Travis’ Story
If you ever saw the inside of Travis you would see a very sick, selfish, and just downright messed up person. However, on the outside of Travis you might see a person who works hard, is successful in school, and is involved in the community. The problem with these two conflicting selves is that eventually the inside is going to surface, and I’m sure many people who know me have seen this side of me. For me this took the form of substance abuse and poor relationships with family, girlfriends, and friends. I think everyone can agree to an extent that inside there is definitely a messed up part of us. No matter how hard we try to cover it up with success, good deeds, or image we still fall far short of perfection [Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"].
Fortunately for me, one day another Christian student named Robert randomly asked me my thoughts on Jesus Christ. For some reason at this point I finally began to realize how far I was from perfection, and I began to desire something more than the typical college life. While the initial idea of someone dying for my screw ups and sins didn’t entirely make sense to me, I knew that I needed something to fill this messed up hole inside me. After doing some research on the actual historical person of Jesus Christ I eventually came to the conclusion that what Jesus claimed and others were witnesses to was for real [1Corinthians 15:3-6 "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time"].
After realizing that God has offered this gift to everyone I desperately wanted to have it. Through my Christian community at Madison I learned that only through faith or believing in Christ can we receive this gift [Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast"]. I decided to take this step of faith and it has and will continue to change my life forever.
It’s an awesome thing to come to the realization that Christ actually died for you and me so that by believing in Him we can be acceptable in Gods eyes [John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life"]. I wish I could say my life has been way easier since I’ve begun my relationship with Christ, but the reality on earth is that people screw up and life may be hard. However, I can tell you that the guidance, peace, and joy I have felt through this relationship compares to nothing else in my life [Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus"].
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