He Came for Me- Part 1

 Matthew 18:12-14- “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.  In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.”

I grew up in a Christian household where our parents raised us to believe in Jesus. Of course, we had our problems as a family, and they (especially my dad) certainly did not always live as perfect Christian examples. Nonetheless, we were raised Christian. I grew up attending mostly non-denominational churches, attending two services a week for many years. I would attend Christian camps as a young adult during the summer, as well as went on mission trips around the world in my teens.  It was only natural that I would want to attend a Christian college and, as a Senior in high school, I looked forward to attending Western Baptist College in the fall. 

My freshman year at WBC was nice.  I made a couple of friends, took my classes seriously- although my worst grade was in my Bible class ironically.  I worked a part-time job for a financial planning firm, where I primarily made “cold calls” to prospective clients. The job was uncomfortable, to say the least. I had to sound excited to invite random people that I found in the phone book to financial planning seminars. I knew nothing about financial planning, finances, or anything about money in general, really. All I knew about money was that I needed more of it, and I could not wait to be done with school, working in a full-time career job so that I could be financially secure. 

Maybe about halfway through my freshman year, I became restless at that school. I felt like I was missing out on the college party scene- the experience that I would see so often in the movies.  I wanted to have fun. The term we use for how I was feeling at that time in Christianlandia (I think I just made that word up) is “rebellious.”  I had been the “good, Christian” girl for so long and wanted to let loose.  I felt like I was missing out. 

I made up my mind to attend a public college the next year and ended up being accepted into Portland State University.  The campus was right in the center of downtown Portland, Oregon. I have always loved the vibe, the energy of big cities. I love the people, the diverse cultures, the food, the art, and the music. I just love it all.  Portland was the perfect place for me. Soon after starting at PSU, I began to attend parties with my roommates and with other new friends I had made. I would get drunk every time. Looking back on those years now, I see how dangerous my behavior was.  I just felt at the time that everyone around me would look out for me and that even if I would get ridiculously drunk, I would be safe. 

One night would change everything. 

To be continued….