I became a Christ Follower at a Harvest Crusade (started by Greg Laurie) in San Diego on July 4, 1999. My older brother, Matt, took me with his church. What a joy it was for him to see me saved. He had been working on me for years. Matt was the first of my family to make a commitment to Christ. He also led my father to the Lord a couple of years before.
Matt first became a Christian when I was a sophomore in college (around 1994). He became a Navy Seal, married and moved to Virginia. After these big moves in his life, Matt and his wife, Kristin, knew they needed the Lord so they committed their lives to him. I was so upset when he told me and I of course resisted when he witnessed to me. My mother was a known atheist in our family and never encouraged us to learn about the Lord. I went to church a few times as a child and even had my dad read the book of Matt to me (because that was my brother’s name). My best friend Ivan was the son of a local preacher. I even visited his dad’s church but I was never interested in learning about Christ at the time. God never gave up on me and continued to place Christians in my life.
In high school, I got involved with the Cross Country and Track teams. My coach and his wife, Dave and Lisa, were Christians. I really admired the way they lived their lives with such joy. It was apparent that they loved each other, their children and mostly of all Jesus. It opened up a whole new world for me. I loved spending time at their house and on trips (for training and having fun). During my junior year, Lisa took my friend Julie and I to a Young Life camp. I had fun playing during the day but when the nightly talks about Jesus came I became very uncomfortable and afraid. On the last night, I knew their would be an alter call and I wasn’t ready to make the commitment. My friend rededicated her life to Christ and many others gave their lives to Him that night. If felt relieved that I wasn’t the only one who didn’t get up that night but I also felt that I had disappointed Lisa.
As I transitioned to college life in Davis, CA (over 300 miles from home), I really missed Dave and Lisa and my teammates. The first semester was tough and I wanted to go home. I even got so “desperate” (at least that is what I thought at the time) that I got on my knees and cried out to God. Days later I forgot about all of this because things were getting better. I joined the Cross Country and Track teams at Davis and started to have a lot of fun (trying to have fun without Jesus). I felt more independent than ever (I wasn’t restricted at home growing up because I was a total goody-goody and my parents trusted me). All the while, God continued to work on me. He placed 3 Christian girls on that team and I became good friends with them. One of the girls, Becky, was known as being way too “fanatical” for Jesus. She kept ”preaching” about the drinking and other stuff that happened on the team. I laughed right along with the others knowing inside that Becky was right. Pride kept me from looking to God. I didn’t want to admit that my brother and Becky were right.
During my third year in college, things got really tough and great (so I thought). I got injured and my running career and hanging out with the team, which I loved, seemed to be over. During this time met and dated my first boyfriend and started coaching at the local high school. I basically did not keep my relationship with my boyfriend pure and did something that the world didn’t think was bad because we were “in love” and we were “adults”. I guess I liked feeling I wasn’t such a goody-goody. These were my rebellious years. We dated until graduation. During the summer after graduation, I met another guy who seemed very exciting. I broke my boyfriend's heart after that summer and immediately started dating the other guy. That next year I earned my teaching credential at Davis. This new guy progressively showed his true colors. He was selfish, immature and treated me terribly. I was blind as a bat! I even decided to move to the Bay Area to teach at Woodside High since this guy was moving back to that area. I finally broke up with this guy after a few months and dated a few more guys. I started to realize that these relationships were very empty and I also was disappointed to find out that being physical close with someone doesn’t bring fulfillment. I knew I needed Christ but still resisted. At this time I started calling my brother asking for his “advice”. He told me things I didn’t think I wanted to hear but that my soul was crying out for. He told me that I needed something bigger that any human…I needed Jesus Christ. That summer after my first year of teaching and failed relationships I knew I was ready and I turned my life over to Jesus at the Harvest Crusade.
After I committed my life to Christ, I made him a promise that I would save myself for a Christian man. I didn’t date for 3 years and I became closer and closer to Jesus during this time. I became a member of Calvary Chapel of San Mateo (my brother was going to CC of Point Loma and encouraged me to go there) during this time. I also got really involved with triathlons…I loved it! I attended a church service at the Wildflower Triathlon in March of 2001 and was amazed at how this race director and his family took the Lord so seriously. I e-mailed him during the summer and asked him if he knew of any Christian triathletes I could train with in the Bay Area. I was then introduced to Troy Soares (I think you know himJ). When we first met, I knew he was the one in the back of my head but I just treated him like a friend. It was on a bike ride and that very night we attended the first Night of Prayer at the River. I guess you could say it was a first dateJ We started to date and knew instantly this was going to be so great! Troy and I fell in love and decided to save ourselves for each other. We married ten months later and that is when I joined up with the X-Stream groupJ God is so good!!! He pulled me up from the depths and delivered me from my sin and gave me a wonderful gift, my husbandJ I look forward to growing together in the Lord and having our future children grow up in a Christ-filled home.
