Before Jesus Changed My Life
I was raised in a home where my parents were followers of Christ, and they had me baptized as an infant. I participated in Sunday School and completed my confirmation during my youth, which signified my commitment to follow Christ for the remainder of my life. I struggled significantly to grasp the true nature of Jesus, as the church I attended primarily preached to us without encouraging personal Bible study. I was aware of who Jesus was, yet my comprehension of Jesus was limited to what others conveyed about him. Someone I love faced challenges with substance use disorder, which deeply impacted me. I felt the weight of that in ways I didn’t always understand. I made my own mistakes, some of them in reaction to pain, some of them just out of my own weakness. My struggles distanced me from my relationship with Christ to the extent that I ceased attending church for most of my adult life. The absence of Christ in my life left me feeling as if I were trapped in a dark abyss, plagued with never-ending anxiety and depression. However, one thing remained true. Despite the harmful journeys I experienced, God was always present, safeguarding me. I desperately longed to know Jesus personally.
How Jesus Changed My Life
In June 2023, after being invited by a family friend to attend a service at First Open Bible Church in Cedar Rapids, Reverend John Helmuth shared a prophetic message about my spiritual calling. He stated: “There’s something your mother has birthed in your spirit that is coming forth. It’s a voice I hear in the darkness, the voice of hope. Hear that voice, and as you go into those dark places, when you speak with the authority that God has placed unto you, you will see darkness leave and you will see people coming to Christ. There’s a call, a mighty call upon your life.” This prophetic message seemed to serve as a nurturing of that seed of hope I knew was always in my heart. Later that year, my fiancé and I felt called to begin a new journey at Veritas, sensing God was leading us to a greater purpose. I started to attend church regularly, and I felt compelled to begin personal Bible reading. As I engaged in this practice, I realized that the gospel of Jesus Christ doesn’t just save us from the penalty of sin, it breaks sin’s power in our lives. The Psalms helped me comprehend God's nature, revealing that He is a God abundant in power, love, grace, mercy, and faithfulness. In Psalm 34:18, it states, “the Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”
On June 3rd of this year, I experienced an encounter with God while reading the Gospel of John. The passage I read in John 5:28-29, which declares: “Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” Instantly, I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit within me, saying, "it is time." I was paralyzed, unable to move from my couch. A wave of emotions washed over me; I found myself shedding uncontrollable tears. I recognized I was a sinner, burdened by years of guilt, shame, anger, and unforgiveness. I held all these sins with no repentance. If tomorrow were not promised, I realized that I did not embody any traits of Christ, nor did I live for Him. Jesus desired my heart, and on that day, I acknowledged my brokenness and submitted to Him for healing.
My Life After Jesus Saved Me
When Jesus rescued me from my state of brokenness, I started to grasp the significance of forgiveness, love, and reconciliation. The death of Jesus on the cross serves as the supreme example of this. He extended forgiveness to those who inflicted upon him unimaginable suffering. He prayed for them, saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34). It is not our instinct to react with forgiveness towards the pain caused by others, which often leads us into a state of brokenness. Nevertheless, Jesus calls us to do so. When I discovered forgiveness for those whose pain caused me to fall into my own weakness, I found freedom, healing, restoration, and love at the deepest levels of my being. Jesus exemplified the highest form of love by healing the sick and blind, casting out demons, raising the dead, and feeding multitudes. He instructed us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves, to pray for others, to make sacrifices for them, and to engage in these actions not as a one-time act but as ongoing practices. To understand the genuine essence of love, Apostle Paul articulates this in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. In verse 13, with an emphasis that "So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." Jesus came to redeem sinners so that we may have eternal life with God in heaven, as God extends to us forgiveness, liberation from sin, and the promise of a renewed life. Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
When I am asked about the meaning of my name 'Draziyo', I respond with its literal meaning, which is "death no more." Through a revelation from the Holy Spirit, I discovered that my name is literally inscribed in the Lamb's Book of Life. Revelation Chapter 21:4 states, "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." The Gospel reveals we all possess eternal life through Jesus. To me, this isn't just about living forever; it’s about the kind of life I am given, that I am united with Him, and that I have a present and future. My current life and relationship with Jesus give me so much purpose to live deeper, authentically, and closer to the One who created me. Each day serves as a reminder that nothing can separate me from the love of God.