Vaniah

      When I arrived in Florida as a kid, for the first time we started to attend a church regularly enough to become members. I was always moved to tears during worship. The passion in each lyric coupled with the congregation earnestly singing caused my heart to long for the Lord. Still, I stopped attending because it felt like a chore; an obligation to something I didn’t understand. During high school choir, many of the songs we studied and sang for hours glorified the Lord. Again, I was moved but still I fell away from anything pertaining to God. It wasn’t long before I began to feel unfulfilled by the way I was living. One night, alone in my room, I cried out to God for help. Soon after this, my family and I faced home insecurity and lockdown due to COVID. I decided to begin reading the Gospels.         

      I fell in love with Jesus so deeply, it was like nothing I ever experienced before. As I became hungry for the word of God, my old ways began to fall away even without me trying. Unfortunately, this newfound desire for the Lord led to some familial issues. Thankfully, my old church took me in. The following year I headed to the University of South Florida in search of a similar community. I was planted in Cornerstone Christian Church after meeting campus ministers my first week on campus.

      Cornerstone has helped me go deeper in the word of God and study the word in ways that truly challenged areas I hadn’t surrendered to God. I struggled to wrap my head around Lordship and what it means to let go of control. They helped me understand the importance of not only knowing Christ as my Savior but also as my Lord who I can trust with every part of my life. I was able to truly let my guard down before the Lord and know Him as my Father for the first time. I have so much peace in my heart now. I look forward to the future because I trust the Lord will use all the things He's done in my life to impact the world around me. 

- Vaniah