During my 8th grade year, I looked at what I had become. I had gone from a sweet little girl who loved Jesus, to a young teenager who walked like there was no hope in life — as if all the stories I had heard about God delivering those who love Him meant nothing. I immediately reached out to God and asked Him to deliver me from myself, to change my heart and let me start all over again.
I’m not a big fan of change and it was a bit difficult to adjust to the weather and the new way of doing things. Learning the language was quite easy for me however, because I was young, and I loved reading. Although there were many opportunities for increasing my knowledge and expanding my horizons, I did not notice I was becoming bitter and angry.
I spent a significant amount of time thinking about my previous home and all the friends I left behind. I couldn’t seem to make a worthwhile friendship at the schools I went through, and it made me taciturn and despondent. From Grades 6–7 I went to an Adventist academy and while the environment was extremely good, I couldn’t seem to find my place. I really remember getting along well with my teachers, as they reached out to me. I think they could see something in me that I couldn’t, and they tried to draw me out of my shell.
During my 8th grade year, I looked at what I had become. I had gone from a sweet little girl who loved Jesus, to a young teenager who walked like there was no hope in life — as if all the stories I had heard about God delivering those who love Him meant nothing. I immediately reached out to God and asked Him to deliver me from myself, to change my heart and let me start all over again.
For the second semester of my freshman year, my mom asked me if I wanted to attend Great Lakes Adventist Academy. I felt a strong conviction that I should go, even though I was thoroughly scared of being in a new environment. Thankfully, I had two friends that went there at the time and they helped me transition smoothly. Slowly through the chapel meetings, the weeks of prayer, the dorm worships, God spoke to me and became a real presence in my life. I saw how He had been and continued to be an essential part of my daily life. I realized that I had only needed to reach out to Him, and he was going to do everything in His power to bless me and help me develop that much needed relationship with Him.
He has been so good to me, and I praise Him for the work that He has done and continues to do for me and through me. There’s nothing better than knowing He’s always with me and I just ask Him to help me be a blessing to others.
Marelin Gonzalez is junior class pastor at Great Lakes Adventist Academy.
