it would hit me that hard, but it did. It felt like I was finally letting go of something I had held onto for way too long. I was letting go of a weight I had been carrying for years.
Later that night, on my way back to the hotel, I broke down. I cried with my leaders and friends and told them how I felt, how I didn’t want to go back to my city because I didn’t feel like I belonged there. I told them how lonely I felt, even in rooms full of people. But instead of giving me advice or brushing it off, they listened. They prayed over me. They reminded me that I wasn’t what I wrote on that paper. I was a child of God.
Getting baptized the next day was one of the biggest moments of my life. I wasn’t saying I was perfect or that all my problems would disappear. I was saying I wanted to change. I wanted to live differently to let go of the sadness, the fear, and the way I was living. Getting baptized wasn’t just a religious moment. It was a symbol of transformation. I was choosing hope. I was choosing faith. I chose to believe that I could heal, and that my story wasn’t over.
Since then, I’ve started to see myself and others in a new way. I’m not saying it’s always easy, and that it won’t be difficult at times. I still have bad days. But now I know I’m loved by God, and I know some people truly care about me. I feel like I can be myself around them, no pretending, no hiding. I’m still learning, still growing, but I know now that I’m not my depression, my anxiety, or my loneliness. I am loved. I am changing. And I am never alone. I’m not who I used to be, and I’m thankful for that.