“I grew up Catholic, but my family left the church because they felt cheated. I still always had faith in a higher being, but because of past experiences didn’t want to associate with any one religion.
Growing up I got myself into some bad situations, and one time I got arrested. I prayed and prayed to be released, and things didn’t go my way. I blamed God and lost my faith. When I eventually got released, I went into a really dark place. I didn’t want to have anything to do with anyone, and didn’t talk to anyone for almost a year.Then something happened that changed everything.
My Grandpa was my hero, and I looked up to him. He was everything to me. It was in my darkest time that he passed away. I didn’t understand why. He was a good person, and I viewed it as a punishment. I did the only thing I could do in this moment, I started praying again. I felt like something was missing in my life, and I wanted peace. In high school I asked my parents if they could go back to church, but they didn’t want to.
Then I met a girl. She was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, but I didn’t think anything of it because at the time I didn’t know what a “mormon” was. Missionaries started talking to my family, and my mom made me listen. Every Wednesday they would come over and I became comfortable with the missionaries. When the missionaries changed, I no longer felt comfortable because I felt like they were being pushy.
Despite everything, I still believed in catholicism. I ended up dating the girl that was a member of the church. I went to church with her at one point and in the talk that was given they talked about eternal families. It really caught my attention because family was so important to me. When my girlfriend took me with her and her family to see a temple open house, her mom started talking to me about the symbolism in a sealing and I became more interested.
Time wore on and my girlfriend and I got married. Shortly after, I met an inspired set of missionaries that explained things in a way that I understood. They let me work at my own pace, and they seemed to really understand where I was coming from. At one point one of the elders asked me to pray about what we’d been discussing and see how I felt about it. I prayed, and felt good about what I had been learning. I made the decision to be baptized. I am still trying to shed my old skin, but I feel like I learn and grow each day. I am praying more and feeling more comfortable in the gospel. I now feel like I have a supportive community, being apart of the church, and that’s something I have never had before.”
I Am Converted 